Ravens pitching staff strikes out 21 batters combine between both games

Sophomore Zach Soulier struck out nine batters in game two for Stonehill.

EASTON, Mass. (April 21, 2012) – Franklin Pierce University, ranked third overall in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) East Regional Poll, swept a Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10) Northeast Division doubleheader from Stonehill College, ranked fourth overall in the NCBWA East Regional Poll, by scores of 2-1 and 7-3 on Saturday afternoon at Lou Gorman Field.

Franklin Pierce 2, Stonehill 1

Sophomore Ryan Leach (Farmingdale, Maine/Hall-Dale) pushed his record to 6-1 overall on the season throwing eight innings, allowing four hits, one run (earned), one walk and a game-high eight strikeouts. Junior Ryan Thompson (Calgary, Alberta/Univ. of Connecticut) collected his first save on one inning pitched and one walk.

Senior Kyle Shepard (Boxford, Mass./Masconomet) was handed the loss tossing seven innings, yielding six hits, two runs (both earned) three walks and six-strikeouts. Freshman Jim Duff (Garden City, N.Y./Garden City) pitched two scoreless innings alongside three hits.

Franklin Pierce took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning as junior shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass./Tantasqua Regional) lifted a sacrifice fly to centerfield with the bases loaded. Shepard held the Ravens in check in the frame with a pair of groundouts to short.

Stonehill evened the score at 1-1 in the bottom half of the inning with a two out double to left centerfield by freshman Billy Horobin (Wallingford, Conn./Mark T. Sheehan) and a RBI single from junior shortstop Michael Zeiner (Simsbury, Conn./Simsbury) to right field.

In the sixth inning, sophomore first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H./Pinkerton Acad.) crushed a leadoff triple to right center and came around to score on Nick LaCroix's (Grafton, Mass./Grafton) sacrifice fly to right field.

Leach squandered the Skyhawks best chance to tie the game in the bottom half of the sixth stranding runners at first and second with one out on a pop up and a groundout to short. Leach struck out three batters over the next two innings before giving way to Thompson.

The Ravens top of the order consisting of Dan Hennigan (Downingtown, Pa./Philadelphia Univ.), Kemp and James Roche (Arlington, Mass./Bentley Univ.) all collected multi-hit games.

Franklin Pierce 7, Stonehill 3

Sophomore Kevin McGowan (Nashua, N.H./Nashua North) helped the Ravens complete the doubleheader sweep striking out a game-high nine batters over seven innings of work. McGowan yielded seven hits, three runs (all earned) and issued one walk. Junior left-handed pitcher Vladimir Camacho (Jamaica Plain, Mass./Western Oklahoma State College) picked up his first save of the season on two scoreless innings and four strikeouts.

Sophomore Zach Soulier (Milford, Conn./Jonathan Law) was dealt the loss on five-and-two-thirds innings pitched, eight hits, five runs (four earned), three walks and nine strikeouts. Freshman Armand Rugel (Middletown, R.I./Middletown) went three-and-one-thirds innings, allowing three hits, two runs (both earned) and one walk.

In the top of the second inning, Mathieu put the Ravens on the scoreboard first with a leadoff homer to centerfield, his team-leading 11 solo shot of the season, for a 1-0 lead.

Dan Fratus (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) singled home Zeiner in the bottom of the third inning to tie the score up at 1-1, his 29^th RBI of the season. Zeiner walked with two outs and advanced to third base on a single through the right side of the infield by senior centerfielder Michael White (Lisbon, N.H./Lisbon Regional) before scoring.

Franklin Pierce reclaimed the lead in the fourth as freshman Matt Walsh (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) launched a home run to left centerfield for a 2-1 advantage. Senior Isaac Wenrich (Westlawn, Pa./Wilson) homered to right centerfield in the fifth to make it 3-1 and the Ravens tacked on another run in the frame on a bases loaded walk from LaCroix.

Stonehill cut into the deficit at 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning as freshman catcher Matt Anziano (Belchertown, Mass./Belchertown) lifted a sacrifice fly to centerfield and Horobin ripped a run-producing single to right field. Senior Steven Popp (Unionville, Conn./Farmington) had a leadoff single to centerfield and Shepard slugged a ground rule double to left field to set up the scoring.

LaCroix drove in a pair of runs in the ninth inning with a double just in front of the centerfield wall.

Mathieu posted a 2-for-4 line with two runs scored and one RBI at the plate while LaCroix was 1-for-4 with three runs batted in and sophomore left fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass./West Roxbury) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Fratus had the Skyhawks only multi-hit game going 2-for-4 with one RBI out of the cleanup spot.

Stonehill (23-16, 11-10 NE-10, 6-7 Northeast Division) takes on Rollins College on Monday, April 23 in non-conference action at DeFelice Field on the campus of Bentley University. Franklin Pierce University (27-12-1, 14-4-1 NE-10, 9-3-1 Northeast Division) travels to Assumption College for a NE-10 matchup on Tuesday, April 24 at 3:30 p.m.