Graves scores five runs in twinbill

Box Score: Game One
Box Score: Game Two 

THOMASVILLE, N.C. (March 2, 2014) – Junior right fielder John Razzino (Cumberland, R.I.) went 5-for-8 with a home run and drove in seven runs on Sunday, while senior center fielder Calvin Graves (Boston, Mass.) hit 4-for-7 and scored five runs over two games as the No. 9/13 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team swept away No. 19 Millersville in a non-conference, neutral-site doubleheader at historic Finch Field. The Ravens posted a 9-3 victory in the first game of the day and followed up with an 8-3 win in the second game.

With the sweep, Franklin Pierce improves to 7-2 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Millersville falls to 7-5 (0-0 Pennsylvania State). The Ravens took three out of four games from the 2011 Atlantic Region champion on the weekend.

In the first game of the day, Franklin Pierce opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning. Senior designated hitter Marty Dunlap (Dorchester, Mass.) opened the inning with a double to the gap in right-center field. He later moved to third on a groundout and scored on an RBI groundout by sophomore second baseman Kurtis White (Nahant, Mass.).

Millersville answered with a run in the top of the third to tie the game at 1-1. With one out, freshman center fielder Chas McCormick clubbed a double into the gap in right-center, moved to third on a single back up the middle by junior right fielder Kurt Seiders and scored on a sacrifice fly to right field by senior left fielder Zach Stone.

The Ravens reclaimed the lead immediately with a run in the bottom half of the third. Graves led off with a single back up the middle and later wound up moving all the way around to third on an errant pickoff throw. He would then score from third on a sacrifice fly to center by Razzino.

The teams continued to trade runs as Millersville jumped to a 3-2 lead with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth. Sophomore first baseman Dan Stoltzfus led off with a single to right and stole second before back-to-back walks to sophomore shortstop Tyler Orris and junior catcher David Pine loaded the bases. The lineup flipped back to the top for McCormick, who knocked a two-run single back up the middle, plating Stoltzfus and Orris.

Franklin Pierce again responded, this time with a four-run bottom half of the fourth to stake out a 6-3 lead. Dunlap opened the inning again, this time with an infield single, and went first-to-third on a double down the right-field line by freshman third baseman Jay Jabs (Schwenksville, Pa.). Dunlap came home to score as freshman left fielder Chris LaVorgna (North Haven, Conn.) picked up an RBI with a ground ball, but wound up reaching at first on an error by Millersville senior second baseman Mark Stuckey. The error left runners at first and third for White, who cashed in Jabs with an RBI single back up the middle. Sophomore shortstop Justin Brock (Latham, N.Y.) followed and dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. An error on the play by Millersville freshman right-hander Matt Binder allowed LaVorgna to score and left runners at second and third for the top of the order. Graves capped the inning's scoring by lifting a sacrifice fly to left field to plate White.

The Ravens tacked on single runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to stretch the lead and finish off the 9-3 victory. In the sixth, Brock reached on an error leading off, stole second, moved to third on a flyout to right by Graves and scored on an RBI single through the right side by Razzino. In the seventh, sophomore first baseman Matt O'Herron (Springfield, Mass.) opened the inning with a single through the right side, stole second, moved to third on a ground ball and later scored on an RBI single to right by LaVorgna. In the eighth, Graves reached on a one-out infield single and moved to second on a groundout. He then stole third and scored on the play as Pine threw the ball away.

Sophomore right-hander Paul Covelle (Medford, Mass.) took the ball in Sunday's first game for Franklin Pierce. Over four innings, he allowed three runs on four hits, walked four, hit a batter and struck out four. Junior right-hander Paul Fahey (Dorchester, Mass.) came on to start the fifth and fired shutout ball the rest of the way, as he allowed just two baserunners, one of which was immediately erased on a double play. Over five innings, Fahey allowed one hit, did not issue a walk and struck out two to pick up the win (1-1).

On the other side of the ledger, senior right-hander Tad Barton got the start for Millersville and was roughed up over three-plus innings to take the loss (1-1). Ultimately, he was tagged for six runs (five earned) on five hits, hit one batter and struck out one. Barton faced five batters in the fourth, but retired none of them before being lifted.

In the second game, Franklin Pierce opened the scoring with a run in the bottom of the first inning. Graves led off with a walk, took second on an errant pickoff attempt, moved to third on an infield single by Razzino and scored via an RBI groundball from Walsh.

Millersville evened the score at 1-1 with a run in the top of the third inning. With one out, Pine worked a walk, stole second and moved to third on a balk. Seiders followed and grounded out to second to pick up an RBI and drive in the run.

The Marauders briefly took a 2-1 lead with a run in the top of the fifth. McCormick, batting eighth in the second game, led off with a single through the left side and stole second. He moved to third two batters later on a Seiders groundout and scored on an RBI single back up the middle by Orris.

A pair of Franklin Pierce runs in the bottom half of the fifth returned the Ravens to the lead, at 3-2. Graves opened the inning with a single back up the middle and Razzino followed with his second home run of the weekend, a two-run shot to left field.

Millersville capitalized on a defensive miscue to pick up an unearned run in the top of the sixth inning to tie the game at 3-3. Senior designated hitter Dan Johnson was hit by a pitch leading off and then went first-to-third on an errant pickoff throw. Johnson would later score on a wild pitch.

Franklin Pierce took the lead for good with a pair of runs in the home half of the sixth. LaVorgna ricocheted a lead-off single off the pitcher and stole second. After a walk to freshman second baseman Kyle Hood (Arlington, Mass.) put runners at first and second, Brock dropped down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners in scoring position. Two batters later, Razzino plated both with a two-run single to right-center.

An insurance run for the Ravens in the bottom of the seventh pushed the lead to 6-3. With one out, Dunlap pulled a double down the left-field line and came home to score when Jabs followed and yanked an RBI double down the right-field line.

Franklin Pierce tacked on two more in the bottom of the eighth to create the 8-3 final. Brock led off the inning with a single back up the middle and went first-to-third on a single down the right-field line by Graves. Razzino was next and drove in his fifth run of the game with a single to left-center, which also moved Graves around to third. Graves would score as Walsh made it four straight hits to open the inning with an RBI single through the left side of the infield.

Junior right-hander Brendan O'Rourke (Shrewsbury, Mass.) took the ball, threw the first five innings for Franklin Pierce and left without a decision. Over five innings, he allowed two runs on two hits, walked two and struck out four. Senior right-hander Ryan Leach (Farmingdale, Maine) got all three outs of the sixth inning and wound up with the win (2-0) after the Ravens took the lead for good in the bottom of the inning. In one inning of shutout ball, Leach allowed one hit and struck out one.

Sophomore right-hander Jim McDade toed the rubber for Millersville, but also left without a decision. Over 4.1 innings, he allowed three runs on four hits, walked one, hit two batters and did not record a strikeout. Sophomore right-hander Sean Stephenson ultimately took the loss (0-1) for the Marauders. He threw the next 1.2 innings after McDade, was tagged for two runs on three hits and walked one. Millersville pitching did not record a strikeout in the day's second game.

Currently, the Ravens are scheduled to return to the field with five games on Long Island next weekend. Franklin Pierce is slated to play at Queens on Friday, March 7 at 3:30 p.m., followed by back-to-back noon doubleheaders at Dowling on Saturday, March 8 and Sunday, March 9. Any changes to the schedule due to field conditions will be posted at athletics.franklinpierce.edu as they become available.

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). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce baseball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).