Ferguson strands tying run at third base in the ninth

RINDGE, N.H. (April 17, 2012) – Senior right-hander T.J. Ferguson (Westmoreland, N.H.) froze designated hitter Andy Lalli with a fastball on the outer half for a looking strikeout that left the tying run at third base in the top of the ninth inning on Tuesday afternoon, as the Franklin Pierce University baseball team picked up a 10-9 win over No. 6/12 nationally ranked Southern New Hampshire in Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division play at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field. Junior shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass.), freshman catcher Matt Walsh (Plymouth, Mass.) and graduate student center fielder James Roche (Arlington, Mass.) all hit home runs in the win for Franklin Pierce.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 24-12-1 (11-4-1 Northeast-10, 6-3-1 Northeast Division), while SNHU falls to 32-6 (15-4 Northeast-10, 8-3 Northeast Division). The win allowed the Ravens to take two of three in the regular season series from SNHU and moved the team into a tie for second place in the Northeast Division. The top two teams in the division at the end of the season will host games in the first round of the Northeast-10 Championship.

Facing Ferguson in the ninth, the Penmen nearly completed their comeback from a 10-3 deficit, before he was able to slam the door shut. Freshman first baseman Alejandro Diaz grounded to short before sophomore center fielder Brendan O'Brien dumped a single into shallow center. After senior catcher Kevin Spatkowski struck out looking on a breaking ball, junior shortstop Matt Boulter dropped a single inside the right-field line which allowed O'Brien to move around to third with the tying run. However, Lalli could not respond to a fastball with two strikes and Ferguson picked up his first save of the season.

The Ravens jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead with a pair of two-run home runs in the bottom of the first inning. Senior second baseman Dan Hennigan (Downingtown, Pa.) led off the frame with a walk, and Kemp followed with his sixth home run of the season, and third in as many games, to straightaway left field to stake Franklin Pierce to a 2-0 lead just two batters in. Three batters after the Kemp homer, junior right fielder Nick LaCroix (Grafton, Mass.) knocked a single back through the middle of the infield and Walsh went the other way to right field for his first career home run. After the ensuing walk, the SNHU starter, senior right-hander Brad Monroe, was chased from the game after just two-thirds of an inning.

Franklin Pierce added another run in the bottom of the second to push the lead to 5-0. Senior designated hitter Isaac Wenrich (Westlawn, Pa.) hit a lead-off single to center, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored two batters later on an RBI single dumped into right-center by Hennigan.

SNHU shaved the lead down to 5-3 with one swing of the bat in the top of the fourth inning. Back-to-back singles by sophomore second baseman Jamie Wollerman and sophomore left fielder Greg Pezzuto to right field and through the left side of the infield, respectively, set the table to start the inning. That brought up junior right fielder Jon Minucci, who mashed his team-leading sixth home run of the season over the scoreboard just to the right of straightaway center field.

The Ravens appeared to break the game open with five runs in the bottom of the fifth to stretch the lead as high as 10-3. With one out, Roche drove his team-leading 10th home run of the season the other way into the power alley in right-center field. The homer marked the second straight season the Ravens have had a player reach double digits in home runs.

Immediately after the Roche dinger, sophomore first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H.) and LaCroix drew back-to-back walks to chase SNHU sophomore right-hander David Gibson from the game in favor of senior left-hander Zach LeBarron. He was greeted by an RBI single to center by Walsh, who drove in Mathieu for his third RBI of the day. Junior third baseman Anthony Peguero (Hyde Park, N.Y.) followed and dropped down a safety squeeze bunt that would have turned into a sacrifice bunt, but LeBarron's throw to first was errant, allowing Peguero to reach as LaCroix came in to score. After a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, Wenrich lifted a sacrifice fly to center to score Walsh, while Peguero scored on a double into the gap in right-center by sophomore left fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass.).

However, the Penmen went about mounting their rally with three runs in the top of the sixth to trim the lead back to 10-6. Minucci opened the inning by pushing a single through the right side of the infield and moved to second on a single through the left side by sophomore third baseman Bryan Toland. After a walk to Diaz loaded the bases, a wild pitch brought home the first run and moved the other runners to second and third. Another walk re-loaded the bases and then Spatkowski grounded into a 6-4-3 double play while the second run scored. Lalli later brought in the third run of the inning with an RBI single back up the middle.

SNHU cued the late-inning drama with three runs in the top of the eighth to cut the lead all the way down to one run at 10-9. Diaz worked another walk to start the inning and then went first-to-third on an errant pickoff throw by junior left-hander Vladimir Camacho (Jamaica Plain, N.Y.). However the error would prove mostly inconsequential, as two walks later in the inning loaded the bases anyway. After the first of the two walks, to Spatkowski, put runners at the corners, Camacho was relieved by freshman right-hander Dan Gilchrist (Medford, Mass.), who walked the only batter he faced, Boulter, before ceding the mound to senior right-hander Rob Nicholas (Southborough, Mass.). Nicholas was greeted rudely, as a two-run single up the middle by Lalli and an RBI single through the middle by Wollerman quickly scored all three inherited runners. After a flyout and a hit batter left the bases loaded with two away, Nicholas preserved the lead by getting Toland to groundout to third.

Junior right-hander Ryan Thompson (Calgary, Alberta) started on the mound and picked up the win (2-1) for the Ravens. Over five-plus innings, he allowed six runs on eight hits, walked four and struck out three.

Monroe ended up taking the loss (6-2) for Southern New Hampshire. Over just two-thirds of an inning, he allowed four runs on four hits and two walks.

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, April 21, when they travel to Stonehill for a Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for noon p.m. at Lou Gorman Field in Easton, Mass.

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).