Links: Box Score (Game 1) |
Box Score (Game 2)
RINDGE, N.H. – The Merrimack College baseball program lost a pair of games on Saturday afternoon against Franklin Pierce, competing against the Ravens in the programs' Northeast Division series finale from Pappas Field in Rindge, N.H. The Warriors nearly erased a 5-1 deficit in the opening game of the twinbill, leaving the tying run at third base in the top of the ninth. The second game went in favor of the Ravens, 11-7
The Basics
Score (G1): Franklin Pierce 5,
Merrimack 4
Score (G2): Franklin Pierce 11,
Merrimack 7
Records: Merrimack (8-12, 2-6 NE10) | Franklin Pierce (16-8-1, 4-1 NE10)
Location: Pappas Field | Rindge, N.H.
Rapid Recap (Game 1):
- Each team recorded a run in the first inning of Saturday's opener on RBI singles. In the bottom of the third, Franklin Pierce pushed across four runs to open its 5-1 advantage. The big hit proved to be a two-RBI triple, which was followed by a run-producing single and a RBI double
- Senior starter Anthony Lupi recovered to silence the Ravens' bats, throwing scoreless frames in the fourth and fifth innings. The team captain ended his afternoon following the fifth, notching six strikeouts. Junior lefty Daniel Amidon relieved Lupi and threw three perfect innings out of the bullpen to keep Merrimack in it
- The Warriors added one run on a wild pitch in the sixth inning, making it a 5-2 game. The Navy and Gold left the bases loaded, however, to keep the deficit at three runs
- In the ninth, the visitors mounted a rally. Graduate student Paul Buckley stroked a RBI single that plated junior Anthony Garbarino for Merrimack's third run of the day. Sophomore Joey Porricelli hit a sacrifice fly to right that brought the Warriors within one, 5-4, with Buckley advancing to third on the play. The rally ended there, however, with a grounder to shortstop going down as the final out
Rapid Recap (Game 2):
- For the third time in three games, Merrimack opened the scoring first. Sophomore Thomas Joyce dug in and drove a solo homer to right-center field, giving the Warriors a 1-0 lead
- An error in left field contributed to a three-run bottom of the second for the Ravens. Franklin Pierce tacked on three more runs in the third, building a 6-1 edge. A pair of doubles in the fifth chased freshman Vin Zappulla from the mound as the hosts expanded their lead to 9-1
- Facing an 11-1 deficit, the Warriors did not go away quietly. Junior Matthew Ronai poked a double into left-center, plating graduate student Tyler Lyne to being a six-run eighth frame. Freshman Thomas Crowley knocked in his first career RBI on his first hit, a single to left, for Merrimack's second run. Back-to-back bases loaded walks resulted in two more runs, while Merrimack batted around which allowed Lyne to knock in two more on a single to left. When all was said and done, the Warriors trailed 11-7 entering the bottom of the eighth
- The comeback attempt ended there, with the Warriors going down one-two-three in the top of the ninth
Notes and Notables (Game 1):
- WP – Glew (3-1) | LP – Lupi (1-3) | S – Covelle (2)
- Lupi's Final Line: 5.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
- Amidon lowered his ERA on the season to 3.46 after the perfect relief outing, which is tied for the second lowest on the team
- Four of the five meetings this season between the Warriors and Ravens have been decided by two runs or fewer, including Saturday's first game
Notes and Notables (Game 2)
- WP – Hart (3-1) | LP – Zappulla (3-2) | S – Matarazzo (4)
- Zappulla's Final Line: 4.2 IP, 8 H, 9 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
- After no Warrior posted a multi-hit effort in game one, Ronai and Joyce each totaled two-hit games in the series finale
- Ronai now owns a nine-game hitting streak, which has included six multi-hit games. The junior's average sits at .418 through 18 games
- Joyce struck his second homer of the season, which marked the team's eighth of 2018
- Junior Riley Sorenson threw a clean eighth inning, making his first appearance after missing all of last season due to injury
Up Next
Merrimack plays Bentley University at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon in Waltham. Despite the game being play on the Falcons' campus, the Warriors will serve as the "home" team.
