Browne's 14-Strikeout Performance Leads Baseball to Series Win over Queens Saturday
Links: Box Score (G1) | Box Score (G2)
FLUSHING, N.Y. – Sophomore lefty PJ Browne (Rutland, Mass.) punched out 14 Queens College Knights on Saturday, the most for a Warriors starter in three years, as the Merrimack College baseball team split a doubleheader on Saturday with its CACC foes to record a series victory in the three-game set from Hennekens Stadium.
The Basics
Score (G1): Merrimack 11, Queens 1
Score (G2): Queens 8, Merrimack 5
Records: Merrimack (11-5) | Queens (6-8)
Location: Hennekens Stadium | Flushing, N.Y.
How It Happened (G1)
Browne was dealing in his fourth start of the season. He struck out five Knights through the first three innings, not allowing a single run, while a lone hit was the only blemish over the first nine outs.
A four-run top of the fourth gave Browne some run support. With the bases loaded, junior Cam DiSarcina (Shirley, Mass.) hit a RBI single that scored Chris Cimmino (Orange, Conn.). Senior Sean O'Neill (Norwood, Mass.) followed with a sacrifice fly and designated hitter Matt Brown (Belmont, Mass.) contributed a two-out, two-run single to make it 4-0 Warriors.
Queens got one run back in the bottom of the fourth, as Thomas Parish scored on an error by the Warriors' infield. Two runs in the fifth and three more in the seventh blew the game open for Merrimack. Junior Ryan Petrone (Leicester, Mass.) continued his hot hitting with a wall-ball double, scoring Mike Forgione (North Branford, Conn.). O'Neill singled Petrone home to make it 6-1 Merrimack.
Two innings later, reserve Matt DiNello (Southing, Conn.) roped his first-ever triple to get things going. He came around on a run-scoring single by Petrone, and the combination of O'Neill and Brown knocked in the other runs of the frame on a single and sacrifice fly, respectively.
The story of the game, however, was Browne's dominance on the hill. He struck out two more Knights in the fifth, and got out of a jam in the sixth. After loading the bases, the southpaw struck out the next three hitters, all swinging, to escape without adding a run. Queens saw its first three hitters reach base again in the seventh, but Browne induced two strikeouts and a flyout to prevent any further damage.
Sophomore Joe Westerman (Sandwich, Mass.) pitched two hitless innings of relief to secure the win. The Navy and Gold added two insurance runs in the ninth to complete the 11-1 victory.
How It Happened (G2)
Senior Zach Schindler (Halifax, Mass.) got the ball in the series finale, and DiSarcina's RBI groundout gave the lefty a 1-0 lead entering the bottom of the third. The Queens offense responded with a three-run frame to take its first lead of the series, 3-1.
A three-run sixth got the lead back for Merrimack. A single, a hit by pitch and a walk loaded the bases for Merrimack with zero outs, starting the rally. Freshman Matthew Ronai (Orange, Conn.) drew a five-pitch walk to push the first run across. Senior captain Pat Florence (Lowell, Mass.) slapped a single to right field for the game-tying score and a groundout from DiNello plated Merrimack's fourth run of the game.
Queens took the lead back in the bottom half. Schindler allowed the first two batters to reach base, giving way to sophomore Anthony Lupi (Dover, N.H.). The first batter Lupi faced utilized a squeeze play to score the tying run, and reached first on the play. The next batter also bunted, scoring the go-ahead run, but was out at first base. The inning ended with a grounder, preventing further Queens' scoring.
The Warriors got one back in the seventh after loading the bases. Brown beat out a potential double-play ball as Bobby Losanno (Peabody, Mass.) scored from third to make it 5-5. Despite loading the bases again into the top of the eighth, the Warriors could not score sending the 5-5 contest into the bottom half of the inning.
A three-run eighth highlighted by a two-run double gave Queens an 8-5 advantage entering the ninth inning. The Warriors could not muster a rally in the ninth, losing the series finale, 8-5.
Inside The Numbers
- Browne's final line (W): 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 14 K's
- Schindler's final line (ND): 5.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 8 K's
- Browne's 14 strikeouts are the most for a Warriors starter since March of 2013, when teammate Tim Cashman (Rowley, Mass.) mowed down 12 AIC Yellow Jackets. Westerman's four strikeouts brought the game total to 18 for the Warriors staff, the most in a game since Merrimack punched out 17 Saint Anselm Hawks in 2012
- DiSarcina posted five hits on the day to lead the Warriors attack. The Preseason All-Region selected scored three of Merrimack's 16 runs on the day
- Brown totaled five RBI, including a career-high four RBI in the opening contest.
Up Next
The Navy and Gold begin a seven-game homestand on Monday afternoon when the Warriors take on Post University from the Warrior Baseball Diamond at 3:30 p.m.
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