Links: Box Score
NASHUA, N.H.  – Facing a 4-2 deficit entering the bottom of the ninth inning against Saint Anselm on Friday night at Holman Stadium in Nashua, N.H., the Merrimack College baseball team rallied to score three times including a walk-off walk drawn by senior
Mike Hoalcraft to top the Hawks, 5-4. The Warriors took game of the three-game divisional set between the two programs, which will conclude tomorrow with a doubleheader at noon. Â
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 5, Saint Anselm 4
Records: Merrimack (14-13, 7-7 NE10, 2-4 NE DIV) | Saint Anselm (8-16, 2-9 NE10, 2-5 NE DIV)
Location: Holman Stadium | Nashua, N.H.
Rapid Recap
- The ninth started with back-to-back walks by graduate student Paul Buckley and sophomore Nick Shumski. One batter later and with the bases load, graduate student Tyler Lyne hit a sacrifice fly to right to bring Merrimack within one, 4-3
- Another walk loaded the bases again, but a strikeout moved the Hawks within on out of winning. Making his first plate appearance of the day, junior William Keegan drew a five-pitch walk to even the score at 4-4, scoring Shumski. Hoalcraft dug in next and saw six pitches, trotting to first to drive in sophomore Joey Porricelli as the game-winning run
- Merrimack jumped on the board first, executing a first-and third play to score. Junior Matthew Ronai  took off from first and was thrown out, Porricelli raced home from third on the throw to score
- Senior starter PJ Browne worked five clean innings to start the night, which included striking out the side in the fifth inning. He ran into trouble in the sixth, however, relenting a two-run single that gave the Hawks a 2-1 advantage
- The Warriors loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, but failed to score a run. After Saint Anselm tacked on one more in the top of the eighth, the Warriors scored when Porricelli trotted home on a single by Lyne. Merrimack would load the bases again, but failed to score to keep its deficit at 4-2
Notes and Notables:
- WP: Monagle (1-1) | LP: Garofalo (0-3)
- Browne's Final Line (ND): 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K
- Browne moved within seven strikeouts of setting a new program record after Friday's performance. The lefty owns 224 career K's, needing to reach 231 to pass Joe Carnevale '15 on the all-time list
- Porricelli scored three of Merrimack's five runs, overtaking Lyne for the team lead with 29 on the season
- The bottom four hitters in Merrimack's order drew six of the seven Warriors' walks on the day
Up Next
The Warriors and Hawks return to Holman tomorrow for a doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m. Game two is projected to start at 3 p.m. Â Â Â Â Â
