2005 NE-10 BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS #2 Franklin Pierce Rallies Past #4 UMass Lowell, 4-3
Second-seeded Ravens advance to Championship round on Sunday
LOWELL, Mass. (May 14, 2005) - Second-seeded Franklin Pierce, ranked No. 27 in this week's Collegiate Baseball magazine Division II poll, scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth and rallied for a 4-3 victory over fourth-seeded UMass Lowell in game six of the 2005 Northeast-10 Conference Championships at LeLacheur Park this afternoon.
Franklin Pierce (29-12, 21-9 NE-10) advances to the Championship round of the Tournament and will face third-seeded Stonehill College (27-19, 17-13 NE-10) tomorrow at noon. Stonehill eliminated top-seeded and No. 24-ranked Southern Connecticut State University, 4-3, in today's first game, then knocked off UMass Lowell (27-18, 17-13 NE-10) in tonight's final game.
Junior Randy Fenton (Worcester, Mass./Doherty) led Franklin Pierce from the ninth spot in the lineup as he hit 3-for-4 with two RBI. Freshman Matt Anderson (Medford, Mass./Medford) was 2-4, while junior Mike Chambers (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) hit 2-3 with a stolen base. Sophomore Garrett Olson (Norway, Maine/Oxford Hills) finished 1-3 with an RBI, run scored and steal.
Sophomore Tom Gilmore (Miller Place, N.Y./Miller Place) picked up the win (1-1) with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief on a hit and two walks with two strikeouts. Sophomore Matt Fisher (Athol, Mass./Athol) picked up his program record fifth save of the season (eighth career) sitting the side down in order in the ninth. Starter Bryan Duplissie (East Swanzey, N.H./Monadnock Regional) yielded three earned runs on ten hits with five strikeouts and a walk in 6.1 innings.
Freshman Tim Manton (Swansea, Mass./Joseph Case) led UMass Lowell as he hit 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI. Sophomore Ryan Davenport (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) hit 2-3 with a stolen base, while senior Nate Liebenow (Hampton, N.H./Winnacunnet) was 2-4.
Junior Jim Shaughnessy (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) was pinned with the loss (6-4) as he surrendered four earned runs on nine hits and five walks with three strikeouts in 7.2 innings of work.
Fenton delivered a two-out single through the right side to drive in two runs and knot the score at 3-3 for Franklin Pierce in the bottom of the eighth inning. Olson drove in Fenton, who advanced to second on the throw, with the winning run as he followed with a single to center.
Franklin Pierce took the early lead when it scored in the first inning for the 21st time this season (17-4 record). Olson was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame and after a Chambers single advanced to third on a Shawn Hayes (Charlton, Mass./Holy Name) flyout. Shaughnessy attempted a third to first pickoff that drew Chambers off first base, but Shaughnessy hesitated and allowed Olson to scamper home on the delayed steal with the game's first run.
The Ravens had a chance to break the game open in the second, but after loading the bases with just one out, were unable to score. Neither team scored until UMass Lowell erupted for three in the seventh. The River Hawks loaded the bases with one out before Manton delivered a two-run double down the right field line. After Gilmore came on and intentionally walked Liebenow to load the bases and set up an inning ending double play, sophomore Patrick Wilson (Dracut, Mass./Bishop Guertin) drove in UML's third run with an infield single. Gilmore escaped the inning without further damage by getting senior Miles Page (Dracut, Mass./Central Catholic) to ground into a double play.
Franklin Pierce will be looking to claim its first Northeast-10 title of any kind as it makes its second championship game appearance in program history tomorrow. The Ravens fell to UMass Lowell, 4-1, in the 2003 title game.
Fisher made his team-leading 16th appearance of the season, matching the program record set by Chris Shank in 2000.
Chambers extended his team-leading hitting streak to 13 games, while Olson's game-winning RBI single in the eighth extended his hitting streak to 12 games. Olson was also hit by a pitch for the ninth time this season, adding to his career record with 24 hit by pitches.
With its three runs in the eighth, Franklin Pierce has now out-scored the opposition 35-9 in that frame this year.