Bulldogs seventh-straight win ends Ravens 12-game win
streak
SMITHFIELD, R.I. (April 27,
2004) - Bryant College, ranked No. 21 in this week's
National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division
II Poll, put an end to No. 25 Franklin Pierce's program-record
12-game win streak with a 4-0 victory at the Bryant Athletic
Complex this afternoon.
Junior right-hander
Steve Sloan (Franklin, Mass./Franklin)
threw seven-innings of five-hit shutout baseball with a walk and
two strikeouts to pick up his eighth win of the season (8-1). He
combined with freshman Anthony Jones (Bristol,
Conn./Bristol Eastern) and junior left-hander
Mickey Ryan (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) for
the shutout. Jones yielded two hits and a walk with two strikeouts
in 1.2 innings, while Ryan notched a save, fanning the only batter
he faced in the ninth.
Sophomore Nick
Tucarella (Salem, N.H./Central Catholic) paced the
Bulldogs offense as he hit 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI.
Ryan, who started the game in centerfield, hit 1-2 with a double,
three stolen bases, two runs scored and an
RBI.
Sophomore Randy Fenton
(Worcester, Mass./Doherty) hit 2-4 for Franklin
Pierce with a double, while senior Dante Blancarte
(South Berwick, Maine/Amesbury (Mass.)) was also 2-4.
Sophomore Mike Chambers (Londonderry,
N.H./Londonderry) finished 1-3.
Freshman Daniel
Fournier (Worcester, Mass./Holy Name) suffered the
loss, allowing four runs, just two earned, on six hits and three
walks with seven strikeouts in eight innings for the Ravens.
Bryant struck first in the bottom
of the first as Ryan drew a leadoff walk, stole second and advanced
to third on a throwing error by Franklin Pierce sophomore catcher
John Richard (Auburn, Mass./Holy Name).
Ryan scored on a Tucarella groundout two batters later.
Richard was making his first career
start behind the plate for the Ravens as junior Eric
Cavers (Otisfield, Maine/Oxford Hills) was forced to
miss the first game of his collegiate career, ending streak of 138
consecutive games, due to an injury sustained on Sunday's
game-ending double-play collision at the plate in the Ravens 1-0
win at Stonehill.
Bryant added two runs in the third
for a 3-0 cushion as Tucarella roped a two-run double to score Ryan
and sophomore Adam Rourke (Rowley,
Mass./Triton). Ryan's RBI double in the seventh
scored sophomore Chris Brown (Norwalk,
Conn./Norwalk), who registered a leadoff double, to
round out the scoring.
Franklin Pierce, which out-hit
Bryant 7-6, left 11 runners on base for the afternoon, including
the bases loaded with none out in the sixth and threatened in the
ninth before leaving the bases loaded to end the game.
Franklin Pierce (25-17, 20-5 NE-10)
and Bryant (33-11, 21-7 NE-10) round out their season series
tomorrow afternoon in Rindge, N.H., at 3:30 p.m.
BOXSCORE
& PLAY-BY-PLAY
