VESTAL, N.Y. - Juniors Nick Gallagher and Robert Brown combined on a three-hitter but visiting UMBC (20-24, 10-9 America East) scored twice in the sixth inning and pinned a damaging 2-0 loss on Binghamton (16-28-1, 8-14 AE) Saturday night at the Bearcats Baseball Complex. 

Binghamton's struggling offense was limited to three hits and with the setback, BU now needs at least one win in Sunday's doubleheader (1 p.m.) to keep its slim playoff hopes alive. Even with a sweep of the Retrievers on Sunday, the Bearcats will need help next weekend from UMBC to move into a top-six tournament position. The Bearcats currently sit a half-game behind Albany (8-13) but after Sunday, BU will have finished its 24-game league slate. Albany, meanwhile, plays its final series at UMBC next weekend. Binghamton needs to finish with more wins than Albany since the Great Danes hold the tiebreak advantage.  

UMBC did its scoring with two outs in the sixth. A single and hit batter put runners aboard and the Retrievers' clean-up hitter Christian Torres stroked a two-strike RBI double down the right field line, giving UMBC a 1-0 lead. The second run scored in a wild pitch. 

Binghamton brought the tying run to the plate in each of the seventh and eighth innings but couldn't capitalize. The Bearcats then thought they had a baserunner in the ninth when senior shortstop Paul Rufo appeared to leg out a grounder to deep third but the call went the other way and instead, the ninth was a 1-2-3 frame - BU's fifth down-in-order inning of the game.

Gallagher (L, 3-7) looked strong in his 6.0 innings. He struck out five and only allowed three hits. Brown pitched 3.0 perfect innings with three strikeouts, lowering his team-best ERA to 1.04. 

The Bearcats turned three double plays in the game.

Senior left-hander Nick Wegmann (3-7, 4.10 ERA) will start Game 1 on Sunday and classmate Jacob Wloczewski (2-6, 6.59 ERA) will pitch Game 2.