Baseball Faces Franklin Pierce for Weekend Series; Senior Day Set for Sunday Afternoon

Matchup	Merrimack (23-13, 12-2 NE Div.) vs. Franklin Pierce (20-16, 9-5 NE Div.)
Dates//Times	Saturday, April 27, 2 | 5 p.m. // Sunday, April 28, 12 p.m.
Venue	Trinity Stadium // Haverhill Mass.
Gameday Links	Live Stats / Twitter / Instagram

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College baseball program preps for its penultimate weekend series of the regular season beginning on Saturday when the Warriors welcome Franklin Pierce University for three games at Trinity Stadium in Haverhill, Mass. The series between the divisional rivals features a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. followed by a single game on Sunday at noon.

Sunday's tilt will be celebrated as Senior Day, with Merrimack honoring its eight members of the Class of 2019: Daniel Amidon, Trevor Cooley, Anthony Garbarino, Billy Keegan, Cam Monagle, Matthew Ronai, Riley Sorenson and Cory Wasylow.

Five Things to Know:

• Merrimack enters the weekend red hot with victories in 11 of its last 12 games and 15 of its last 18 overall. The Warriors sit in first place in the Northeast Division, one game in front of No. 15 Southern New Hampshire and three ahead of third-place Franklin Pierce. Merrimack also learned it was ranked sixth by the NCAA Regional Advisory Committee in the first edition of the NCAA East Regional poll unveiled on Wednesday afternoon. At season's end, the top-eight in the poll reach the NCAA Tournament
• The team's run of victories has seen them rise in many statistical areas. The Warriors' offense ranks sixth in the league in batting average (.273), third in steals (83) and have struck out the second fewest times (211) in the Northeast-10 Conference. On the mound, Merrimack's 3.77 team ERA ranks fourth in the conference and second in the division; three individuals ranks among the top 15 in the NE10, as well. Defensively, the team's .971 fielding percentage is the best in the Northeast Division
• The Warriors' senior class begins the weekend on the doorstep of team history: Thursday's victory at Saint Anselm gave them their 106^th win over the last four years, tying the Class of 1997 as the winningest graduating class in school history. That already joined the '97 group as the only two classes with at least 20 wins in each of their season's on campus in school annals
• Offensively, junior Thomas Joyce remained the team's leader in average (.336), RBI (34) and on-base percentage (.443). Classmate Joey Porricelli paces the squad with 47 hits, 19 extra-base knocks, five triples, five homers and 28 steals. He leads the NE10 in thefts, while rankings third league-wide in total bases (81). Merrimack's catching combination of freshman Kurtis Stadnicki and sophomore Thomas Crowley have also turned it on of late, with both Warriors hitting above .300. Crowley has hit 12-for-21 over his last five games
• On the hill, the quartet of seniors Cam Monagle and Riley Sorenson as well as sophomores Timmy Kalanzakos and Vin Zappulla have formed a formidable foursome. Monagle ranks second nationwide in ERA (1.26), allowing five earned runs over his last 40 innings of work while Sorenson leads the team in saves (4), and most recently threw his first-ever complete-game shutout in beat Saint Michael's. Kalantzakos' six wins this season are already the most for a Merrimack hurler in three years, while he leads the team in innings (61.0) and strikeouts (50). Zappulla has nearly mirrored his classmate, boasting a 5-1 record over 58.0 innings 46 punch outs

Scouting the Opposition:

Merrimack (23-13, 12-2 NE Div.)	Stat Category	Franklin Pierce (20-16, 9-5 NE Div.)
.273	Batting Average	.259
.360	On-Base Percentage	.368
.380	Slugging Percentage	.371
3.80	Team ERA	3.95
255	Team Strikeouts	323
84	Total Stolen Bases	66
.971	Team Fielding Percentage	.955
Thomas Joyce (.336)	Batting Average Leader	Brad Roberto (.353)
Porricelli (5)	Home Runs Leader	Ural Forbes (4)
Joyce (34)	RBI Leader	Jonel Ozuna (37)
Cam Monagle (1.26)	ERA Leader (Individual)	Derek Duffy (1.59)
Timmy Kalantzakos (50)	Strikeouts Leader	Two Tied (48)

Up Next:
Merrimack begins its final week of the regular season on Tuesday afternoon when the Warriors visit Assumption for the rubber game of their three-game divisional series. First pitch at Rocheleau Field in Worcester, Mass. is set for 3:30 p.m.