Junior Chris Hoyt went 5-for-10 at the plate and scored two runs in two games today as Stonehill advanced to the NE-10 Tournament final.

Skyhawks fall to Franklin Pierce 4-1, but avoid elimination with 14-3 win over Adelphi

WEST HAVEN, Conn. (May 8, 2015) – Stonehill College advanced to the final day of the Northeast-10 Conference Baseball Tournament, splitting a pair of games this afternoon against Franklin Pierce University and Adelphi University at Frank Vieira Field on the campus of the University of New Haven. Stonehill fell to Franklin Pierce, 4-1, before rolling to a 14-3 win over Adelphi in an elimination game.

Stonehill (33-12-1, 16-7 NE-10), the third seed from the Northeast Division and No. 3 ranked team in the NCAA East Region, moves on with a chance to capture its fourth NE-10 title in program history tomorrow with two wins over Northeast Division top seed Franklin Pierce (45-2, 24-1 NE-10). The Ravens, ranked No. 1 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division II Poll and No. 3 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) DII Poll, needs just one victory to claim their fifth conference crown. The two teams will meet at 11 a.m. tomorrow morning, with a winner-take-all game to follow if the Skyhawks come out on top in the opener. Adelphi sees its season come to a close at 20-21 overall, and 11-11 in conference play.

#1 Franklin Pierce 4, #3 Stonehill 1

Franklin Pierce used a quick start on offense and an impressive pitching display from junior right-hander Miles Sheehan (Madison, Connecticut/Clark University) to get past the Skyhawks in the opener. Sheehan went the distance, striking out 11 batters and allowing just one unearned run on four hits to improve to 6-0.

Stonehill senior Neal Horan (Mashpee, Massachusetts/BC High) also went the distance, recovering nicely from a tough start with nine strikeouts over his eight innings of work. Horan gave up four runs (three earned) on four hits and six walks.

Junior outfielders Brian Campbell (Franklin, Massachusetts/Mount Saint Charles Academy) and Chris Hoyt (Walpole, Massachusetts/Xaverian Brothers) accounted for all four of Stonehill's hits with two apiece, while senior shortstop Dan Fratus (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) walked and drove in a run.

Franklin Pierce was led by NE-10 Player of the Year Jay Jabs (Schwenksville, Pennsylvania/Perkiomen Valley), who got on base three times with two walks and a single, while also stealing a pair of bases and scoring two runs. Senior outfielder John Razzino (Cranston, Rhode Island/CC of Rhode Island) singled and scored a run, while senior catcher Matt Walsh (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) recorded two sacrifice flies.

The Franklin Pierce offense staked Sheehan to an early lead, plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the first. Jabs drew a one out walk, before advancing to third on a single by Razzino and scoring on a wild pitch. Razzino would also come in to score later on the first of two sacrifice flies by Walsh to cap the two-run frame.

The Ravens added another run the next inning, as sophomore Kyle Hood (Arlington, Massachusetts/Arlington) worked a leadoff walk and eventually scored on a sacrificed bunt by junior Maxx Sheehan (San Jose, California/West Valley College), but Stonehill answered in the fourth on an RBI groundout by Fratus. 

Franklin Pierce regained its three-run edge in the fifth, as Jabs led off with a single before coming around to score on Walsh's second RBI fly out of the afternoon. The Skyhawks threatened in both the seventh and eighth innings, but Sheehan stranded a pair of runners in scoring position before retiring the side in order in the ninth.

#3 Stonehill 14, #4 Adelphi 3

After being held to just four hits in the loss to Franklin Pierce, the Stonehill offense broke out in a big way against Adelphi, piling up 14 runs on 16 hits to advance to the final day of the NE-10 Tournament.

Junior Brian Campbell was 5-for-7 with a double, two RBI and four runs scored.

Senior catcher Eric Schneider (Camarillo, California/Saint Bonaventure) led the offensive outburst, going 3-for-5 at the plate with two doubles, four RBI and two runs scored. Campbell was 3-for-3 with two RBI and three runs, while Hoyt and senior second baseman Christian Baglini (Milford, Connecticut/Notre Dame High) combined for five hits and five runs out of the top two spots in the order.

Junior left-hander Patrick Nicholson (Middleboro, Massachusetts/Middleboro) improved to 7-1 with the win after giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits through five innings.

Senior Rich Cambria (Sound Beach, New York/Rocky Point) and sophomore John Fogarty (Westbury, New York/Clarke) paced the Adelphi offense with two hits apiece, while Cambria, classmate Nick Zito (Nesconset, New York/Smithtown West) and freshman Kory Cassara (Mastic, New York/Eastport South Manor) drove in one run each.

The Panthers held a 2-1 edge heading into the bottom of the third, before Stonehill took the lead for good with six runs on six hits. Hoyt led off with a bunt single, advancing all the way to third with the help of an Adelphi throwing error. Baglini came up next and recorded an RBI single, while Campbell and Fratus each followed with singles as well. Schneider plated Stonehill's second and third runs of the frame with a single up the middle, and later in the inning sophomore Ben Monte (New Haven, Connecticut/Guilford) cleared the bases on a three-run double.