Mathieu clubs two home runs against Saint Michael's

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (March 17, 2012) – Sophomore first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H.) hit 2-for-3 with two home runs and drove in three runs on Saturday afternoon, as the No. 20/22 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team posted a 9-1 victory over Saint Michael's in non-conference, neutral-site play at NSU Baseball Complex, on the campus of Nova Southeastern University. Later in the day, Franklin Pierce suffered a 12-1 defeat at the hands of No. 24 NSU, as sophomore second baseman Carlos Asuaje went 4-for-5, scored two runs and drove in three to lead the attack.

With the split, Franklin Pierce is now 10-4 (0-0 Northeast-10). Saint Michael's falls to 3-6 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Nova Southeastern improves to 14-4 (1-1 Sunshine State).

In the first game of the day, the Franklin Pierce offense struck for four runs to open up the game in the bottom of the third inning. With one out, sophomore left fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass.) singled back up the middle, stole second and scored on an RBI single through the right side by senior second baseman Dan Hennigan (Downingtown, Pa.). Hennigan stole second too, then scored on an RBI single through the middle by junior shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass.), who would also steal second. After Kemp moved to third on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch, Mathieu launched his second home run of the season, a solo shot to left field.

The Ravens extended the lead to 5-0 with a run in the bottom of the fifth. Hennigan opened with a lead-off single to left, stole second and scored on a single up the middle by Kemp, who finished 3-for-4 in the game with two runs scored and two more batted in.

Saint Michael's picked up its only run of the afternoon with an unearned tally in the top of the sixth inning. Freshman shortstop Don McGuirl opened the frame with an infield single. Two batters later, sophomore second baseman Tyler Wild pushed a double down the right-field line that was going to leave runners at second and third, but junior right fielder Nick LaCroix (Grafton, Mass.) made an errant throw back to the infield, allowing McGuirl to score.

Franklin Pierce added two runs each in the seventh and eighth innings to create the 9-1 final. In the seventh, Kemp hit his third single of the day and later scored on Mathieu's second home run of the contest, this one a two-run shot to left field. In the eighth, senior catcher Isaac Wenrich (Westlawn, Pa.) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, while Graves provided an RBI single.

Junior right-hander Joe Flynn (Plymouth, Mass.) was lights out for eight innings to pick up the win (2-0) on the mound for the Ravens. He allowed just the one unearned run on five hits, did not issue a walk and struck out a career-high 12. Flynn's only previous double-digit strikeout total came in his very first career start, a 10-strikeout performance on March 6, 2010 against Nyack.

Junior left-hander Andrew Kelley started and took the loss (1-1) on the hill for Saint Michael's. Over six innings, he allowed five runs on nine hits, walked two, threw a wild pitch and struck out one.

In the second game of the day, Nova Southeastern staked itself to a 1-0 lead with a run in the bottom of the second inning. Senior first baseman Daniel Petitbon led off the frame with a double to left field and scored when senior third baseman Ray Navarro followed with an RBI single to right. The Sharks pushed the lead to 2-0 with another run in the bottom of the fourth inning when Petitbon opened the inning with a solo home run, his third of the season.

After getting only one runner to scoring position through the first five innings, the Ravens cut the deficit to 2-1 with a run in the top of the sixth. With one out, graduate student center fielder James Roche (Arlington, Mass.) reached on an error and went first-to-third two batters later on a single to left by LaCroix. Walsh followed with an RBI single to center to plate what turned out to be the team's only run of the game.

Nova Southeastern answered immediately with five runs in the home half of the sixth to break the game open and take a 7-1 lead. Asuaje and junior left fielder Chris Morales had back-to-back RBI singles in the middle of the inning, while other runs scored on a groundout, a dropped fly ball and a wild pitch.

The Sharks would add five more runs in the bottom of the seventh to create the 12-1 final. Asuaje had the biggest blow of the inning, with a two-run single to right, while two more runs scored on a throwing error and another on a wild pitch.

Sophomore right-hander Kevin McGowan (Nashua, N.H.) toed the rubber and took the loss (1-1) for Franklin Pierce. Over 5.1 innings, he allowed six runs (five earned) on eight hits, walked four and struck out four.

Sophomore right-hander Zachary Westcott started, tossed 6.1 innings and picked up the win (5-0) on the bump for Nova Southeastern. He allowed just the one unearned run on five hits, walked two and struck out four.

The Ravens return to the field on Sunday, March 17, when they face Mercy in a non-conference, neutral-site doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for noon at Longwood Athletic Complex in Fort Pierce, Fla., and both games are scheduled for nine innings. Franklin Pierce's home opener is scheduled for Tuesday, April 3 against Southern New Hampshire at 3:30 p.m.

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).