Video of Lara's highlight-reel catch (Twitter link)

RINDGE, N.H. (April 16, 2022) -- It was an early start at Pappas Field on Saturday, with rain in the forecast for the mid-afternoon, but the bats of the Franklin Pierce University baseball team had no trouble waking up and finishing off a series victory over visiting Saint Anselm. After splitting Friday's twinbill, the Ravens piled up 23 runs to sweep the Hawks away on Saturday, wrapping up just before the rain began to fall. In the first game, sophomore right-hander Chaz Powell (Stamford, Conn.) went the distance (seven innings) and a six-run fifth broke things open in a 12-5 victory. In the second game, a seven-run seventh turned the tide, as Franklin Pierce rallied for an 11-7 win.

With the wins, Franklin Pierce improves to 19-9 (8-4 NE10), while Saint Anselm falls to 14-20 (7-9 NE10). The Ravens will make a trip to Saint Rose for a non-conference doubleheader on Wednesday, before returning to NE10 play with a four-game set at Stonehill next weekend.

Game 1: Franklin Pierce 12, Saint Anselm 5

Saint Anselm opened the scoring in the seven-inning contest with a run in the top of the first, but Franklin Pierce answered with three in the bottom half and two in the second to jump to a 5-1 lead. Sophomore Joel Lara (Boston, Mass.) provided the second-inning fireworks with a two-run shot, as he clubbed his third home run of the season an estimated 380 feet to left-center.

Lara continued with the highlights in the top of the fifth, when Saint Anselm junior Brady Doran socked the ball about 389.5 feet to dead center field. Unfortunately for Doran, Pappas Field is 390 feet to center. Lara used every bit of it and then some to track the ball down, as he made the catch on the run, crashed through the center-field gate and went tumbling onto the asphalt beyond the fence, robbing Doran of extra bases (Twitter video).

The Ravens then put the game out of reach with six runs in the home half of the fifth to open the lead out to 12-2. Lara and sophomore Ryan Lavelle (East Longmeadow, Mass.) each drove in runs with bunts in the frame, while junior Jake Miller (Waltham, Mass.) and sophomore Ian Battipaglia (Cheshire, Conn.) each had an RBI double, and another pair of runs scored on an error.

Powell (3-2) went the distance on 109 pitches (65 strikes) and was not stellar, but was good enough to get the job done and buy the bullpen a game off. He surrendered five runs on six hits, walked three, hit a batter and struck out three.

Meanwhile, things were ugly on the other side of the ledger. Junior right-hander Dylan Bedder (2-5) lasted just two innings, but threw 50 pitches (24 strikes) in the process. He was touched for five runs on three hits, walked five and struck out one. Senior right-hander Shawn Morrow took over from there and was no better, as he conceded seven runs (four earned) on three hits and four walks, while striking out two over 2.2 innings.

When all was said and done, Franklin Pierce scored 12 runs on just seven hits, as Saint Anselm pitching issued 10 walks and threw three wild pitches, while the defense committed two errors for good measure.

Game 2: Franklin Pierce 11, Saint Anselm 7

Things looked dicey for Franklin Pierce in the second game, as the Ravens trailed 5-1 through five-and-a-half. Saint Anselm built the lead courtesy of a two-run shot from Doran in the second (365 feet to right), a leadoff homer from senior Mike Pierro in the fourth (400 feet to left-center), and a mammoth leadoff dinger by graduate student Salvatore Pezzolla in the fifth (415 feet to center).

Franklin Pierce started to cut into the lead with an RBI single by graduate student Charles Lebron (Brooklyn, N.Y.) in the sixth, and then turned on the fire hose in the seventh. The Ravens sent 12 men to the plate and got seven of them all the way around to flip the script of the game and take a 9-5 lead. Sophomore Randy Flores (Brooklyn, N.Y.) started things with a two-run shot of 390 feet, past the flag poles in right-center, for his fourth of the year. A Battipaglia double later tied the game, and Franklin Pierce took the lead for good on an RBI single through the left side by sophomore Hunter Wilichoski (Hamilton, Mass.), which scored Battipaglia.

The Ravens added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth and conceded two in the ninth before finishing off the 11-7 victory. The team's two in the eighth came via a tape-measure shot from Battipaglia, who cleared the scoreboard to the right of center field for his fifth of the campaign, estimated at 420 feet.

On the mound, it was a slog at times for junior right-hander Danny Gracia (Wilmington, Mass.), who threw 89 pitches (53 strikes) over five innings. He allowed four runs on eight hits, walked two and struck out one. After the offense got him off the hook, it was senior right-hander Jake Ursillo (North Haledon, N.J.) who picked up the win (3-2) with two innings of one-run, one-hit relief.

For Saint Anselm, junior right-hander Harry MacKinlay threw 91 pitches (52 strikes) over six solid innings, allowed two runs on seven hits, walked two, hit a batter and struck out four, but did not factor in the decision after the bullpen imploded. Three Saint Anselm relievers combined to serve up nine runs on seven hits and three walks. Junior left-hander Avery Mosseau (1-2) took the loss after he was charged with five runs on four hits and three walks while recording just two outs.