#22
Franklin Pierce Rolls NORTH
ANDOVER, Mass. (April 10, 2006) –
Franklin Pierce, ranked No. 22 in this week’s Collegiate Baseball
magazine Division II coach’s poll, had a record-setting afternoon in
posting an 11-1 victory over Merrimack College in Northeast-10
Conference baseball action at Warrior Baseball Field.
Junior right-hander Tyler Cummings (South Paris,
Maine/Oxford Hills) turned in eight strong innings to pick up
his fourth win of the season (4-1), allowing just an unearned run on
four hits with eight strikeouts and no walks. The win was the 21st
of Cummings’ career as he takes over sole possession of first place
on Franklin Pierce’s all-time victory list, ahead of Chris Shank and
Jon White, who each compiled 20 career wins. Cummings (21-12 in his
career) did not allow a hit over his final six innings of work this
afternoon. Senior Elliott Shea (Jaffrey, N.H./Conant) enjoyed a record setting day for the Ravens as well. He hit 5-for-6 with a school-record four doubles to go with five RBI and a run scored. Shea’s five hits matches the program’s single-game mark, while the four doubles surpass the previous record (one shy of the NCAA Division II mark) of three two-base hits accomplished four times, the last coming by Shea himself against UMass Lowell on May 20, 2005, in an NCAA Tournament game.
Freshman
Scott Savastano (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) was
2-for-4 with a stolen base and two RBI for the Ravens. Senior Mike
Chambers (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) hit 2-5 with a
double, run scored and RBI, while classmate Randy Fenton
(Worcester, Mass./Doherty) finished 2-4 with a pair of stolen
bases, two runs scored and an RBI. Sophomore Matt Anderson
(Medford, Mass./Medford) also scored three times.
Freshman Jeff Bercume (Worcester, Mass./St. John’s of
Shrewsbury) had two of Merrimack’s four hits as he finished
2-for-4 with a run scored. Freshman Doug Heald (Tewksbury,
Mass./Tewksbury) hit 1-3. Freshman Nick Buckman (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro) suffered the loss for the Warriors (0-1) as he was hit for seven earned runs on eight hits with a strikeout and two walks over 5.1 innings.
Franklin
Pierce jumped ahead with a pair of runs in the first marking the 22nd
time in 29 games this season the Ravens have scored in their first at
bat. Shea led off with his first double of the afternoon and scored on
a single by junior Garrett Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills)
with one out. Olson later scored on a Savastano ground out. Merrimack
cut the lead in half in the home half as Bercume led off with a single
and later scored on a throwing error by the Ravens catcher.
Franklin Pierce added two more in the third thanks to a pair of
Merrimack errors. Chambers led off with a double and later scored on
an error, as did Olson, who earlier reached on the error that scored
Chambers. Anderson singled and later scored on Shea’s second double
of the afternoon in the fourth.
The Ravens broke the game open with two in the sixth and three
in the seventh. Shea roped a two-run double in the sixth to put
Franklin Pierce up 7-1. Fenton sparked the seventh with an RBI single,
while Shea followed with a two-run single, for a 10-1 lead. The Ravens
capped the scoring with an RBI single from Chambers in the ninth. Franklin Pierce (22-7, 6-3 NE-10) is back in action tomorrow when opens a huge two-game midweek series with No. 30 UMass Lowell at LeLachuer Park in Lowell, Mass., at 7 p.m. The Ravens return home on Wednesday to host Merrimack at 3:30 p.m. Merrimack (8-14, 4-7 NE-10) hosts Assumption College tomorrow at 3:30 p.m., before heading to Dr. Pappas Field on Wednesday. |
