Second-seeded Ravens open Northeast-10 Championship against No. 3 Stonehill Friday a 4 p.m., in Lowell, Mass.

RINDGE, N.H. (May 12, 2005) - Second-seeded Franklin Pierce, ranked No. 27 in this week's Collegiate Baseball magazine Division II poll, opens postseason play on Friday when it battles third-seeded Stonehill College as the double-elimination portion of the 2005 Northeast-10 Conference Baseball Championship, presented by UBS, opens at LeLacheur Park in Lowell, Mass., at 4 p.m.

Franklin Pierce (27-12, 21-9 NE-10) earned a bye into the double-elimination portion of the Championship for the third-straight year, marking the lone NE-10 program to earn a first round bye each of those seasons. Stonehill (25-18, 17-13 NE-10) reached the weekend portion with a 5-0 victory over sixth-seeded Saint Anselm College in first round action yesterday afternoon at Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, Mass.

Franklin Pierce enters postseason play winners of two-straight and 11 of 14, but has not played since posting a commanding 12-2 victory over the College of Saint Rose on Thursday, May 5, at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field. Stonehill, which has played seven games since May 4, have dropped three of its last five despite yesterday's first round victory over Saint Anselm.

Friday will mark the 16^th meeting all-time between these two programs, the third in postseason play. Franklin Pierce holds a 10-5 advantage in the all-time series which dates back to 1999 and won both postseason encounters, which occurred in the 2003 NE-10 Championship in Lowell. The Ravens registered a 1-0 victory in 12 innings in their opening game of the weekend, before eliminating the Chieftains in the Saturday night contest, 6-1, to advance to its lone NE-10 Championship game appearance in program history.

Franklin Pierce has won ten-straight after posting a pair of commanding victories to sweep the regular season series between the two clubs this spring. The Ravens registered a 10-2 victory over the Chieftains at Campanelli Stadium on April 26, before collecting a 10-0 win at Dr. Pappas Field on April 28.

Franklin Pierce is led on offense by junior Shawn Hayes (Charlton, Mass./Holy Name), who leads the Northeast-10 with a .405 batting average to go with 36 runs scored, 12 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 34 RBI and 14 stolen bases. Sophomore Garrett Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills) is also near the top of nearly every offensive category in the Conference with a .388 batting average, 49 runs scored, 13 doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 35 RBI and 12 steals.

Junior Mike Chambers (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) is hitting .338 with 40 runs scored, a Conference high and school-record matching 17 doubles, six homers and 36 RBI. Classmate Bryan Duplissie (East Swanzey, N.H./Monadnock) leads the NE-10 with 11 home runs and 45 RBI, while sophomore Vinny Pennell (Spencer, Mass./David Prouty) has stolen a team-best 21 bases, which ranks second in the Conference.

The Ravens lead the NE-10 with a .314 team batting average, 95 doubles, 40 home runs, a .492 slugging percentage and .376 on-base percentage.

Senior right-hander Bryan Borowski (Clarksburg, Mass./Drury) is expected to make his ninth appearance, eighth start, of the season tomorrow. He is 6-1 with a 2.15 ERA, 44 strikeouts and 17 walks in 50.1 innings this season with opposing batters hitting just .199 against him.

Duplissie, junior Tyler Cummings (South Paris, Maine/Oxford Hills) and sophomore Daniel Fournier (Worcester, Mass./Holy Name) are also mainstays in the Ravens pitching rotation who figure to see starts this weekend.

Duplissie is 5-1 with a 1.30 ERA, 44 strikeouts and 18 walks over 48.1 innings with opposing batters hitting .199 against him. Cummings is 5-3 with a 2.04 ERA, 29 strikeouts and just nine walks over 53.0 innings, while Fournier is 4-0 with a 1.24 ERA, 49 strikeouts and 23 walks over 36.1 innings.

Sophomore Matt Fisher (Athol, Mass./Athol) has been Franklin Pierce's ace out of the bullpen, registering a 2-1 record and school-record four saves with 18 strikeouts over 25.1 innings in 15 appearances. Junior Mike Farrell (Russell, Mass./Gateway Regional) has also been a key part of the bullpen with a 1-0 record and 1.93 ERA over 14.0 innings in nine appearances.

Senior Tim Flynn (Clifton Park, N.Y./Albany Academy) leads Stonehill's offense with a .358 batting average, 30 runs scored, 11 doubles, two home runs, 26 RBI and 14 steals. Junior Coley Lyons (West Roxbury, Mass./Catholic Memorial) is hitting .313 with 27 runs scored, 12 doubles, 24 RBI and 15 steals, while senior Craig Audette (Raynham, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) is batting .310 with a team-best 34 runs scored, six doubles, 25 RBI and team-leading 16 steals.

With ace Billy Sittig (West Roxbury, Mass./Catholic Memorial) going eight scoreless innings yesterday, Franklin Pierce will likely see senior left-hander Billy McLane (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth) tomorrow. McLane is 5-4 this season with a 2.36 ERA, 39 strikeouts and 17 walks over 72.1 innings. Sittig leads the team with a 9-1 mark, 1.53 ERA, 86 strikeouts and 27 walks over 76.1 innings with opposing batters hitting a mere .171 against him.

Junior Brian Nelson (Greenville, R.I./LaSalle) holds down the bullpen with a 2-4 record and three saves to go with a 1.88 ERA, 41 strikeouts and 12 walks over 38.1 innings in 15 appearances.

The winner of tomorrow's game will advance to Saturday's winner's bracket semifinal against the winner of tomorrow night's game between top-seeded and No. 24-ranked Southern Connecticut State University (28-10, 25-5 NE-10) and fourth-seeded UMass Lowell (26-16, 17-13 NE-10) at 3 p.m. The loser will be relegated to the loser's bracket and face the loser of the second contest in a Saturday morning elimination game at 11 a.m. The Northeast-10 Conference Championship is slated for Sunday at noon, with a second game, if necessary, at 3 p.m.

2005 Northeast-10 Conference Baseball Championship
presented by UBS
Hosted by UMass Lowell - LeLacheur Park - Lowell, Mass.
Double-Elimination

Friday, May 13
Game 3: #3 Stonehill vs. #2 Franklin Pierce 4 p.m.
Game 4: #1 Southern Conn. State at #4 UMass Lowell, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 14
Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser, 11 a.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 3 p.m.
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 loser, 7 p.m.

Sunday, May 15
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, noon
Game 9: if necessary, 3 p.m.