Schindler Dazzles as Baseball Completes Series Sweep of Stonehill Saturday, 3-1
Links: Box Score
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Senior southpaw Zach Schindler (Halifax, Mass.) finished two outs shy of a complete game, throwing 8.1 innings of one-run ball as the Merrimack College baseball team completed its three-game sweep of Stonehill on Saturday afternoon with a 3-1 victory at Lou Gorman Field.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 3, Stonehill 1
Records: Merrimack (29-17, 13-8 NE Div.) | Stonehill (24-20, 9-12 NE Div.)
Location: Lou Gorman Field | Easton, Mass.
What They Said:
Head coach Nick Barese: "I'm really excited about how this group finished the regular season. Stonehill is a really good team, and to take all three games is a big accomplishment. Hopefully we can keep this momentum going into Tuesday."
NE-10 Postseason Outlook:
The top-four teams in the Northeast Division advanced to the NE-10 Championship, with the top-two seeds hosting the third and fourth seeds in first-round games on Tuesday, May 10. Merrimack will be the third seed, taking on #9 Southern New Hampshire at 6 p.m. in Manchester, N.H.
1. Franklin Pierce (20-1)
2. Southern N.H. (18-3)
3. Merrimack (13-8)
4. Assumption (10-11)
5. Stonehill (9-12)
6. Bentley (7-14)
7. Saint Michael's (4-17)
8. Saint Anselm (3-18)
How It Happened
Schindler took the ball in the regular-season finale for the Warriors looking to match PJ Browne (Rutland, Mass.) with his sixth win of the year. The southpaw got off to a strong start, retiring 12 of the first 13 batters he faced.
Junior Cam DiSarcina (Shirley, Mass.) led the charge offensively. With Mike Forgione (North Branford, Conn.) on second after a leadoff single in the first, Disarcina knocked him in with a single of his own through the right side of the infield.
With the lead still at 1-0 in the fourth and runners on the corners, senior centerfielder Bobby Losanno (Peabody, Mass.) dropped down a bunt single that scored Matt Brown (Belmont, Mass.). In the fifth, Tyler Lyne (Agawam, Mass.) recorded another leadoff hit, and DiSarcina produced another run, lacing a double into the left-center gap to push the Warriors advantage to 3-0.
After a leadoff double in the bottom of the fifth, Schindler proceeded to retire the next 11 Stonehill batters, but with two outs into the eighth ran into trouble. A walk and two singles led to the Skyhawks' first run of the day, but Merrimack's lefty buckled down to get the last out on a line out to second.
In the ninth, Stonehill was able to chase Schindler from the game after getting two baserunners and sending the potential game-winning run to the plate. Junior Matt DiNello (Southingotn, Conn.) entered the game and notched his third save of the year with a strikeout and groundout to end the game.
Inside The Numbers
- Schindler's final line (W, 6-2): 8.1 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K's
- The lefty dropped his ERA below 4.00 (3.72), which is on pace to be a career high. He tied Browne for the team-lead with six wins, which marked the 10th of his career
- Losanno and Lyne led the offense with three hits apiece. The former's average sits at .351 to end the regular season. It is the highest on the Warriors and among the top marks in the conference
- DiSarcina's pair of RBI brings his season total to 34, which ties his career high from his freshman season
Up Next
The Navy and Gold will play No. 9 Southern New Hampshire in the opening round of the NE-10 Championship on Tuesday in Manchester, N.H. at 6 p.m.
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