Crinella Leads Baseball to Doubleheader Sweep of St. Augustine's Friday Afternoon
Links: Box Score (G1) | Box Score (G2)
CARY, N.C. – Junior third baseman Frank Crinella (East Longmeadow, Mass.) led an offensive surge in Game 1 and freshman pitcher PJ Browne (Rutland, Mass.) tossed his first career complete game in Game 2 as the Merrimack College baseball team swept St. Augustine's University in a doubleheader from Cary, N.C. on Friday afternoon.
The Basics
Score (G1): Merrimack 15 | St. Augustine's 5
Score (G2): Merrimack 6 | St. Augustine's 1
Records: Merrimack (6-3) | St. Augustine's (5-13)
Location: USA Baseball National Training Complex | Cary, N.C.
What They Said
Head coach Nick Barese: "I thought we got two great efforts again from Joe Carnevale and PJ Browne. They kept their bats quiet enough and we eventually broke through. We fed off one another offensively and were aggressive on the base path. It was a great way to end our long trip."
How It Happened (G1)
Junior right-hander Joe Carnevale (East Providence, R.I.) took the mound for his second start of the season, looking for his second straight victory to begin the year. He started off strong, striking out two Falcons in a scoreless top of the first inning.
The bats for the Warriors got going immediately. With one runner on base, Crinella launched his first home run of the season to give the Navy and Gold a 2-0 advantage. The All-American also got a leadoff walk to start the offense in the bottom of the third. Followed by a base-on-balls by cleanup hitter Sean O'Neill (Norwood, Mass.), junior Matt Brown (Belmont, Mass.) laced a RBI single, scoring Crinella. Sophomore Tyler Lyne (Agawam, Mass.) added a run-scoring single and the Warriors ended the fram up 4-0.
Carnevale allowed his first run of the season in the top of the fourth. The third-year player tossed nearly 11 scoreless innings to begin the 2015 campaign. The Warriors got out of the frame up by three, and added some insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth. With the bases loaded, redshirt freshman shortstop Paul Buckley (Sagamore Beach, Mass.) collected an RBI double, which scored two Warriors.
In the sixth inning, the Warriors exploded for seven runs. Crinella doubled twice as Merrimack batted around, while Lyne added a bases-clearing double. Freshman Joe Westerman (Maynard, Mass.) made his first career appearance to relieve Carnevale, and the Navy and Gold came away with the 15-5 victory.
How It Happened (G2)
Merrimack served as the road team in the second game of the twin bill. Browne notched his first win of the season last Sunday in an eight-inning performance against Wilmington (Del.).
The first three innings went by scoreless as the Warriors could not get going on offense, but Browne was able to keep the Falcons bats at bay. The southpaw had two strikeouts through the first three frames, including one swinging on a changeup to end the third inning.
The offense got going in the top of the fifth for Merrimack. Brown led off with a double into leftfield. Sophomore Ryan Petrone (Leicester, Mass.) returned to the lineup after a three-game absence. He laid down a bunt for a single, and stole second, setting up a second-and-third, no out scenario for the Warriors. Consecutive sacrifice flies from freshman Matt Nicholson (Rockland, Mass.) and Ricky Smith (Weymouth, Mass.) gave the visitors a 2-0 lead entering the bottom of the fourth.
The runs continued to come across the plate for Merrimack in the top of the fifth, all coming with two outs. Sophomore Cam DiSarcina (Shirley, Mass.) got on base with a double, and came home after Crinella sent a liner into the outfield for a triple. The inning appeared to be over, but the Falcons committed an error on a groundball from Brown, allowing Crinella to score.
Browne would go the distance for the victory. The Warriors scored three additional runs, including Smith's first career hit and RBI in the top of the seventh.
Inside The Numbers
- In the first game, Carnevale went one inning shy of going the distance for the second consecutive state. He tossed six frames, allowing five hits and one earned. He struck out seven Falcons
- Brown did complete seven innings to notch his first career complete game. He allowed allowed four hits and one earned run, while striking out six opponents
- Crinella compiled quite the day. He finished with four RBI, four hits and five runs scored. He had four extra-base hits over the two contests, including two doubles and his first home run of the season
- Lyne put forth another strong day with five RBI over the two games. He was most effective in Game 1, going 2-for-3 at the dish with four RBI
Up Next
The Navy and Gold will return to the region with a 6-3 record. The Warriors will take on Southern New Hampshire, currently ranked 22nd in the nation and picked as the preseason favorites in the Northeast Division, in non-conference action on Monday afternoon beginning at 3:30 p.m. The doubleheader will be hosted at the Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field on the campus of Franklin Pierce University.
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