AUBURNDALE, FL – Saint Joseph's College (2-0) kicked off the 2013 campaign with a pair of convincing victories over Rhode Island College (0-3) in RussMatt Central Florida Invitational baseball action on Saturday morning. The Monks opened the year with a 9-1 triumph and closed out opening day with an 11-0, five-inning win over the Anchormen.
Saint Joseph's, ranked 12th in the latest D3baseball.com national poll, excelled in all facets of the game en route to scoring the most runs in the first two games of the season since 2010, when the Royal Blue bested Clark College by a combined 24-10 score.
Junior right fielder Alex Lorenc (Nanuet, N.Y.) paced the SJC offense by going 6-7 with a run, a double and six RBI and senior first baseman Mike Pratt (Dartmouth, Mass.) went 4-7 with four runs, three doubles and seven RBI in the twinbill sweep. Junior center fielder and lead-off hitter Louie Vigars (Stratham, N.H.), stepping into a starting role for the first time in his career, sparked the Monks by going 3-7 with three runs and a pair of RBI.
As anticipated, pitching proved to be one of the team's fortes as four St. Joe's hurlers combined to yield just one earned run off five hits and a pair of walks over 12 innings. Senior Tyler Laverriere (Biddeford, Maine) was dominant in the opener, tossing six innings of two-hit, one run ball with four strikeouts and two walks, and freshman Riley Cox (Westford, Mass.) closed out the 9-1 triumph with a perfect 1-2-3 seventh inning.
Junior Joe Gruntkosky (Peabody, Mass.) followed suit in the nightcap by working four scoreless frames with three K's and two hits allowed and sophomore Dan Meeken (Marshfield, Mass.) fanned a pair in a clean fifth inning to cap the day's action.
Saint Joseph's resumes play tomorrow with a pair of games versus Ripon College beginning at 3:00 PM on Lake Myrtle Field #1.
GAME ONE
Saint Joseph's wasted little time getting on top, as Lorenc delivered a two-out, two-run double plating Vigars and third baseman Alex Markakis (Lynnfield, Mass.) – both of whom reached via base on balls - in the top of the first. Lorenc's two-bagger nearly left the park as his shot short-hopped the fence down the left field line.
The Anchormen responded by scoring what turned out to be their only run of the day in the bottom of the third, when senior Zach Hubbard (Kissimmee, Fla.) singled up the middle, moved up a base on a sac bunt and scored on a Dean Grasso (Cranston, R.I.) base hit through the left side.
St. Joe's proceeded to put the game out of reach with two runs in both the fourth and fifth frames and three in the sixth. Vigars sent senior shortstop David Nieves (York, Maine) and senior left fielder Sam Butts (Saco, Maine) scrambling home with a two-out single in the fourth and freshman designated hitter Taylor Reuillard (Biddeford, Maine) blasted a two-run triple to deep left-center in the fifth to make it a 6-1 game.
Pratt, Lorenc and junior catcher Willie Brown (Fayette, Maine) rapped RBI singles in the sixth to account for the 9-1 final. Rhode Island threatened in the bottom of the sixth when the first two hitters reached with a walk and an SJC error, but Laverriere closed the door by inducing a 3-6 double play and a harmless groundout to first.
For the Monks, Lorenc went 3-4 with a run, a two-bagger and three RBI, Vigars was 2-4 with two runs, two RBI and a stolen base and Brown added two hits in four trips with a run batted in. Reuillard became the first Saint Joseph's player since 2008 to have a triple as his first NCAA hit and Cox, a converted submarine pitcher, was impressive in his first collegiate appearance on the hill.
Anchormen starting pitcher C.J. Tsoumakas (Hope, R.I.) suffered the loss after allowing four runs off three hits and four walks with six K's in four innings. Andrew McKeon (Johnston, R.I.) surrendered five runs off seven hits and three walks in two frames of relief and Billy Morris (Warwick, R.I.) did not allow a baserunner in a scoreless seventh.
GAME TWO
The Monks used a similar approach in the closing contest, employing early scoring and outstanding pitching in an 11-0 victory. With two out in the bottom of the first, sophomore catcher Nic Lops (South Portland, Maine/Cheverus) doubled to left-center and sophomore designated hitter Joe Coyne (Duxbury, Mass.) walked to set the stage for Pratt, who drove a double to left-center to plate both of his teammates. Lorenc made it a 3-0 game when he plated Pratt with a single to center.
Saint Joseph's continued the offensive assault with six runs off six hits in the bottom of the second. Lops opened the second-frame scoring with an RBI single, scoring senior second baseman Brandon Chase (Naples, Maine), and Coyne collected his first RBI of the year when he was plunked with the bases loaded. With the bases loaded, Pratt provided the back-breaker when he capped a nine-pitch at bat with a three-run double and crossed the plate himself when the following batter, Lorenc, singled down the right field line, making it a 9-0 game after only two frames.
St. Joe's scored twice in the bottom of the fourth and Meeken, who missed most of his freshman season due to injuries, fanned a pair in the top of the fifth to claim the mercy-rule victory. Pratt raked an RBI double to deep left field and Lorenc plated his senior teammate with a single up the chute.
For the Monks, Pratt was 3-3 with three runs, three doubles and a career-high six RBI, Lorenc went 3-3 with three RBI and Lops was 2-2 with three runs, a double and an RBI in the lopsided nightcap triumph. Gruntkosky was efficient on the mound with 55 pitches over four innings and allowed just two baserunners – on a pair of singles – in his first start of the season.
Rhode Island College starter Stephen Lapatin (Cranston, R.I.) took the loss after allowing nine runs off nine hits and a pair of free passes in 1.1 innings and Kyle Florio (Plantsville, Conn.) gave up two runs off three hits in 2.2 innings of relief.
With the sweep, Saint Joseph's improves to 4-0 in the history of the series with Rhode Island College. Prior to today, the Monks and Anchormen had not met since the Florida trip in 2006, when St. Joe's defeated RIC by 7-6 and 14-3 margins.
Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 350-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.