The Massachusetts baseball team was swept by VCU in its final weekend series, ending the season at the bottom of the Atlantic 10 standings. The Minutemen (14-34-1, 7-23 A-10) didn’t register a series win during the 2025 campaign.
VCU (17-37, 10-20 A-10) escaped UMass’ senior day game by the skin of its teeth, winning 7-4. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Minutemen had the bases loaded with one out and Jack Beverly at the plate. The Rams made a pitching change, inputting Zachary Peters into the game. He struck Beverly out swinging and then forced Mitchell Schroeder into a pop-up to win the game, giving VCU its first series sweep of the season.
“The outcome was unfortunate, and I thought we could have done something special for the seniors at the end there,” head coach Matt Reynolds said. “Really proud of those [seniors] and what they’ve done for the program.”
UMass baseball celebrated nine players in an emotional ceremony. Contributors Zack Zaetta, Kyle Hoog, Mitchell Schroeder, Mikey Jensen, Sam Belliveau and Jack Peters were five who saw the Earl Lorden diamond for the final time. Hoog made two flashy catches late in the game to keep the Minutemen within touching distance. Schroeder, who started off his collegiate career on the Division III level, transferred to UMass in pursuit of Division I baseball. He delivered with a hit early in the game to end off his season.
Michael Aceto was the graduating student that made the biggest mark on senior day. The Hamden, Connecticut native pitched four innings while only allowing one earned run. He delivered four strikeouts on 32 total pitches.
“He’s just a bulldog that came on late,” Reynolds said. “He just kept getting better and better and it was really great to see him deliver multiple innings. He would’ve been the choice anyhow, not just because it was senior day.”
The two seniors in the everyday lineup this season were Carter Hanson and Jack Beverly.
Hanson won academic awards in his sophomore and junior year while also contributing heavily at the plate. He finished two out of his four seasons with an average above .300 and he commanded right field as the everyday starter in his last three years. His one hit Saturday drove in a run that cut the deficit to two in the third inning.
“He’s a guy that played for four years which is something you don’t pay too much attention to,” Reynolds said. “He had kind of a steady climb in his career, and he put up some serious numbers, got some big hits and I’m really proud of what he’s done for us.”
Beverly was the stronghold at the hot corner for two seasons. The power of his bat with his 14 home runs over the last two seasons as well as his defensive consistency helped him become Reynolds’ everyday third baseman. His home run on senior day, as well as his RBI single, proved himself worthy of celebration. Due to NCAA rules, Beverly will get another year with the Minutemen as a graduate student.
“We’re fortunate to get him back next year,” Reynolds said. “He’s made a big splash and basically came in from day one after two years of junior college … He’s been playing on one hamstring here for the better part of probably three weeks.” 2
In the first game of the series, Robbie O’Connor started on the bump. VCU’s offense caused problems early on. The powerful bat of Jacob Lee tagged a ball to left field into the bushes to give VCU a two-run lead. Lee hit three home runs throughout the entirety of the weekend. O’Connor steadied the ship but ran into more trouble in the fifth inning. The redshirt-sophomore’s final line was 4.1 innings pitched, 10 hits and six earned runs without recording a strikeout. The Rams won the game 16-1.
Callen Powers ran into the same trouble on senior day. He let up three long balls, which became his kryptonite throughout the season, finishing No. 2 for the most home runs given up in the A-10. Despite two strong innings in the third and fourth, the effort wasn’t enough to get him the win. After five innings pitched, he allowed six runs on nine hits.
“I think a little bit of fatigue played a role with [O’Connor and Powers],” Reynolds said. “We really asked a lot of them, particularly with some of the injuries and how thin we were on the pitching staff, so you just kind of pick up the slack and maybe ask too much. Certainly, [Powers] had a great year for us overall, and he was rock.”
The second game of the set presented a similar story for UMass. Sam Belliveau started on the bump and contained the Rams offense through five innings. The sixth inning gave him trouble, where he allowed four earned runs, pulling him out of the contest. The Minutemen offense responded late, registering RBI singles from the bats of Michael Toth, Zaetta and Matt Travisano, but Jack Levine struggled late, giving up five earned runs to seal the deal for VCU. The Rams took the game 13-7.
“It’s a disappointment,” Reynolds said. “This is the time to look ourselves in the mirror and see what it is that we could do differently. We’ve got to put it behind us and figure out a way to be better than we were this year, and I’m confident that we’ll get there.”
The series was the end of the road for the Minutemen, and after three championships and many years of memorable history, the game marked the last the school will play in the Atlantic 10 conference.
Zeke Altman can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @EzekielAltman.
