Senior Dan Fratus went 3-for-3 with a double and two runs to lead Stonehill to an 8-7 win over Merrimack. |
Karalis belts 10th career home run in final collegiate home game
EASTON, Mass. (May 3, 2014) – Stonehill College utilized six multi-hit efforts to defeat Merrimack College, 8-7, in a back-and-forth Senior Day contest this afternoon in Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division baseball action at Lou Gorman Field.
Senior shortstop Dan Fratus (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) led the Skyhawks with a 3-for-3 effort, including a double and two runs, while classmate Billy Karalis (Pawtucket, Rhode Island/Bishop Feehan) went 2-for-5 and clubbed his team-leading seventh home run of the season. Sophomore Chris Hoyt (Walpole, Massachusetts/Xaverian Brothers) picked up two doubles and two RBI, and classmate Brian Hocking (Duxbury, Massachusetts/BC High) added two hits, including an inside the park home run. Freshman Steve Lee (Braintree, Massachusetts/Braintree), who hit his first collegiate home run in yesterday's 9-5 win over the Warriors, chipped in with a pair of hits and one RBI today.
Junior Ryan Rougeot (Cheshire, Connecticut/Cheshire) picked up the win in relief after taking over for starter Jeremy Roberts (Reading, Massachusetts/Malden Catholic), and giving up two runs in three innings of work. Junior Armand Rugel (Middletown, Rhode Island/Middletown) closed the door on the Warriors in the ninth for his NE-10-leading 12th save of the season.
Merrimack was led by senior second baseman Eddie Newton (North Billerica, Massachusetts/Arlington Catholic), who went 3-for-4 with two doubles, two runs, and one RBI, while classmate Alex Ciullo (Fall River, Massachusetts/B.M.C. Durfee) and freshman Cam DiSarcina (Shirley, Massachusetts/Groton) had two hits apiece.
Senior Billy Karalis went 2-for-5 with a home run in his final regular season home game. |
Freshman lefthander Joe Velozo (Tewksbury, Massachusetts/Malden Catholic) took the loss for the Warriors after giving up seven runs (six earned) on 11 hits in 5.1 innings of work.
After trading unearned runs in the second and third innings, Stonehill took a 4-1 lead with three run in the bottom of the fourth. Fratus led off with a double, and advanced to third as the next batter flied out. He then came around to score on a groundout by Lee for the second out of the inning. Hocking followed with an inside the park home run on a ball that bounced off the centerfield fence, and Karalis made it back-to-back on the next play with his seventh homer of the season.
Merrimack came right back with four runs in the top of the fifth, however, to regain a 5-4 lead. Newton and Ciullo singled, and sophomore Mike Forgione (North Branford, Connecticut/North Branford) walked to load the bases. Classmate Frank Crinella (Springfield, Massachusetts/Springfield Central) drew another walk to drive in a run, and DiSarcina cleared the bases on the next play with a three-run double to left center.
The Warriors took a 6-4 lead in the sixth on an RBI double by Newton, but the Skyhawks responded with their second three-run frame of the contest to go up 7-6. Lee and Hocking led off the bottom of the sixth with consecutive singles, and two batters later Hoyt drilled a double off the left field fence, scoring two. Campbell came up next and delivered another RBI double, scoring Hoyt. Stonehill added one more run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by Hocking, and the Warriors got one run back in the ninth before Rugel picked up the save.
Stonehill (28-17, 17-9 NE-10) will wrap up its regular season tomorrow night with a makeup contest at Southern New Hampshire University before opening the Northeast-10 Tournament on Wednesday. Merrimack finishes its season at 21-20 overall, including 15-16 in the NE-10 and 9-12 in Northeast Division action.
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