Spring sports are officially underway as the New Haven baseball team opened their season by traveling to Myrtle Beach, S.C. to play their first four games. Coming off a season in which they finished 24-19 and placed sixth in the southwest division of the Northeast-10 (NE-10), the Chargers field a team with young and talented players to complement their experienced players as they look to make it back to the conference playoffs for the first time since 2021.

A new season usually comes with struggles due to a lack of at-bats, but New Haven’s offense got off to a hot start, averaging 8.5 runs per game to start the season.

Scoring 17 runs in a doubleheader against Wilmington University, the lineup gave the Chargers a chance to start the season with two wins, but the Wildcats won both contests in a pair of extra-inning one-run games with a 13-12 win in 11 innings in the first game, and a 6-5 win in eight innings in the second.

In game one, Wilmington scored two in the first on back-to-back home runs from infielder Tyler Pirrung and outfielder Mikey Rodriguez. New Haven responded in the second inning with four runs, started by a leadoff home run by right fielder Tyler Wells, followed by a bases-loaded walk from designated hitter Cole Maucere and two more runs coming on a wild pitch, plating first baseman Andrew Bianco and third baseman Andrew Cain.

New Haven scored at least one run from the second to the seventh inning, taking a 12-7 lead. Wilmington came storming back in the late innings, with a six-run ninth inning that tied the game at 12 and scored the winning run in the 11th on a sacrifice fly from outfielder Nick Nocella.

New Haven struck first in game two of the doubleheader with a four-run fourth inning capped off by a two-run home run to right field off the bat of Wells. Bianco tacked on an opposite-field home run in the fifth to make it a 5-0 game, which is where they stood for the rest of the game.

Wilmington got on the board with a fielder’s choice by second baseman Erik Grady, and the big blow came in the sixth inning on a grand slam from first baseman JJ Killen, tying the game at five.

The game was tied until the eighth inning when center fielder Nic Hertzfeld was hit by a pitch, scoring designated hitter Shawn Edevane and sweeping the doubleheader.

New Haven’s bats struck early against Chestnut Hill College, scoring five runs in the first to lead the way to their first win of the 2023 season. Third baseman Andrew Cain crushed a three-run home run to center field followed by a double by shortstop Kenneth Franquiz to plate the team’s fourth and fifth runs of the inning.

Cain knocked in another run on a single to right field to score Maucere, who hit a one-out single to set up the scoring chance. Wilmington cut into the lead in the middle innings, scoring two runs on a home run by designated hitter Ahmaad Goldson in the fourth inning and scoring on an error in the fifth to make it a two-run game.

In the bottom of the fifth, catcher Josh Lester knocked in a run on a two-out double to right field, followed by a single by left fielder Owen Pincince, plating Lester and giving New Haven an 8-3 lead.

Wilmington scored two runs in the seventh, but it was not enough to erase the deficit they faced all game. Closing pitcher Drew Silverman registered his first save of the season as New Haven found themselves in the win column before their last game of the weekend.

In their final game of the weekend against Molloy University, New Haven once again got off to a hot start at the plate with a huge seven-run third inning that provided all the runs they would need.

Freshman right-handed pitcher Randy Ramnarace got the start for the Chargers with a strong debut, going five innings allowing only one hit and racking up seven strikeouts.

Lester continued his strong start at the plate, driving in the first run for New Haven with a single to center field. After a walk to Pincince, Franquiz hit a grand slam to left field to make it a 5-0 game. New Haven’s clutch two-out hitting continued in the third as designated hitter Matt McIntire singled to left field to score two more.

After a two-run single in the third inning by Molloy third baseman Aidan Larkin, New Haven scored their final two runs of the game in the sixth, coming away with a big 9-2 win against a powerful lineup.

New Haven will go back to Myrtle Beach on Friday as they kick off a three-game series with I-95 rival, University of Bridgeport. This will be the last series for the Chargers before playing five games in Boca Raton, Fla., then coming home for their home opener on March 17 against Bridgeport. More information about the team can be found at NewHavenChargers.com.