Monks Close Out Record Breaking Season with Sweep

Monks Close Out Record Breaking Season with Sweep

STANDISH, ME - Saint Joseph's (31-13) broke out the brooms on Sunday, taking a pair of games from Bates College (12-22), 16-11 and 10-5, in the seniors' final games at Larry Mahaney Diamond. Kevin Chamberlain '11 (Scarborough, ME) and Pat Moran '10 (Winterport, ME) collected the pitching decisions and improve to 3-1 and 8-1, respectively, on the season. Wade Oliver '09 (Owls Head, ME) was 3-5 with two runs and five RBI in the opener, and Chris Campbell '11 (Rochester, NH) was 7-8 with five runs scored in the twin bill. The 2009 Monks offense has set new single-season team records in at bats (1475), runs (431), hits (523), doubles (116), RBI (401), hit batsmen (60) and runs per game (9.8).

With the game one triumph, the 2009 baseball team became the seventh Monks squad to reach the 30-win plateau. Six of those seasons have occurred under Head Coach Will Sanborn's watch, with four coming in the last five years. This year's graduating class of Oliver , Steve Gorsun (South Berwick, ME), Andrew Pooler (Southwest Harbor, ME) and Mike Hebenstreit (Centerville, MA) have helped the team post a 123-53 (.699) record while donning the Royal Blue. The win total and winning percentage both rank third in program history for a departing senior class.

GAME ONE -

The Bobcats struck first in both games and held a 1-0 lead after their turn in the first frame of the opener. With one out, Noah Burke '11 (Appleton, ME) sent a Chamberlain offering over the head of Gorsun in center for a triple and scored when Chris Burke '11 (Andover, MA) hit a sharp single to right.

As he has all season, Campbell ignited the SJC offense with a single to lead off the bottom of the first and, after an Oliver base knock, scored to tie the game on a Ben Grant-Roy '10 (Biddeford, ME) groundout to Bates third baseman Mike Ciummei '12 (Acton, MA).

The Bobcats would go on to secure a 2-1 edge in the third when Tom Beaton '10 (West Newbury, MA), who led off the inning with a single to right, scored on a wild pitch. The lead was short-lived however, as the Monks plated eight runs on seven hits and two Bobcats miscues in the bottom of the frame to go up 9-2. Oliver provided much of the run support in the outburst, with his first home run of the season, a two-run shot to right that sent Campbell jogging home, and a two-run double later in the inning. Mike Burdin '10 (Gardiner, ME) plated a pair with a bases-loaded single and Todd Keneborus '11 (Hollis Center, ME/Cheverus) and Campbell both registered RBI singles to help the Monks take control of the game.

With one out in the bottom of the fourth, Moran lifted a long ball well over the left field wall for his 11 th home run of the season, a solo blast. Travis Adams '10 (Saco, ME), who was awarded first base after getting plunked by a stray pitch, scored on a first and third double steal play and Gorsun sent Burdin scampering home with a single to give the hosts a cushy 12-2 advantage.

The extra run support proved to be vital, as the Bobcats charged back with nine runs in their final three trips to the plate. In the fifth, Chris Burke notched an RBI single and pinch hitter Dave Farrell '09 (Chatham, MA) belted a two-run tater to make it a 12-5 game.

Grant-Roy got two of those runs back with a two-run blast over the left field fence in the bottom of the fifth, but the pesky Bobcats refused to go away and countered with a pair in the sixth with another long ball, a two-run shot, off the bat of Tyler Maxwell '09 (Coventry, VT).

St. Joe's led 16-7 after plating two more in the bottom of the sixth. Bates reliever Will Furbush '12 (South Portland, ME) fanned Gorsun on a bender in the dirt, but the speedster reached on an errant throw by the Bobcats backstop Farrell and managed to steal both second and third base before scoring on a fielder's choice off the bat of Oliver . The next batter, Ian Lee '11 (Hampden, ME), pushed Oliver , who stole third, across the plate with a sac fly to left to cap the SJC scoring.

Chris Dion '11 (Lawrence, MA), though typically reliable, had a rough outing in relief of Mason Roberge '11 (Franklin, NH), who worked the sixth frame. The southpaw was unable to finish what he started in the top of the seventh, allowing four runs on four hits and a walk before being lifted with two outs in favor of Chris Nanof '10 (Clinton, MA), who forced Maxwell to ground out to Oliver at short to close out the game.

