Kauffman hits first home run as a Raven

***Box score will be added as soon as it is available***

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (March 16, 2010) – Senior second baseman Cody Kauffman (Blue Bell, Pa.) went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run on Tuesday night, but the No. 12/20 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball was defeated by Nova Southeastern, 12-6, in non-conference play at NSU Baseball Complex. Junior first baseman Dustin Maggs hit 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, drove in three runs and scored twice in the victory for Nova Southeastern.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 9-2 (0-0 Northeast-10) and has its six-game winning streak snapped. With the win, Nova Southeastern improves to 10-14 (1-5 Sunshine State).

After a scoreless first, Franklin Pierce opened the scoring with a run in the top of the second inning. With two outs, graduate student first baseman Mike Augustine (Kingston, N.Y.) knocked a double down the left-field line and came in to score as freshman center fielder Nick LaCroix (Grafton, Mass.) reached on an error.

Nova Southeastern would answer immediately with a run of its own in the home half of the inning. With one out, junior center fielder Matt Seese worked a walk and would score two batters later on a double down the right-field line by junior shortstop Luis Penate.

Franklin Pierce would reclaim the lead, this time at 3-1, with two runs in the top of the third inning. The first run came with one out, when junior third baseman Derek Ingui (Sterling, Mass.) launched his second home run of the season. Sophomore catcher Mike Dowd (East Bridgewater, Mass.) followed with a single to right field and took second on a wild pitch. After a single by junior left fielder Mike Munoz (Bronx, N.Y.) moved Dowd to third, senior right fielder Phil Hendricks (Pittsfield, Maine) would bounce into an RBI fielder's choice to give the Ravens a two-run lead.

However, Nova Southeastern would explode for seven runs on five hits and an error in the bottom of the fifth to erase the deficit and take an 8-3 lead which it would never relinquish. Maggs had the big blow in the inning, with a double into the gap in right-center which drove home a pair of runs. Senior second baseman McCans and sophomore designated hitter Nikko Echevarria also drove in a run apiece in the inning with an RBI single and a sacrifice fly, respectively.

The Ravens later picked up a run on Hendricks' first home run of the season in the top of the seventh and two on Kauffman's first home run as a Raven. It was the first home run for him since he hit a pinch-hit home run on April 19, 2007 against Northeastern, when he was a freshman at Massachusetts.

However, it would not be nearly enough to make a comeback against Nova Southeastern, which added two runs of its own in both the seventh and eighth innings to create the 12-6 final. Echevarria brought home his second and third runs of the day with a two-RBI triple in the seventh, while Maggs picked up his third RBI with a double down the left-field line in the eighth.

Graduate student right-hander Sean Keeler (Cazenovia, N.Y.) started on the mound and took the loss (2-1) for Franklin Pierce. Over four innings, he allowed six runs on seven hits, walked five, threw three wild pitches and struck out one.

Junior right-hander Sean Koecheler started on the hill, tossed five innings and picked up the win (1-4) for Nova Southeastern. He surrendered three runs (two earned) on six hits, walked two, hit two batters, threw a wild pitch and struck out six.

The Ravens return to the field on Wednesday, March 17, when they travel to defending national champion Lynn for a non-conference contest. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at McCusker Sports Complex in Boca Raton, Fla.