O'Herron, Burns have four hits each in twinbill

SHIRLEY, N.Y. (March 6, 2016) – A five-run ninth inning in the first game and a six-run eighth inning in the second game broke each contest open, rewarding the work of the pitching staff for the No. 3/3 nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University baseball team on Sunday afternoon. Ravens pitching allowed just one earned run and two extra-base hits on the day, while sweeping a non-conference doubleheader at Dowling, 7-2 and 10-1, at Golden Lions Field.

With the wins, Franklin Pierce improves to 9-0, while Dowling falls to 0-3. The two teams are also scheduled to meet three times on their Spring Break trip to Cary, N.C. later this month.

In the first game, Dowling opened the scoring with an unearned run in the bottom of the first inning. Junior second baseman Rob Costanzo led off with a single into right-center and wound up at second on the play, as Franklin Pierce senior center fielder Maxx Sheehan (San Jose, Calif.) misplayed the ball. Costanzo moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by senior third baseman Vinny Orlando and scored on an RBI single into left-center by junior shortstop Tyler Piccolo.

Franklin Pierce answered immediately with a run in the top of the second to tie the game at 1-1. Senior right fielder Max DiTondo (Marshfield, Mass.) took a four-pitch leadoff walk, moved to both second and third on consecutive groundouts and scored when senior second baseman Kurtis White (Nahant, Mass.) clubbed an RBI triple to center field.

Dowling reclaimed the lead with another unearned run in the bottom of the sixth. Sophomore left fielder Tim Going reached on an error by senior shortstop Justin Brock (Latham, N.Y.) leading off, moved to second on a balk, stole third and scored on an RBI single through the right side of the infield by Costanzo.

Again the Ravens answered immediately, tying the game at 2-2 with an unearned run in the top of the seventh. With two outs, junior designated hitter Chris LaVorgna (North Haven, Conn.) struck out, but reached on a passed ball. He then stole second and wound up on third, thanks to an errant throw by Dowling junior catcher Chris Russo. LaVorgna would score on an RBI single to right by senior first baseman Matt O'Herron (Springfield, Mass.).

Franklin Pierce would take advantage of two further Dowling errors to plate five runs in the top of the ninth and come away with the 7-2 victory. LaVorgna, O'Herron and White each had RBI singles in the inning to capitalize on the errors, and each would score in the frame as well. Also in the inning, graduate student left fielder Matt Burns (Parkland, Fla.) reached on an error and later scored, while DiTondo walked and scored for the second time in the game.

Sophomore right-hander John Amendola (Wallingford, Conn.) took the ball for the Ravens and fired 108 pitches (79 strikes) without allowing an earned run, but did not factor in the decision. Over 7.2 innings, he allowed two unearned runs on four hits, walked one, balked once and struck out five. Senior right-hander Tanner Bird (Adams, Mass.) did not allow a run on two hits over the final 1.1 innings to pick up the win (2-0) out of the bullpen.

Junior right-hander Cody McPartland (0-2) toed the rubber for Dowling and also threw 108 pitches (77 strikes), over 8.1 innings. He allowed five runs (two earned) on six hits, walked two, threw a wild pitch and struck out nine while taking the loss.

In the second game, Franklin Pierce opened the scoring with a run in the top of the second inning. DiTondo led off the frame with an infield single on the left side, moved to second on a LaVorgna groundout and took third on a single to right by O'Herron. After White lined out for the inning's second out, the Ravens put on the first-and-third double-steal play. O'Herron was put out between first and second on the play, but lasted long enough in the rundown to allow DiTondo to score from third.

The Ravens doubled the lead to 2-0 with a run in the top of the fourth. After Burns singled to right, junior third baseman Jay Jabs (Schwenksville, Pa.) followed with a single to right of his own. Jabs would move to second as DiTondo bounced into a fielder's choice which saw Burns erased at third. After Jabs stole third, he would score as LaVorgna hit into an RBI fielder's choice.

Franklin Pierce would double the lead again, to 4-0, with two runs in the top of the fifth. With one out, White took a five-pitch walk, moved to second on a passed ball and scored on an RBI double to right by sophomore catcher Christopher Stanford (Quebec City, Quebec). Stanford moved to third on a flyout to right by Brock and scored two batters later on an RBI single through the left side by Burns.

Dowling got on the board with its only run of the game in the bottom of the sixth, cutting the gap to 4-1. Senior center fielder Chris Appell led off the inning, got a 2-0 pitch to his liking and drove it for his first home run of the season, a solo shot.

The Ravens broke the game wide open with six runs in the top of the eighth to create the 10-1 final. O'Herron had the inning's keynote address, with a bases-clearing, three-run triple to left field, scoring Jabs, DiTondo and LaVorgna. O'Herron later scored on a passed ball and Brock drove in a run in the inning with a sacrifice fly, while Burns was hit by a pitch and scored and White walked and scored.

Senior right-hander Paul Covelle (Medford, Mass.) threw 91 pitches (57 strikes) over eight innings of work on the mound for Franklin Pierce in the second game. He allowed one run on three hits, walked one and struck out five to pick up the win (2-0).

On the other side of the ledger, junior left-hander Dominic Danetti (0-1) threw 84 pitches (58 strikes) over six innings. He surrendered four runs on six hits, walked two and struck out one while taking the loss.

The Ravens return to the field on Friday, March 11, when they travel to Felician for a non-conference doubleheader to open a four-game weekend series. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at Lyndhurst Recreation Complex in Lyndhurst, N.J.

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).