QUINCY, MA - Starting pitcher SO Andrew
Keirstead (Westbrook, ME) tossed a complete game
masterpiece and the Monks (23-13, 8-6) surged for seven runs in the
seventh to earn a convincing 7-1 win over top seed Suffolk
University (23-9, 14-0) on Thursday in the quarterfinal round of
the GNAC playoffs. JR Wade Oliver
(Owls Head, ME) recorded a two-out, two-RBI single in the big
inning and SR Luke Enman (Milan,
NH) was 3-5 with a run in the victory.
Head Coach Will Sanborn reaches the 400-win plateau with the
conference quarterfinal triumph and now holds a career and Monks
baseball all-time best record of 400-242-6 (.623).
Suffolk starter SR Steve Durant (Malden, MA) and
Keirstead locked heads in a pitcher's duel for the
first five innings with the score tied at 0-0 going into the
sixth.
The Monks were sparked by Enman, as he led off the
6th with a single to left and SO Ben
Grant-Roy (Biddeford, ME) reached on an error by
Suffolk third baseman SO Mike Kenneally (Georgetown, MA). SR
Dustin Spiller (Gorham, ME) laid
down a perfectly placed bunt between Durant and Kenneally to load
the bases with nobody out. SO Ian
Lee (Hampden, ME) broke the scoreless tie with a
sac fly to left field that scored Enman.
With runners on first and second, Durant made a throwing error to
first on a sac bunt attempt by FY Eric
LaBatte (Rochester, NH) that scored
Grant-Roy. Spiller advanced to
third and LaBatte was thrown out trying to advance
to second base on the play for the second out of the inning. FY
Todd Keneborus (Hollis Center,
ME) then doubled home Spiller to give St. Joe's a
3-0 lead. SO Travis Adams (Saco,
ME) followed with a base on balls and both he and
Keneborus advanced a base on a passed ball that
kicked off Rams catcher SO Bobby Barrett (Milton, MA).
Oliver followed with a hard-hit single up the
middle that sent both Keneborus and
Adams across the plate to provide the Monks with a
five-run cushion. After SR Brian
Schools (Gorham, ME) reached with a base-hit bunt,
Suffolk right fielder JR Nick Carter (Newburyport, MA) misplayed a
single by Enman that allowed
Oliver to score from second base and
Schools to advance to third.
Schools dashed for home and scored the seventh SJC
run of the inning when Enman was picked off first
and got into a rundown.
Suffolk scored their only run of the game in the bottom of the
sixth when JR Anthony Iacopucci (Medford, MA) singled home SO Tim
Corcoran (Beverly, MA).
The Rams showed signs of life in the eighth when SR Nick Martinho
(Middleton, MA) led off with a double and Corcoran followed with a
single to put runners on first and third with nobody out. Keirstead
worked his way out of the jam with a routine fly to left and a
6-4-3 double play off the bat of pinch hitter SR Matt Shanahan
(Winchester, MA) to halt the Suffolk rally bid.
For St. Joe's, Oliver was 2-5 with a run and 2
RBI's, Keneborus went 2-4 with a run and an RBI
and Schools was 2-5 with a run.
Keirstead scattered 9 hits and whiffed 4 to
improve his season record to 5-1 with the victory.
Tim Corcoran was 2-4 with a run scored for Suffolk and Durant (5-3)
allowed 8 hits and struck out 7 batters in 5.2 innings in the
loss.
The Monks will face-off against Johnson and Wales University in a
GNAC semifinal match-up on Saturday, April 26th at Holman Stadium
in Nashua, NH. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 PM.