Flynn, Ferguson pick up wins on mound

Box Score Game One
Box Score Game Two 

YAPHANK, N.Y. (March 5, 2011) – Senior right fielder Mike Munoz (Bronx, N.Y.) drove in four runs over two games, while freshman first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H.) knocked home three of his own on Saturday afternoon to lead the No. 6/10 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team to a doubleheader sweep of C.W. Post in non-conference play at Baseball Heaven. Sophomore right-hander Joe Flynn (Plymouth, Mass.) struck out seven over eight innings of four-hit ball to pick up the win on the mound in the first game.

With the wins, Franklin Pierce improves to 6-0 (0-0 Northeast-10), while C.W. Post falls to 0-8 (0-0 East Coast). The six-game run is the longest season-opening winning streak in program history for Franklin Pierce.

C.W. Post opened the scoring in the first game with a run in the bottom of the second inning. Junior designated hitter Nick Compito led off the inning with a double into the gap in left-center, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a single to left by junior center fielder Steve Smith.

However, that would be the only run of the contest for the Pioneers, as Franklin Pierce answered with three runs in the top of the third to take the lead for good. Freshman center fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass.) led off with a walk, took second on a wild pitch and moved to third two batters later on a single through the left side by junior catcher Mike Dowd (East Bridgewater, Mass.), who wound up on second on the play. Senior designated hitter Derek Ingui (Sterling, Mass.) then lifted a sacrifice fly to center to drive home Graves, and junior third baseman Isaac Wenrich (Westlawn, Pa.) followed with a single through the left side of the infield to score Dowd from second. Wenrich moved around to third on a single through the right side by Mathieu and came into score on an RBI single back through the middle by sophomore left fielder Eric Romano (North Branford, Conn.).

The Ravens would pick up single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to push the lead to 6-1. In the fourth, junior second baseman Dan Hennigan (Downingtown, Pa.) led off with a single up the middle, stole second, moved to third on a flyout and scored on an RBI groundout by Munoz. In the fifth, Ingui led off with a walk, stole both second and third and scored on a sacrifice fly to left by Mathieu. In the sixth, it was Hennigan who started things again with a lead-off single to left-center before later scoring on another RBI groundout by Munoz.

Franklin Pierce broke things wide open with three more runs in the seventh and added one more in the eighth to create the 10-1 final. In the seventh, sophomore shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass.) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, Hennigan collected an RBI single and Munoz clubbed an RBI double down the left-field line. In the eighth, Mathieu capped the scoring with an RBI single.

Flynn took the ball for Franklin Pierce and picked up the win (1-0) in his first start of the season. Over eight innings of work, he allowed just the one run on four hits, did not issue a walk, threw a wild pitch and struck out seven.

Sophomore right-hander Rafael Martinez started and took the loss (0-2) for C.W. Post. Over four innings on the mound, he allowed four runs on six hits, walked three, threw a pair of wild pitches and struck out one.

Playing as the home team in the second game, Franklin Pierce struck first with a run in the bottom of the third inning. With two outs, Graves reached via an error by C.W. Post sophomore third baseman Kevin Chenicek and wound up at second on the play. Graves came into score an unearned run as Munoz followed and reached on an error as well.

C.W. Post evened things at 1-1 with a run of its own in the top of the fourth inning. With one out, Compito singled back through the middle, but was erased at second as freshman first baseman Phil Loprete reached on a fielder's choice. Loprete moved to second on a single to center by Smith and scored on an RBI single to center by freshman right fielder P.J. Jennings.

The Pioneers briefly struck for the lead with a run in the top of the sixth. Compito led off, was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a single through the left side of the infield by Loprete. After a sacrifice bunt moved both runners up and a walk loaded the bases, Chenicek lifted a sacrifice fly to center to drive home Compito.

Franklin Pierce responded immediately with four runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 5-2 lead it would never relinquish. Early in the inning, Munoz worked a walk, while Ingui reached on an error which moved Munoz around to third. Mathieu followed and pushed a ground-rule double down the left-field line to score Munoz and send Ingui to third. Both Mathieu and Ingui would score unearned runs when Romano lifted a fly ball to right that could not be handled by Jennings.

The Ravens put the game on ice with a pair of runs in the bottom of the seventh to create the 7-2 final. Graves led off with a walk and stole second before Munoz worked a walk as well. After a double steal put the runners at second and third, Dowd knocked a two-run single back through the middle.

Freshman right-hander Kevin McGowan (Nashua, N.H.) started, but did not factor in the decision on the rubber for Franklin Pierce. Over 3.2 innings, he allowed one run on seven hits, did not issue a walk and struck out one. Junior right-hander T.J. Ferguson (Westmoreland, N.H.) pitched the final 5.1 innings to pick up the win (1-0) out of the bullpen for the Ravens. He allowed one run on two hits, walked two, hit a batter and struck out one.

Junior right-hander Paul Bischoff started and took the loss (0-1) on the hill for C.W. Post, despite not allowing an earned run. Over six innings, he allowed five unearned runs on five hits, walked three and struck out three.

The Ravens return to the field on Sunday, March 6, when they wrap up the three-game weekend series against C.W. Post. First pitch is scheduled for 10 a.m. at Baseball Heaven. Please note this is an alteration from the original schedule, which called for a 1 p.m. doubleheader.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics).