VESTAL, N.Y. - Visiting Maine (5-11, 2-0 America East) belted five home runs and used four big innings to pin a 19-9 loss on Binghamton baseball (3-12, 0-2 AE) Saturday afternoon at the Bearcats Baseball Stadium. 

The Black Bears amassed 22 hits and scored their runs in bunches, with four in each of the first, fourth and sixth innings and five more in the seventh to pull away. The Bearcats generated their own offense with 11 hits and nine runs but struck out 12 times and stranded 13 runners. After trimming their margin to 4-3 with two runs in the third, BU surrendered four in the fourth and four more in the sixth to hinder any comeback bid.

Sophomore center fielder Christian Perez went 2-for-5 with a bases-clearing double in the seventh. Junior catcher Connor Aoki hit his team-high fourth home run of the season and drove in two to boost his BU-best RBI count to 11. Freshman DH Evin Sullivan went 2-for-3 and sophomore first baseman Andrew Tan added two RBIs. Meanwhile, junior second baseman Cavan Tully set a painful school record record by being hit-by-pitch four times. Tully was plunked in the third, fifth, sixth and seventh innings before being pinch hit for in the ninth.    

The Bearcats trailed 4-0 before scoring a run in the second and two more on the third to cut into their deficit. In the second, Sullivan led off with a double down the left field line and two batters later, Tan scored him with a double of his own to right center. In the third, Tully reached on his first hit-by-pitch and Aoki followed by sending the first pitch he saw into the bullpen in left field. 

After Maine pushed its lead to 9-3, BU countered with two runs in the fifth inning. The first three batters reached and freshman Devan Bade drew a 1-out, bases-loaded RBI walk and Tan followed with an RBI groundout to make it 9-5. But the Bearcats left two in scoring position and when Maine tacked on four more in the top of the sixth, the rout was on.

Binghamton finished the scoring with an unearned run in the eighth.   

The teams finish up the weekend series with an 11 a.m. game Sunday. The game was moved up an hour to avoid afternoon rainfall.