Northeastern lost, 7-2, to the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park Friday. Photo by Billie Weiss for Northeastern University
FORT MYERS, Fla. – As much as he enjoyed competing against his hometown Boston Red Sox, Northeastern second baseman Luke Beckstein enjoyed talking with them even more.
For center-fielder Mike Sirota and starting pitcher Aiven Cabral, it was a chance for the All-Americans to show their talents against Major League talent.
And for right-fielder Justin Bosland?
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“We never beat them and we wanted to be the team to get it done,” Bosland said.
Once again, that didn’t happen. For the 20th straight time, the Red Sox beat the Huskies 7-2.
2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern University2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern University2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern University2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern UniversityNortheastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss for Northeastern University
The Huskies had their chances on Friday at Jet Blue Park. They had just three hits but with four walks and two Boston errors, the Huskies had baserunners throughout the game. They loaded the bases in the fifth.
A total of 5,971 fans attended. That included Northeastern President Joseph E. Aoun, who spoke to alumni before the game.
“He always enjoys coming to this,” Northeastern coach Mike Glavine said. “I thanked the alums for their support. I recapped the season and asked them to follow our team all year long.”
Last season, the Huskies went 44-16 after losing to Boston 5-3 and earned an NCAA Tournament bid in a season that included sweeps over super regional team Indiana State and wins over NCAA entrants Duke, Connecticut, Boston College and North Carolina-Wilmington.
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Sirota, who earned a variety of all-region and All-American honors after hitting .344 with 18 homers, is ranked as the No. 11 prospect by Major League Baseball.
Cabral, who had a 2.26 earned run average with 68 strikeouts to 12 walks, earned a number of freshman awards.
This year?
“This team is really focused on a conference championship,” Glavine said.
After going 1-2 at Arizona, Glavine felt his team came into Friday’s game looser than last year when it spotted the Red Sox a 5-0 lead in the first before rallying.
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“Last year was more surreal,” Sirota said. “This year it was more about being competitive and beating these guys. Our whole team expects to go out and win. This team will be better.”
2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern University2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern University2/23/24 – FORT MYERS, FL. – Northeastern University baseball team plays the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during 2024 Grapefruit League Major League Baseball Spring Training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss/Northeastern UniversityFor the 20th time, Northeastern University took on the Boston Red Sox at jetBlue Park during spring training at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. Photo by Billie Weiss for Northeastern University
Sirota set the table when he walked in the top of the first inning and stole second easily.
“I knew once I walked I had already made up my mind to steal,” he said. “I was going to go on the first pitch but I missed it so I went on the second.”
He then scored on left-fielder Alex Lane’s RBI single to left.
Cabral went two innings. He gave up one run while spacing out three hits. He redeemed himself after struggling last weekend.
“I was definitely excited to pitch the game against the Red Sox,” Cabral said. “I treated it like any game. I had a pre-game routine of breathing and relaxing because it can get nerve wracking. I threw fastballs and sliders as well as curves, which didn’t get called strikes but looked good.”
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The sophomore said it didn’t hit him who he pitched against until he left the game.
“When I watched the other guys go through the same thing, I realized I was facing some dudes,” Cabral said.
Beckstein found the Red Sox to be cool dudes as he talked to them during the game.
“I said, ‘Hey man, I hope you’ll be successful because it only helps me, being I’m a Red Sox fan,’” Beckstein said. “They said, ‘That’s cool, we appreciate it.’ It was an awesome experience and good energy.
“I’m from Tyngsborough, Mass., I watched Dustin Pedroia, Big Papi growing up. It’s cool to be in the same ballpark playing the Red Sox with their guys who are going to be really good in the coming years.”
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Beckstein also showed his fielding ability in the third when he was part of a relay with Sirota, who nailed a Red Sox runner at third before he also was the relay man on a 6-4-3 double play.
Right-fielder Justin Borland almost matched Beckstein’s efforts but he just missed Mark Contreras’ line drive that went over the right-field fence for a three-run homer in the third. Boston led 4-1.
After the Red Sox pushed the lead to 5-1, Northeastern threatened to make it close in the fifth. Bosland doubled, then scored when Jack Goodman reached second on an error. Goodman was thrown out trying to steal third but the Huskies loaded the bases. However, a strikeout ended the inning.
“I would say when we watched them in batting practice, we were in awe at how far they hit the ball and then walked around,” Bosland said. “But after the first pitch, we treated them like anybody.”
Glavine said while the defense – two errors and a fly ball dropped due to the sun – could’ve been better, he liked the way his team competed.
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“The strike zone is tighter and the ballpark is larger so it takes our guys out of their comfort zone, which is good,” Glavine said. “I thought we had some good, tough at-bats and a couple of chances to score. I also liked the atmosphere. We were loose and having fun with it.”
