#7
Franklin Pierce Gets Back MELBOURNE,
Fla. (March 22, 2006) –
Franklin Pierce, ranked No. 7 in this week’s Collegiate Baseball
magazine Division II Coaches’ poll, shook off last night’s
disappointing loss at top-ranked University of Tampa and posted an 8-3
victory at the Florida Institute of Technology at Seminick-Hall Field
this afternoon.
Junior righthander Nate
Berbarian (Northborough, Mass./Northborough),
slated as Franklin Pierce’s closer this season, made a spot start
for the Ravens and turned in a solid five innings of work, yielding
just an earned run while scattering six hits with two strikeouts to
earn his first win of the season (1-0). The top half of the Franklin Pierce lineup did the damage on offense, as the Ravens one through five batters were a combined 9-for-21 with seven RBI. Senior All-American Bryan Duplissie (East Swanzey, N.H./Monadnock Regional) led the way as he hit 2-for-4 with a home run, stolen base, three runs scored and two RBI. Senior Mike Chambers (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) was 2-5 with a pair of stolen bases, a double two RBI and two runs scored. Junior Kim Hart (Gorham, Maine/Gorham) hit 2-4 with two RBI, while freshman Scott Savastano (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) finished 2-3 with an RBI and stolen base.
Florida
Tech, which out-hit Franklin Pierce 13-12, was led on offense by
sophomore Brendan
Twomey (Boca Raton, Fla./Pope John Paul)
who was 3-for-4 with an RBI. Senior Devin
Hopkins (Pembroke Pines, Fla./Nova)
was 2-4 with an RBI, while classmate Bryan
Stanton (Merritt Island, Fla./Merrit Island)
was 2-4 with a double and run scored. Junior Jonathan
Baksh (Mississauga, Ontario/Applewood Heights)
rounded out the Panthers with multiple hits by going 2-4.
Freshman Mike
Piazza (Port St. Lucie, Fla./Lincoln Park)
suffered the loss (2-1), allowing four runs, all earned, on seven hits
and three walks with two strikeouts over six innings. Franklin Pierce, which was held off the scoreboard in the first inning for just the third time this season, broke through with a single run in the second. Duplissie led off the inning with a single through the left side, and later scored on a two-out single from Savastano.
Duplissie
followed a double from junior All-American Garrett
Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills)
and RBI single by Chambers with a two-run homer to put the Ravens up
4-0 in the third. The homer was his team leading sixth of the season
and third over the last two days.
Florida Tech got a run back in the fourth as Stanton roped a
one-out double and later scored on a Hopkins single to right. The
Ravens got that run back in the seventh when Olson reached on an
infield single and later scored on a double play.
Franklin Pierce broke the game open with three in the ninth
after the Panthers retired the first two batters of the inning.
Chambers roped an RBI double down the line in right and later scored,
along with Duplissie (walk), on a two run single from Hart down the
leftfield line.
Trailing 8-1, the Panthers didn’t go down quietly, scoring
twice in the bottom of the ninth. Twomey notched an RBI single through
the right side before sophomore Brandon
Veronee (Chester, Va./Thomas Dale)
drove in the final run with a sacrifice fly.
Franklin Pierce (13-2, 0-0 NE-10) continues its Sunshine State tour tomorrow at No. 21 Florida Gulf Coast University at 5 p.m. Florida Tech (18-10, 3-3 SSC) hosts Saint Leo College for a three-game Conference series beginning Friday at 3 p.m. |
