Lerud goes 3-for-4 with RBI and scores twice

Box Score
Game Three: Adelphi 8, Dowling 1
Game Five: Dowling 3, Wilmington 2
Game Six: Adelphi 2, Assumption 0

RINDGE, N.H. (May 15, 2009) – Sophomore shortstop Mario Lopez (Anthony, N.M./Gadsden) scored the winning run in the top of the ninth inning on Friday afternoon as top-seeded Dominican posted a 5-4 victory over the second-seeded and No. 28 nationally-ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team in the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship East Regional at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field. Senior left fielder Ted Lerud (Hampden, Mass./Minnechaug Regional) went 3-for-4, drove in a run and scored twice for Franklin Pierce in defeat.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce is eliminated and concludes its season at 37-18. With the win, Dominican (38-13) advances to play at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday against an opponent to be determined later on Friday.

Franklin Pierce opened the scoring with three runs in the bottom of the first inning. Sophomore designated hitter Derek Ingui (Sterling, Mass./Wachusett Regional) led off and grounded a single through the left side of the infield. Freshman catcher Mike Dowd (East Bridgewater, Mass./Cardinal Spellman) followed with a groundball to first base. The throw to second base was errant and escaped into shallow center field, which allowed Ingui to move to third to put runners at the corners. Lerud then lined an RBI single to center to score Ingui from third. After a walk to junior right fielder Kevin Rivers (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern) loaded the bases, graduate student center fielder Cliff Hicks (Merrimack, N.H./Merrimack) lifted a fly ball to center field to score Dowd from third. Senior first baseman Steve Carr (Nahant, Mass./Lake City CC) capped the scoring in the inning with an RBI groundout to shortstop which drove home Lerud.

Dominican got a run back right away in the top of the second inning to cut the lead to 3-1. Sophomore right fielder Dan Robinson (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) led off and looped a single into shallow left field. Junior second baseman Willie Mann (Patterson, N.Y./Brewster) followed and reached on an infield single, while Franklin Pierce freshman third baseman Ben Benigno (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull) threw the ball away on the play, which allowed Robinson to move to third. Robinson would score from there when Lopez grounded into a double play.

The Chargers picked up three more runs in the top of the third inning to take a 4-3 lead. Sophomore left fielder Jason Berrios (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Ford) led off with a single to left field and stole second. After a walk to freshman center fielder Alexi Colon (Millville, N.J./St. Augustine Prep), junior designated hitter Yordis Veras (Jamaica, N.Y./Newtown) dropped a sacrifice bunt down the third-base line. However, a fielding error by Benigno allowed Veras to reach at first while Berrios came around to score. Colon then moved to third on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch which also brought Veras to third. Veras would then score on a single to right field by sophomore third baseman Michael Munoz (Bronx, N.Y./Lehman).

Franklin Pierce answered with a run in the bottom half of the third to tie the game at 4-4. With one out, Lerud lined a single to left field, moved to third on a single through the left side by Rivers and scored when Hicks pulled an RBI double past the left fielder.

From there, the game went scoreless until the top of the ninth inning, when Dominican pushed across an unearned run that would prove to be the winning score. With two outs, Lopez drove a double off the fence in right-center field. He would move to third on an infield single by sophomore catcher Robert Iglesias (Mays Landing, N.J./St. Augustine Prep). However, the throw to first would sail out of play, allowing Lopez to score and give Dominican a 5-4 lead it would not relinquish.

Senior left-hander Tom Cote (Swanzey, N.H./Univ. of Massachusetts) started on the hill, threw 6.1 innings and did not factor in the decision for Franklin Pierce. He allowed four runs (two earned) on six hits, walked four, threw a wild pitch and struck out four. Sophomore right-hander Rob Nicholas (Northboro, Mass./Algonquin Regional) took the loss (2-2) in relief for the Ravens. Over 2.2 innings out of the bullpen, he gave up one unearned run on two hits and struck out three.

Senior right-hander Brian Craig tossed eight innings to pick up the win (7-2) on the mound for Dominican. He allowed four runs on 11 hits, walked two and struck out three. Freshman right-hander Justin Moore (Wantagh, N.Y./MacArthur) pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth to pick up his 17th save of the season.