Renaud lifts Ravens to third-straight win with three hits and three RBI

RINDGE, N.H. (April 7, 2008) – Franklin Pierce University, ranked fourth in this week’s pingbaseball.com Division II poll and eighth in the Collegiate Baseball magazine rankings, picked up its third-straight win with an 8-3 decision over Merrimack College in Northeast-10 Conference baseball action at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field this afternoon.

Senior All-Region outfielder Kevin Renaud (Southbridge, Mass./Southbridge) led Franklin Pierce as he hit 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, two stolen bases and three RBI. Junior preseason All-American Scott Savastano (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) was 2-for-3 with a double, stolen base, two runs scored and three RBI, while grad student Jake Christman (Newton, Mass./Newton South) finished 2-for-4 with two steals, two runs scored and an RBI. Sophomore Kevin Rivers (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern) finished 1-for-3 with a double and RBI.

Sophomore Kyle Vazquez (Berlin, Conn./Berlin) earned the win on the mound (4-0) for the Ravens, allowing three earned runs on six hits with eight strikeouts and a walk in seven innings of work. Freshman Robbie Beaudoin (Taunton, Mass./Somerset) struck out four in two hitless and scoreless innings of relief.

Junior Mike Andre (Medford, Mass./Medford) hit 2-for-4 with a double, stolen base and run scored for Merrimack. Classmate Jeff Bercume (Leicester, Mass./St. John’s Shrewsbury) was 1-for-3 with an RBI, while senior Ryan Shepard (Andover, Mass./Andover) finished 1-for-4 with a steal and RBI.

Sophomore right-hander Ryan McNeil (Lynnfield, Mass./Lynnfield) took the loss on the mound for the Warriors (0-1), surrendering eight earned runs on eight hits with four strikeouts and four walks in a complete game effort.

Franklin Pierce opened a 6-0 lead after four innings and held off a Merrimack rally in the sixth for the win. Renaud led off the second with a double down the leftfield line and later scored on a fielder’s choice. The Ravens added three in the third as Renaud collected a two-run single through the right side and later scored on a double to left by Rivers. Franklin Pierce added two more in the fourth on a two-out, two-run double down the rightfield line by Savastano.

Merrimack scored three in the sixth to cut its deficit in half. Sophomore Brendan Pyburn (Peabody, Mass./Bishop Fenwick) led off with an infield single, advanced to second on a groundout and third on a passed ball, before scoring on a sacrifice fly from Bercume. Shepard added an RBI single to right center and Andre scored on a double-steal of home with Shepard.

Franklin Pierce added single runs in the seventh and eighth for insurance. Renaud had an RBI single to right center in the seventh and Christman drove in a run in the eighth with a single up the middle.

Franklin Pierce (21-3, 6-1 NE-10) is back in action tomorrow when it hosts NE-10 rivals University of Massachusetts Lowell at 3:30 p.m. Merrimack (8-14, 5-5 NE-10) travels to Assumption College tomorrow at 3:30 p.m.