Baseball Sweeps Dowling, Molloy Friday in South Carolina
WARRIORS OPEN UP 2014 SEASON 2-0, STARTING OFF SUCCESSFUL SLATE WITH TWO NON-CONFERENCE VICTORIES
Links: Dowling Box Score | Molloy Box Score
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - The Merrimack College baseball team opened up the 2014 with a pair of thrilling victories, including a 4-3 victory over East Coast Conference foe Dowling College. The Warriors then went on defeating Molloy College by a score of 4-3 on Friday in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The Basics
Game 1 Score: Merrimack 4, Dowling 3
Records: Merrimack (1-0) | Dowling (0-1)
Location: Polo Grounds | Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Game 2 Score: Merrimack 4, Molloy 3
Records: Merrimack (2-0) | Molloy (0-1)
Location: Polo Grounds | Myrtle Beach, S.C.
How It Happened: Dowling College
After Dowling tied the game in the bottom of the fifth at three runs a piece, Merrimack was able to take a one-run lead in the seventh and giving the Warriors their first victory of the season.
Six Warriors finished with a hit against the Golden Lions, as sophomore Mike Forgione (North Branford, Conn.) and sophomore Bobby Losanno (Peabody, Mass.), accounted for five of Merrimack's nine hits. Senior Eddie Newton (North Billerica, Mass.), Frank Crinella (Springfield, Mass.), sophomore Sean O'Neill (Norwood, Mass.) and senior Alex Ciuollo (Fall River, Mass.) also posted a base hit for the Warriors.
Junior Joe Carnelvale (East Providence, R.I.) picked up the win allowing three runs in seven innings while striking out seven, while senior Tyler Cuming (Red Bank, N.J.) put away the final six outs for his first save of the season.
After both sides put up zeros through the first two innings, Merrimack edged ahead with two runs in the top of the third.
Crinella drove in the Warriors' first run of the day with a single to left field to score Forgione from second. O'Niell plated Newton with a two-out single to right field.
Merrimack added a run in the top of the fourth as Forgione landed an RBI single to center field to drive in Losanno. The Golden Lions cut the deficit to two, 3-1, with a score in the bottom of the fourth. Parisi doubled down the right field line to knock in Going to get Dowling on the board.
Dowling rallied back scoring two runs and tying the Warriors, 3-3, in the bottom of the fifth. Rodriqguez scored off a fielder choice from Abreu then Going sacrificed singled to bring in Cruz.
Two innings later, Newton drove in the winning run with a RBI single to left field sending Ciuollo home. The Golden Lions then threatened the Warriors with two runners on first and second with two outs but Cuming put away the final outs to seal the 4-3 victory for Merrimack.
A Closer Look: Dowling College
- Merrimack and Dowling were both held to a 9-for-32 performance at the plate.
- Four different Dowling players recorded at least one hit, with Cruz four-hit performance standing out.
- Carnevale faced 38 batters as well as threw 121 pitches and 80 strikes.
- The Warriors posted two fielding errors while Dowling only posted one.
How It Happened: Molloy College
Merrimack scored the first two runs of the game, highlighted by a two-spot in the bottom of the first and a run in the sixth and seventh inning. The Warriors completed a two-team, two-game sweep in South Carolina with an 4-3 victory over Molloy on Friday afternoon.
Crinella had a big day and was the offensive leader for the Navy and Gold, finishing 2-for-3 at the plate while also scoring two runs. Behind him, freshman Ryan Petrone (Cherry Valley, Mass.) finished 1-for-2 and chipped in with the third run for the Warriors. Finally, Newton and senior CJ Flannery (Hudson, Mass.) added a run each, while Flannery's run was the winning tally for Merrimack.
Meanwhile, senior Conner McMahon (Westfield, Mass.) tossed six quality innings in his first start of the year, finishing with two strikeouts and eight hits. Behind him, senior Travis Terrill (Hudson, N.H.) totaled two innings holding the Lions to only one hit, while Cuming pitched the final inning for the Warriors.
Two quick runs in the top of the first sparked Merrimack's offense in the early going. After Newton led off the game with a walk, Crinella ripped the ball over the fence in center field to give the Warriors a 2-0 advantage after a half inning of play.
Two innings later, Molloy came back and tied the game. It started when Carlos Guzman blasted a solo shot to right field. Four batters later, Kevin Podell notched an RBI single, driving home John Galanoudis for the tying run.
Guzman recorded his second RBI of the game in the fourth inning when his sacrifice fly allowed for Zach Norton to score, putting Molloy up, 3-2.
However, Merrimack promptly responded with a run in the sixth, as Petrone's sacrifice fly led to his first RBI of the game, bringing Crinella home, to tie the Lions at 3-3. The Warriors tallied the game winning run in the bottom of the seventh thanks to a Crinella's RBI ground-rule double, sending Flannery home.
In the final innings of action, the Lions left a runner on base and were unable to find the equalizing run.
A Closer Look: Molloy College
- The Lions held a 9-3 advantage in hits, while both teams registered an error.
- Crinella finished the game with a .667 slugging percentage as well as a .750 on base percentage.
- In this afernoon's game, O'Niell recorded nine putouts at first base.
- For Molloy, Norton and Guzman each had two hits, while pitcher Bobby Kelly hurled 1.2 shutout innings of relief with one strikeout.
What They Said
"I am very proud of the way we competed and how hard we played in both games," said third-year head coach Jim Martin. "Both games were total team efforts vs two quality opponents. It is a great start to the season but we have to focus on Caldwell now."
Up Next
Merrimack returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 22, when they take on Caldwell at Griffith Field as part of the Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
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