HARTFORD, Conn. - The University of Maine baseball earned  a critical Saturday sweep of the Hartford Hawks on Saturday, picking up 15-0 and 5-2 victories to keep their postseason hopes alive. 

After a frustrating 6-5 loss yesterday afternoon, Maine desperately needed a bounce back performance on Saturday to keep their chances of earning a spot in the America East Playoffs a possibility. 

Game one was started by Alex McKenney, who put up a dominant six inning performance with just one hit and three walks surrendered and no runs allowed. He struck out six and was aided by an errorless defensive effort. 

The offense was electric in game one, setting a new season high with 15 runs, four doubles, and 14 walks. Jake Rainess (4) and Colby Emmertz (1) both launched home runs, as six Black Bears recorded multiple RBI. 

Game two was a tighter affair, as a Jake Marquez 2-RBI single kept Maine at a 2-2 tie with Hartford through the first four innings. Maine finally broke through in the fifth via a Scout Knotts RBI-double, followed by a pair of runs scoring on a Hartford error to make it 5-2. 

Sean Lawlor provided an insurance run via an RBI-single in the seventh, his 30th of the season, and Matt Pushard worked a scoreless seventh to secure the 6-2 victory.

Noah Lewis earned the win on the mound, his fourth of the year, going six innings and allowing three hits, two runs (one earned), and three walks while striking out five. 

Maine now sits at 13-15 in the America East conference, within striking distance of the two playoff spots in the 'A' Division. They'll need to continue picking up wins, starting tomorrow at 11:00 AM with a single nine-inning game against Hartford on AmericaEast.tv.