Renaud leads Ravens 18-hit attack with three hits and four RBI

LAKE WORTH, Fla. (March 21, 2008) – Franklin Pierce University, ranked fourth in this week’s pingbaseball.com Division II poll, sixth in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) poll and eighth in the Collegiate Baseball magazine rankings, completed a two-game sweep of Palm Beach Atlantic University with a 14-5 victory to complete their spring break trip tonight.

Senior Kevin Renaud (Southbridge, Mass./Southbridge) led Franklin Pierce’s 18-hit attack, going 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and four RBI. Freshman Derek Ingui (Sterling, Mass.) also hit 3-for-4 with an RBI and run scored, while sophomore Kevin Rivers (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern) was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI. Junior Steve Carr (Nahant, Mass.) chipped in two doubles and an RBI, while freshman Kyle Cabral (New Bedford, Mass./New Bedford) was 2-4 with two runs scored.

Sophomore Brian Maloney (Brockton, Mass.) picked up the win, allowing three earned runs on six hits with seven strikeouts and two walks over 6.1 innings.

Senior Zach Grau (Kalamazoo, Mich.) was the lone Palm Beach Atlantic batter with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, an RBI and run scored. Grau did suffer the loss on the mound for the Sailfish, yielding 12 runs, eight earned, on 14 hits with a strikeout and two walks over 5.1 innings. Sophomore Scott Urbanek (Weston, Fla.) was 1-3 with two runs scored.

Franklin Pierce made quick work of Palm Beach Atlantic, scoring five times in the top of the first. Renaud opened the scoring with an RBI single, while junior Cliff Hicks (Merrimack, N.H./Merrimack) delivered a two-run single and senior Matt Anderson (Medford, Mass./Medford) drove in a runner as well. Carr capped the scoring in the frame with an RBI double.

PBA got a run back in the home half of the first with an RBI single from sophomore Tony Livelsberger (Hanover, Pa.), but Franklin Pierce broke the game open with seven runs in the middle innings. Ingui collected an RBI single in the fourth, while the Ravens scored twice as a result of three Sailfish errors in the fifth.

Franklin Pierce plated four runs in the sixth. Renaud had a two-run double and Rivers notched a two-run single in the inning. The Ravens capped their scoring with two more in the seventh on an RBI single by sophomore Matt Skeffington (Auburn, N.H./Pendleton) and a sacrifice fly from Renaud.

Franklin Pierce (13-2, 0-0 NE-10) opens its Northeast-10 Conference schedule on Tuesday, March 25, at Southern Connecticut State University at 3:30 p.m. The Ravens home opener is slated for Thursday, March 27, against Southern Connecticut at 3:30 p.m. Palm Beach Atlantic (8-22) hosts Lynn University on Tuesday at 6 p.m.