RINDGE, N.H. (April 8, 2017) – In the second game on Saturday afternoon, junior right-hander John Amendola (Wallingford, Conn.) fired 7.1 scoreless innings and struck out six at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field, as he led the Franklin Pierce University baseball team to a 3-0 win to cap a doubleheader sweep of visiting New Haven in Northeast-10 Conference play. Earlier in the day, two runs in the seventh and a game-ending wild pitch in the last of the ninth allowed the Ravens to rally from a 3-1 deficit to procure a 4-3 win.

With the sweep, Franklin Pierce improves to 15-8 (7-2 NE10), while New Haven falls to 11-6 (5-4 NE10). The Ravens will wrap up the weekend of cross-division NE10 play on Sunday, as they remain home to host Southern Connecticut State in a doubleheader. First pitch is set for noon at Pappas Field.

The day's first game went to the ninth tied at 3-3, with graduate student right-hander Tanner Bird (Adams, Mass.) on the mound for Franklin Pierce. He allowed a leadoff single to New Haven senior shortstop Tom Walraven -- at the top of the Chargers' order -- who then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Bird then got a flyout, but hit the next batter to put runners at first and second with two away. Senior third baseman Jack Zagaja was next, and was already 2-for-3 with a double in the game, but Bird struck him out swinging on four pitches to keep the game tied.

The Ravens would proceed to win the game with a run in the bottom half of the ninth. Freshman designated hitter Dylan Jones (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) opened the frame with a single up the middle, before a strikeout and a groundout left him at second with two away. Junior center fielder Harrison Smoske (Burlington, Mass.) followed and legged out an infield single on a soft grounder on the left side to make it runners at the corners. The lineup flipped back to the top for senior shortstop Lucas Luopa (Keene, N.H.), who took four straight pitches out the strike zone. The last ball of the four-pitch walk would also be the final pitch of the game, as it was in the dirt and escaped to the backstop, allowing Jones to race home with the winning run, as the Ravens spilled out of the third-base dugout in celebration.

The run made a winner out of Bird (2-2), who had taken over with a runner on second and nobody out in the top eighth and immediately struck out the next two hitters, before issuing a walk and inducing an inning-ending flyout. He would wind up throwing two scoreless innings, allowed one hit, walked one, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch and struck out three to pick up the win in relief.

Earlier in the game, Franklin Pierce opened the scoring with a run in the bottom of the first. Luopa led off with a line drive down the right-field line and into the corner for a triple. He would score two batters later, when junior third baseman John Friday (Southborough, Mass.) went the other way and dumped an RBI single into right field.

New Haven later took the lead with two runs in the top of the sixth inning. Senior right-hander Cody McPartland (Sound Beach, N.Y.) -- who would strike out 10 in six innings on the day -- struggled with his command for the only time all day in the frame. With one out, he hit senior second baseman Nick Russo, before senior left fielder Robert Petrillo went the other way and pushed a sinking line drive to left field. Freshman left fielder J.R. DiSarcina (Barnstable, Mass.) -- a converted infielder logging time in the outfield due to injuries elsewhere on the team -- got a bad read on the liner and did not break in until it was too late. Forced now to attempt a shoestring catch, DiSarcina came up empty, which left Petrillo with a single and runners at first and second with one out.

McPartland then did himself no favors, as he turned a mini jam into a full-fledged one. First, he hit senior designated hitter Nick Perrelli to load the bases, and then plunked Zagaja as well, to force home a run. After a strikeout for the second out, sophomore first baseman Andrew Garcia lashed an RBI single into left field to plate Petrillo and give the Chargers the lead.

New Haven tacked on an insurance run in the top of the seventh to push the lead to 3-1. Freshman center fielder Matt Chamberlain opened the inning with a single through the left side, moved to second on a balk and then went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Walraven. Walraven wound up safe on the play as well, as the throw to first by junior catcher Stephen Octave (New Windsor, N.Y.) pulled the covering second baseman off the bag.

The bunt spelled the end of the day for McPartland, who threw 84 pitches (59 strikes) over six-plus innings. He allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits, walked one, balked once, hit three batters, struck out 10 and did not factor in the decision.

Walraven eventually stole second, but graduate student right-hander Jared Habershaw (Kingston, R.I.) and junior left-hander Adam Goss (Waterford, Conn.) recorded back-to-back strikeouts, leaving runners at second and third and two away as senior right-hander Ben Collincini (Freehold, N.J.) took over on the mound. Collincini surrendered a single through the left side to Perrelli, which scored Chamberlain, but DiSarcina charged hard and threw out Walraven at the plate to end the inning without any further damage.

Franklin Pierce immediately rallied to tie the game at 3-3 with a pair of runs in the home half of the seventh. Junior first baseman Dalton Davis (Birmingham, Ala.) led off and pulled a double inside first base and down the right-field line, before moving to third as Jones reached on an infield single with a dribbler down the third-base line. Jones moved to second on a groundout, which ultimately led to runners at second and third with two away.

Head coach Mike Chambers turned to the bench and summoned freshman Richard DiMartino (Yonkers, N.Y.) for the pinch-hit appearance. DiMartino had a go at the first pitch and hit a sharp ground ball over the mound, directly over second base and into center field for a two-run, game-tying single, setting up the ninth-inning heroics.

Junior right-hander David Palmer threw 97 pitches (59 strikes) over seven innings on the mound for New Haven. He allowed three runs on seven hits, walked one and struck out four, without factoring out in the decision. Senior left-hander Josh Walker (2-1) threw the next 1.1 innings and suffered the loss for the Chargers, after allowing one run on two hits and striking out three. Though the winning run was charged to Walker, as he allowed the ninth-inning single to Jones, it was junior right-hander Colin Keyes who eventually uncorked the game-ending wild pitch.

In the second game, the Ravens got the only runs the pitching staff would need with a pair of unearned tallies in the bottom of the first. Luopa led off and bounced a single back up the middle, which Walraven was able to flag down behind the bag at second, but his throw to first was well late, leaving Luopa with an infield single. Junior right fielder Adam Chase (Bridgewater, Mass.) was next and bounced a sharp, tailor-made double-play ball to Walraven at short. However, Walraven could not handle the last hop, which caromed off his chest and fell in front of him. He recovered and threw the short way to second, but could not retire Luopa, leaving runners at first and second and still nobody out.

Two batters later, Octave -- the designated hitter in the second game -- lifted a high fly ball, which rode the wind deep into right field. New Haven junior right fielder Joe Caico inexplicably broke in on the ball, only to see it carry over his head and land on the warning track as he retreated. Luopa scored on the play, while Chase held up at third, as Octave pulled into second with an RBI double. Davis then plated Chase with an RBI groundout.

Meanwhile, Amendola set about dealing with the Chargers rather effectively. He would throw 97 pitches (67 strikes) over 7.1 scoreless innings. He allowed five hits, walked one and struck out six.

Franklin Pierce tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the fourth. With one out and nobody on, Davis jumped on a 1-2 pitch and then flipped his bat aside after driving a long, solo home run -- his third of the season -- to the power alley in right-center field. The ball cleared the fence directly over the 365-foot marker in right-center, and the estimated distance on the blast was 385 feet.

Later on, Habershaw took over for the final 1.2 innings on the mound for the Ravens. He allowed just one hit and faced only six batters while nailing down his first save in a Franklin Pierce uniform.

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).