NORHTBOROUGH, Mass. – The Brandeis University baseball team opened its 2019 season at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Massachusetts today, and the Judges came away with a sweep of Bowdoin College, 4-2 and 9-3, in a battle of Judge baseball alumni head coaches. Derek Carlson '91 sees his Judges improve to 2-0, while Michael Connolly '94 and the Polar Bears fall to 0-2.

HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME ONE

• Junior pitcher Greg Tobin (Medway, Mass./Catholic Memorial) was the story for Brandeis in game one, as he tossed a complete-game three-hitter in the 4-2 victory.
• Tobin struck out two and walked three, and made just one mistake, a two-run home run to Bowdoin's Austin Zakow in the fourth inning.
• The Polar Bears' Brandon Lopez had a fine outing in the losing effort, allowing just four hits and four runs (three earned) in going the distance. He struck out four and walked two.
• Brandeis got single runs in the second on an RBI groundout by sophomore catcher Luke Hall (Georgetown, Mass. / Georgetown) and on a two-out single by junior shortstop Mike Khoury (East Bridgewater, Mass. / East Bridgewater) in the third.
• After Zakow tied the game with his homer in the top of the fourth, Brandeis got the two runs back immediately in the bottom of the frame.
• With one out in the fourth, Hall blasted his first career home run to left field to put the Judges back on top. Two batters later, O'Leary delivered his third career round-tripper to almost the same spot in the ballpark.
• That was all Tobin would need, as he retired nine of the last 11 batters he faced to earn his second career complete game.

HOW IT HAPPENED – GAME TWO

• In the second game, the Brandeis offense exploded for nine runs on 15 hits, with eight of the nine starters hitting safely and six different players driving in runs.
• The Judges scored in five of their six at-bats in the second contest, scoring three runs in the first inning and two each in the second and third.
• Big bats on the day belonged to junior 2B Victor Oppenheimer (West Hills, Calif. / Chaminade), who went 2-4 with two runs scored, and RBI, a double and a home run.
• The blast came to lead off the fifth inning and was the second of his career.
• O'Leary and sophomore 1B Alex Parrott (Nashua, N.H. / Nashua South) each went 3-4 with an RBI. Parrott added a run scored, while O'Leary had his second extra-base hit of the day, a doubles.
• Junior 3B Isaac Fossas (Dudley, Mass. / Milton Academy) drove in two runs and had a double on the day, while sophomore DH Scott Ziegler (Avon, Conn. / Avon Old Farms) doubled and scored twice.
• The Judges used five pitchers to secure the win, with junior Albert Gutierrez (Miami, Fla. / Belen Jesuit Prep) earning the win with two innings of scoreless relief of starter Tim Lopez (Brooklyn, N.Y. / East Side Community). Gutierrez earned his second career victory by allowing just one hit and striking out two in the third and fourth innings.
• Bowdoin's top performer was 3B Chris Attanasi, who had two RBI, including a groundout in the second inning and a double in the sixth.  
• First baseman Brendan O'Neil gave Bowdoin a 1-0 lead with an RBI double in the first inning, but the Judges answered with three in the bottom of the frame.

UP NEXT

• The Judges' scheduled doubleheader with Western New England has been cancelled for Sunday, but Brandeis will meet Tufts on Monday at NEBC at 4 p.m. and Nichols on Tuesday at 3 p.m.