Just minutes after feeling like the scapegoat after his two-out fluke error allowed Framingham State to tie the game in the ninth, shortstop Ryan Walsh played the part of the hero.

Walsh delivered a two-strike, two-out walk-off single, giving the Beacons an 8-7 victory in their home opener against the Rams.

The Beacons (10-12, 3-1 in Little East play) were led by junior Ryan Oshima, who played centerfield for the first time since high school.

Normally a second baseman, Oshima was notified during batting practice that he would fill in for injured centerfielder Jake Chastain. He responded by driving in four runs, a season-high.

Also contributing was catcher Eric Salvador, who had three hits in addition to scoring the game-winning run on Walsh’s single.

The Beacons trailed by a score of 4-0 early, but answered back in the fifth inning with a five-run frame. Oshima nailed a double just inside the third base foul line, scoring junior Tom Michael and sophomore Drew Tambling.

Salvador then drove in Oshima with a double and scored the very next at bat when senior third baseman Mike Dorval drilled a triple to the opposite field. To cap off the scoring, junior Casey Rice plated Dorval with a single, giving the Beacons a 5-4 lead.

Oshima wasn’t done driving in runners, however. In the sixth, he plated a runner with a base hit, and capped his day off with a squeeze bunt in the eighth to score Michael from third base.

The scrappy centerfielder also was robbed on a hit in his second at-bat, as his screaming liner was snagged by the Rams second baseman.

Despite a 3-12 record, the Rams kept fighting back to stay in the contest. The pitching for Framingham State kept the Beacons’ bats off balance, as their assortment of soft-tossing finesse specialists frustrated the Beacons.

Traditionally a fastball-hitting team, and having seen quality pitching the past few games, the Beacons struggled to adjust to the change in velocity for the first couple innings before breaking out in the fifth.

Starter Tom Michael tossed 5 innings for the Beacons before turning the game over to the bullpen. Mike Cain struggled with his control, allowing five walks in 2.2 innings, but was able to pitch his way out of trouble and keep the Rams offense scoreless.

Junior Anthony Lauretto pitched 1.1 innings to close out the game, and earned his first collegiate win.