By Jen Toland, College Beat Writer
April 30, 2014
The Worcester State baseball team needed to win both ends of Saturday's doubleheader against Salem State to claim a share of the MASCAC regular-season title, so coach Dirk Baker went with his 1-2 pitching punch of Ben Libuda and Kris Doyle to get the job done.
Libuda, a junior left-hander from Auburn, allowed one run on six hits as the Lancers took Game 1, 6-1, while Doyle, a junior right-hander from Millbury, hurled his second straight shutout in Game 2, 9-0, as Worcester State earned a piece of its seventh MASCAC regular-season crown as well as the right to host this weekend's MASCAC Tournament, beginning Friday at Rockwood Park.
The Lancers (22-14) have won 10 of 11 as they head into the playoffs.
"Everything is coming together all at once," Doyle said. "Pitching, fielding, hitting, and we have great unity right now. (The tournament) is going to be exciting because everything is forming all at once."
Libuda and Doyle were Southern Worcester County League foes in high school, and their paths eventually led to them to become teammates in college.
Libuda attended Community College of Rhode Island for one year before transferring last spring to Worcester State. Doyle went to Franklin Pierce for a year and pitched one inning of relief for the Ravens as a freshman. He transferred to Worcester State in the fall of 2012, and resumed baseball this spring.
"It's pretty cool we're on the same team right now," Libuda said. "It's awesome to have Kris come to Worcester State. He was a great pitcher in high school, and he's getting back in the swing of things. I (pitch the first game of doubleheaders) and he competes so hard in the second game. He always tries to throw a better game than me, which is awesome."
Neither Libuda nor Doyle can recall being opposing starters in high school, but the Auburn-Millbury rivalry ran deep.
"We'd nod if we saw each other at football games," Doyle said, "but when it was time to play the game against them, we were big rivals. Now we're on the same team. It's different having a former rival on my team and we're pretty close."
Baker began throwing the 6-foot-7 Libuda and the 6-4 Doyle in tandem for the team's first conference doubleheader against MCLA on March 29. It was a winning combination that day, and has continued to be. Libuda is 4-2 with a 2.00 ERA (4-1, 2.25 in conference games) and Doyle is 5-3, 2.87 (4-1, 1.91).
"I usually feed off him," Doyle said. "Whatever he does, I try to go out and do better. It's really a friendly competition between us."
As a sophomore, Libuda appeared in nine games with five starts and went 4-1 with a 2.56 ERA. He rounded into form late in the year, pitching splendidly in relief in a first-round MASCAC tourney game against Bridgewater State. He retired 13 straight batters and helped the Lancers to an 8-7 win in 11 innings.
He has continued to improve his location and has thrown six complete games this year.
"I've come a long way," Libuda said. "I've gotten stronger, and I've become smarter on the mound and more mature. I'm starting to stay within myself and be smart."
The Lancers earned a first-round tourney bye and will face the winner of Thursday's game between Westfield State and Fitchburg State in a quarterfinal at 3 p.m. Friday.
"We try not to get ahead of ourselves," Libuda said. "When we go out there and just compete, we do really well as a team."