Leach turns in second straight stellar relief outing

RINDGE, N.H. (April 2, 2013) – Freshman second baseman Justin Brock (Latham, N.Y.) went 3-for-4 with two triples, scored once and drove in three runs out of the nine-hole on a blustery Tuesday afternoon to lead the No. 30 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team to a 9-2 win over Saint Anselm in Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division play at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field. Junior right-hander Ryan Leach (Farmingdale, Maine) threw three shutout innings out of the bullpen for the second time in four days to pick up the win (2-3).

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 17-9 (7-0 Northeast-10, 4-0 Northeast Division), while Saint Anselm falls to 8-14-1 (3-4 Northeast-10, 0-3 Northeast Division). The win is the seventh in a row for Franklin Pierce, matching the team's longest win streak from last season (April 3-7).

The Ravens opened the scoring with a run in the bottom of the first inning. Senior center fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass.) started the home nine's offensive day with a walk, stole second and went to third on a groundout. Junior first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H.) turned on a first-pitch fastball on the inside corner and lined a ball deep down the left-field line. The ball one-hopped the fence and was called fair for an RBI double, despite the protests of Saint Anselm senior third baseman Robert Kelly and junior left-hander Zach Brian.

Saint Anselm answered immediately and drew even at 1-1 with a run in the top of the second. Junior center fielder Dan Lagasse worked a seven-pitch walk leading off, moved to second on a wild pitch, took third on a passed ball and scored on an RBI groundout by freshman catcher Allan McQuarrie.

Franklin Pierce wasted a golden opportunity to take the lead in the bottom of the third, when Brock went the other way into the right-field corner for a lead-off triple, setting the table for the top of the order behind him. However, Graves popped up on the infield and senior shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass.) struck out, failing to drive the run in from third with less than two outs. Mathieu walked on four straight pitches and stole second, but then senior right fielder Nick LaCroix (Grafton, Mass.) bounced out to second to end the inning.

The Ravens did reclaim the lead with a run in the bottom of the fifth. Sophomore catcher Matt Walsh (Plymouth, Mass.) was hit by a 3-0 pitch leading off, moved to second on a wild pitch, went to third on a groundout and scored as freshman designated hitter Rich Patrizio (East Northport, N.Y.) bounced into a fielder's choice.

Franklin Pierce pushed the lead to 3-1 with a run in the bottom of the fifth. Mathieu started things with two outs with a six-pitch walk. During the ensuing at-bat, he broke for second, as Brian threw behind him at first. The pickoff attempt sailed over the head of the first baseman, allowing Mathieu to come all the way around to score on the error.

Two more runs in the bottom of the sixth inning extended the lead to 5-1. Walsh worked a lead-off walk on five pitches, which spelled the end of the day for Saint Anselm junior left-hander Zach Brian, who was lifted in favor of senior right-hander William O'Connor. O'Connor got a groundout that moved Walsh to second, but then hit sophomore third baseman Matt O'Herron (Springfield, Mass.) with a pitch to put runners at first and second. Two batters later, Walsh got a huge jump attempting to steal third, and O'Herron was delayed breaking for second on the double steal. McQuarrie elected to go to second base on the play, but the throw one-hopped the bag and skipped away from the shortstop, allowing Walsh to score from third. The error wound up a moot point anyway, as Brock followed and lined a single back through the middle to plate O'Herron.

Saint Anselm scratched out a run in the top of the eighth inning to cut the gap to 5-2. Sophomore first baseman Mike Hayden led off and legged out an infield single, but was erased at second while Lagasse reached on a fielder's choice. Lagasse moved to second on a wild pitch, went to third on a groundout and scored when sophomore left fielder Joe Morin ripped an RBI double down the left-field line.

The eighth-inning run came against Franklin Pierce sophomore right-hander Doug Willey (Shelburne, N.H.), after Leach acquitted himself nicely through three innings in relief of senior right-hander Matt Horan (Boston, Mass.). Leach, who retired all nine batters he faced against Massachusetts Lowell on Saturday, allowed only one hit in his three innings of work, though two errors were committed behind him as well. He was not as clean as Saturday, as he did walk one and struck out just two, but he did record five of his nine outs via the groundball.

Franklin Pierce made sure Leach's work stood up in the bottom of the eighth, when it sent 10 men to the plate and scored four times to create the 9-2 final. With one out, O'Herron lined a single into left field and moved to second when Patrizio reached on an error. Both would score when Brock followed with his second triple of the day, this one lined into the power alley in right-center field to break the game open. Brock later scored on an RBI infield single by Graves. In turn, Graves scored on an RBI single through the left side by Mathieu, who rebounded from an 0-for-9 series against Lowell over the weekend by going 3-for-3 with two walks, scoring once and driving in two runs on Tuesday.

Horan used 78 pitches to get through four innings in his spot start on Tuesday, necessitated by a schedule which features six games for the Ravens this week. He allowed only one unearned run on two hits (both doubles), walked four, threw a wild pitch, struck out four and did not factor in the decision.

Brian started for Saint Anselm and pitched five innings before leaving after the sixth-inning leadoff walk. He allowed four runs (three earned) on two hits, walked four, threw a wild pitch, hit a batter and struck out three on the way to the loss (0-1).

The Ravens return to the field on Thursday, April 4, when they remain home to host Saint Michael's in a Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division contest. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Pappas Field.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce baseball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).