One of the Huskies’ highlights was seeing pitcher Wyatt Scotti – who doesn’t hit much – go to opposite field to left for a hit. His teammates, standing in the dugout, roared their delight.
Investigators identified Tyler Brown of Boston as the man who allegedly opened fire on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, leaving two victims with life-threatening injuries.
Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said Brown fired 50 to 60 shots on the busy road shortly after 1 p.m. Monday.
Two male victims were hit in vehicles, Ryan said. They are in critical condition and fighting for their lives.
A Massachusetts State Police trooper and a civilian with a license to carry a firearm went toward the gunman and fired their weapons at him. Officers treated Brown at the scene, and he was brought to a Boston hospital, where he is in intensive care, according to the district attorney.
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This video shared with NBC10 Boston appears to show a man opening fire at cars on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Monday, May 11, 2026.
Authorities have, so far, shared limited information about the suspect.
“Mr. Brown is from Boston, and apparently was in the process of moving here. We understand that Mr. Brown was under the supervision of either the Massachusetts Probation Department or Department of Parole,” Ryan said.
She did not elaborate on why Brown may have been on probation or parole.
“We will address Mr. Brown’s criminal record, if any, at the arraignment,” she said.
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Ryan added that she did not know enough about Brown’s condition to say whether he would be arraigned in court or in a hospital bed. The timing was also not clear.
He will face two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and firearms charges, and “a variety of other charges as we unfold what took place, exactly, and we have a chance to speak to the many, many people who were out there,” Ryan said.
An inbound stretch of Storrow Drive and Soldiers Field Road will be closed each night through August for tunnel repairs, officials announced.
Starting Monday, the closures will begin at 8 p.m. and last until 5 a.m., state officials said.
Road closures begin at North Harvard Street in Allston and stretch along the Charles River Esplanade to Mugar Way in Boston, near the Hatch Memorial Shell, officials said.
Traffic will be detoured into Cambridge over the Anderson Bridge, along Memorial Drive, and then be routed into Boston over the Longfellow Bridge.
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The closures will allow ongoing repairs to the Storrow Drive Tunnel in the Back Bay.The work is the first phase of a two-stage project to extend the lifespan of the tunnel, which carries roughly 50,000 drivers to and from downtown Boston daily.
The outbound portion of the tunnel and accompanying roadways will not be affected.
State transportation officials said changes to the work schedule will be made when necessary to minimize impacts during major local events at TD Garden, Fenway Park, or during the FIFA World Cup and 250th anniversary celebrations scheduled for this summer.
Additional changes may be made without notice due to weather.
Transportation officials have not specified when the closures will end.
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Bryan Hecht can be reached at bryan.hecht@globe.com. Follow him on Instagram @bhechtjournalism.
OXFORD — Ole Miss softball is back in the NCAA Tournament after making the Women’s College World Series a season ago.
The Rebels (34-24) will play Boston (46-13) on May 15 (1 p.m. CT, ESPNU) in the Lubbock Regional. Ole Miss is the No. 2 seed in the regional, and Boston is the No. 3.
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Texas Tech (52-6), the No. 11 overall seed and regional host, will face No. 4 Marist (37-19).
The Rebels went 6-18 in SEC play this season, and have a largely new-look roster from the team that made the WCWS last season.
Ole Miss beat South Carolina and Tennessee in the SEC Tournament to improve its seed.
Freshman Madi George has burst onto the scene in the SEC. The first-year infielder leads Ole Miss with a .385 batting average. She has a team-high 21 home runs and 58 RBIs.
Seniors Emilee Boyer (3.86 ERA), Kyra Aycock (3.97 ERA) and junior Lily Whitten (3.04 ERA) are the primary options in the circle for coach Jamie Trachsel.
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Trachsel is in her sixth season leading the Ole Miss program. She led the Rebels to their first WCWS appearance in program history in 2025.
What to know about Boston, Texas Tech and Marist in Lubbock Regional
Boston entered the Patriot League Tournament as the top seed and the Terriers delivered. Boston beat No. 2 Colgate 12-1, becoming the second team in Patriot League history to four-peat as conference champions. Boston is on a 12-game winning streak. Kylie Doherty leads the team with a .396 batting average and 26 home runs.
Texas Tech made the 2025 WCWS championship series, losing to Texas in three games.
Texas Tech lost just three Big 12 games this season but lost in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. The Red Raiders are a strong threat to get to the WCWS again. There are four Texas Tech batters hitting over .400. Star pitcher NiJaree Canady leads the Red Raiders with a 1.24 ERA. She has 209 strikeouts.
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Marist plays in the MAAC and won the conference tournament. Marist split a two-game series against South Carolina early in the season. Ava Metzger (12-3, 2.51 ERA) and Peyton Pusey (.404 batting average) lead the team.
Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at Shutchens@gannett.com or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_
