CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Senior Forrest Chadwick (Gardiner, Maine) went 4 for 5 with two doubles and two RBI as the fifth-ranked University of Southern Maine Huskies pounded out 19 hits en route to a 16-4 victory over the M.I.T. Engineers in a non-conference game Thursday afternoon at Briggs Field.

            The victory was the third straight for the Huskies and improved their overall record to 10-3.  The Engineers, unbeaten in their previous three games (2-0-1), dropped to 4-3-1.  The two teams are scheduled to meet on April 6 at USM.

            Sophomore Sam Dexter (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee), junior Jake Glauser (Goffstown, N.H.) and rookie Matt Bender (Walpole, Mass.) had three hits apiece for the Huskies.  Senior Chris Bernard (Scarborough, Maine) and sophomore Nick DiBiase (Portland, Maine/Deering) chipped in a pair of hits.  Dexter and Bernard also had three RBI.

            Sophomore right-hander Shyler Scates (Jefferson, Maine/Erskine Academy) picked up his third win of the season going the first five innings on the mound.  Scates allowed two runs on four hits and three walks while fanning three.  Four Huskies relievers followed Scates pitching an inning apiece.

            No M.I.T. batter had multiple hits in the game.  Sophomore Kendall Helbert (St. Louis, Mo./Lindbergh) had a two-run double off Scates in the fourth inning to put the Engineers on the board.

            Senior starting pitcher Rob Bertucci (Bellville, Ill./St. Louis Univ. HS) was tagged with the loss after going just one inning.  Bertucci gave up four runs in the first inning on four hits and two walks.  Engineer pitchers also gave up eight walks and hit two batters in addition to the 19 USM hits.

            The Huskies jumped on Bertucci in the first inning.  Dexter had an RBI single to open the Huskies parade of hits.  After Chadwick doubled to put runners at second and third, Bernard doubled to left field bring in Dexter and Chadwick.  Bernard would score later when Glauser singled to center.

            USM tacked on three more runs in the second to increase its lead to 7-0.  Chadwick singled home rookie Paul McDonough (Wells, Maine) with the first run.  Dexter scored on a throwing error, and Chadwick came around on a single by senior Matt Verrier (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills).

            After Helbert got the Engineers on the board in the home half of the fourth inning, the Huskies put the game away with six runs in the fifth.  Dexter had a two-run single to ignite the rally.  Senior Troy Thibodeau (Danvers, Mass./New Hampton) picked up an RBI with a bases loaded walk, and DiBiase followed with a two-run single.  Glauser drove in Thibodeau with another single to center.

            M.I.T. picked up an unearned run in the seventh inning on junior Reid Bishop's (Cypress, Texas/Houston Christian) RBI fielder's choice.  USM added three insurance runs in the eighth, and M.I.T. picked up a run in the ninth inning on freshman Spencer Bard's (Lumberton, N.J./Moorestown Friends School) groundout to account for the 16-4 final.

            Southern Maine is on the road again Friday (3:30 p.m.) traveling to Endicott College.  M.I.T. will host Brandeis University on Friday (3:00 p.m.). 

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