For the Monks, Campbell was 4-4 with three runs, Grant-Roy went 2-4 with two runs and three RBI and Burdin scored two runs and plated a pair. The SJC runners were active on the bases, with a season-high eight stolen bases in the triumph. Oliver pilfered three bags and Gorsun added two swipes for St. Joe's. Chamberlain allowed five earned runs and seven hits with four strikeouts in the victory.

For the Bobcats, Ciummei was 3-3 with an RBI, Farrell went 2-2 with two runs and two batted in and Chris Burke had two hits in four trips to the plate with a run and two RBI. Maxwell chipped in with a pair of runs and RBI and Jake Simon '11 (Waterford, CT) notched two RBI in the losing effort. Starter Paul Chiampa '11 (Bryantville, MA) fell to 2-6 on the year after allowing nine runs, six earned, on 10 hits with three punch outs in 2 2/3 innings. Relievers Karl Alexander '12 (Cambridge, MA), Ben Thayer '09 (Gorham, ME) and Furbush combined to allow seven runs on six hits.

GAME TWO -

Beaton opened the nightcap with a double to right-center and scored on a base hit from Chris Burke, who later scored on an SJC miscue to put the visitors up 2-0.

Zeroes were put up on the board in the following two half-innings, but the Monks knotted the game with a pair in the bottom of the second. Moran doubled and scored on a Burdin single and Keneborus , who reached with a base knock, scrambled home on a groundout to short off the bat of Gorsun in the frame.

The Bobcats held their largest advantage of the day, 5-2, after a three-run fourth. Chris Burke led off the inning with a double and later scored on an error and Ciummei belted a two-run big fly off Pooler to lift Bates to a three-run lead.

After a scoreless turn, the Monks came out with four runs on five hits in the fifth to take a 6-5 edge. Campbell and Oliver started things off with singles before Moran smacked his second career triple, scoring both runners. Keneborus sent Moran home with a single up the middle and, after swiping second base, scored on a Craig Woodbrey '10 (Gorham, ME) three-bagger to lift the Monks to a 6-5 lead.

St. Joe's went on to add four runs in the sixth to go up 10-5 and cap the game scoring. With the bases packed with Monks, Keneborus hit a ball that one-hopped the fence in right-center to plate three runs and landed on third with his fourth triple of the season. The sophomore outfielder promptly scored on a perfectly executed squeeze play, as Burdin dropped down a bunt on the first pitch he saw to notch his 37 th RBI of the year.

For the Monks, Keneborus was 3-4 with three runs and four RBI, Moran went 3-3 with three runs and two RBI and Campbell was 3-4 with two runs scored. Pooler allowed five runs, four earned, on five hits with three K's and Moran tossed three scoreless innings with three strikeouts and one hit allowed to pick up the win.

Chris Burke was the lone repeat hitter for Bates and went 2-3 with two runs scored and one batted in. His single in the first inning was his 51 st hit of the season and broke the Bobcats' single-season hit record. Starter Ben Shwartz '09 (Mattapoisett, MA) allowed two earned runs on three hits in two innings and did not factor into the decision. Reliever Ryan Heide '11 (Medfield, MA) (2-5) suffered the loss after allowing four runs on eight hits with two K's in 2 2/3 innings. Chuck Murphy-Romboletti '09 (Holyoke, MA) tossed 1 1/3 innings and surrendered four runs, three earned, on three free passes and two hits.

Aside from breaking the team single-season records in the aforementioned categories, the Monks posted the second-best marks in batting average (.355) and slugging (.533), and third-highest numbers in home runs (35) and on-base percentage (.433)...Lee extended his hitting streak to 19 games with base hits in both ends of the doubleheader and now has 75 hits, two shy of the record held by Steve Osborne '01...Lee , who is also chasing Osborne's single-season batting average mark of .481, saw his average dipped to .475 with a 2-7 effort in the twin bill...Lee's 53 RBI is the fourth-most in a single season and Grant-Roy, with 53 runs scored, is tied with Will Sanborn '86 for the fourth-most runs in a campaign...With 11 home runs in 2009, Moran is tied with Jesse LaCasse '03 for the third most long balls in a season at St. Joe's...With Lee, Campbell (.423) and Moran (.411), the 2009 team is the first in program history to feature three regulars with batting averages north of .400...Moran's eight victories ties him with four former SJC pitchers for the third-highest single-season win total in team history...Pooler now ranks fourth in program history with 47 appearances...Dion's 21 appearances in 2009 fell one shy of tying J.P. Pyne '01 for the single-season high.