Ravens erase two early deficits, Savastano goes 4-for-4,
Chambers drives in three
RINDGE, N.H. (April 13,
2006) - Franklin Pierce, ranked 18th in this
week's National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA)
Division II poll and 22nd in Collegiate
Baseball magazine's poll, answered Tuesday's 5-2 setback at
30th-ranked UMass Lowell with a resounding 13-5 victory
over the River Hawks in Northeast-10 Conference baseball action at
Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field this afternoon.
Franklin Pierce trailed 3-0 after a
half inning and 4-3 in the middle of the fifth before taking its
first lead with four runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Ravens
banged out 13 hits, including five for extra bases and two home
runs.
Freshman Scott
Savastano (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) led the
Ravens offense as he hit 4-for-4 with a home run, stolen base, two
runs scored and two RBI. Senior All-American Bryan
Duplissie (East Swanzey, N.H./Monadnock Regional) was
2-3 with a double, homer, two RBI and three runs scored, while
classmate Mike Chambers (Londonderry,
N.H./Londonderry) was 1-3 with a stolen base and
three RBI. Sophomore Matt Anderson (Medford,
Mass./Medford) chipped in by going 1-4 with two
RBI.
Junior right-hander
Shane Presutti (Southbridge,
Mass./Southbridge) picked up his sixth win of the
season (6-0), allowing five runs, three earned, on five hits with
nine strikeouts and four walks over eight innings.
Junior Erik Willett
(Salisbury, Mass./Triton Regional) suffered the loss
(0-2), surrendering four earned runs on two hits and two walks in
two-thirds of an inning of work in relief of starter
Joe Malzone (Leominster,
Mass./Leominster). Malzone allowed three runs, two
earned, on three hits with three strikeouts and two walks over the
first 3.2 innings.
Junior Patrick Wilson
(Dracut, Mass./Bishop Guertin) was 1-for-3 at the
plate for the River Hawks with a double and RBI. Junior
Steve Paddock (Milford, Mass./Milford)
was 1-5 with a home run, stolen base and two runs scored.
UMass Lowell opened the scoring
with three in the first as Wilson followed a one-out single by
sophomore Tim Manton (Swansea, Mass./Joseph
Case) with an RBI double off the wall in the left
center. With runners on second and third, a passed ball allowed
Wilson to score and Anderson's throw went past the pitcher covering
home to allow the third run to score.
Franklin Pierce knotted the score
in the second. Duplissie was hit by a Malzone pitch to leadoff the
inning, and later scored on a throwing error after Pennell reached
with a bunt single to load the bases. A sacrifice fly brought home
a second run, before the tying run scored on a ground
out.
The River Hawks forged ahead again
in the fifth as junior Sean Patno (Chelmsford,
Mass./Chelmsford) singled to lead off the inning and
later scored on an error. The Ravens erupted with four in the home
half to take the lead for good. Willett walked the first two
batters of the inning before Chambers belted a double to the gap in
left center to drive them in. Duplissie followed with a bloop
double down the line in right to score Chambers, before Savastano
greeted UML's third reliever with an RBI single up the middle.
Duplissie and Savastano smacked
back-to-back homers with two out in the seventh to give Franklin
Pierce some more breathing room (9-4). Paddock homered for UML in
the eighth to pull a run back, but the Ravens scored four more in
the home half to put the game away. Anderson and senior
Elliott Shea (Jaffrey, N.H./Conant)
notched RBI singles, while Chambers and junior Garrett
Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills) each added
sacrifice flies.
Franklin Pierce (24-8, 9-4 NE-10)
returns to the diamond on Saturday when it visits Bentley College
for an NE-10 doubleheader beginning at noon. UMass Lowell (24-6,
11-4 NE-10) hosts Merrimack College for a doubleheader Saturday at
noon.
Boxscore
& Play-by-Play
