STANDISH, ME – Saint Joseph's (12-5, 3-1 GNAC) trounced Emerson College (0-17, 0-4 GNAC) in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader at Larry Mahaney Diamond on Wednesday. The Monks toppled the Lions, 18-5, in the opener and closed out the sweep with a 12-2 triumph in the nightcap.
Saint Joseph's, ranked 21st in the nation in the latest NCBWA/D3baseball.com Weekly Poll, entered today's action with the best earned run average (1.29) in the country and looked to continue the trend of pitching past opponents in the second GNAC twinbill of the season.
Pitching was strong yet again, but the Monks' bats stole the show as the Royal Blue scored 30 runs off 23 hits in the two games combined.
GAME ONE
The Monks scored early and often in the opener and held a 10- 0 lead after just two turns at the bat. Freshman shortstop Zack Graham (Marlborough, Mass.) delivered a two-run double in the first inning while sophomore designated hitter Joe Coyne (Duxbury, Mass.) and senior second baseman Brandon Chase (Naples, Maine) both drove in a pair in a six-run second.
With the lead securely in hand, Head Coach Will Sanborn '86 removed starter Chad Rafferty (Keene, N.H.) from the contest, presumably so the senior righthander could be used again later in a very busy stretch for the Monks. Rafferty left the game having allowed just one baserunner – a hit batsman in the top of the second inning – and fanned three over three dominant frames.
First in relief was sophomore southpaw Anthony Zawistowski (Otisville, N.Y.), who surrendered four runs off two hits and a pair of walks with a strikeout in one inning of work. Freshman Torrey Charnock (Topsham, Maine), making his NCAA debut, was next in line on the hill and yielded a run off a hit and two free passes in one inning of mop-up duty.
Freshman submariner Riley Cox (Westford, Mass.), who claimed the winning decision, fanned all three batters he faced in the top of the sixth and junior lefty Chris Bryant (Gray, Maine) finished the game by fanning a pair in the top of the seventh.
Graham broke out offensively by going 3-4 with a pair of runs, a double and four RBI in the blowout victory and Chase was 2-4 with two doubles and four RBI in the opener. Coyne went 3-3 with three runs, a two-bagger and three RBI and junior right fielder Alex Lorenc (Nanuet, N.Y.) was 2-2 with three runs, a double and two RBI in the 13-run victory.
Junior Jack Reilly (Worcester, Mass.) registered his first collegiate hit – a two-run single in the bottom of the fifth – in the triumph while freshmen Eddie Kieltyka (New Britain, Conn.) and Joe Bryant (Gray, Maine) made their first NCAA appearances in the victory.
Sophomore Julian Rifkind (Brooklyn, N.Y.) tossed all six innings for the Lions and allowed 10 earned runs off 13 hits, four walks and four hit batsmen with three strikeouts in the losing effort.
GAME TWO
As the sun went down the temperature dropped considerably and the Monks' bats seemed to cool as well as the hosts trailed 2-1 going into the bottom of the third. The deficit was quickly erased however, as St. Joe's proceeded to score 11 unanswered runs en route to a 12-2 laugher.
Graham posted another fine performance at the plate, going 2-4 with three RBI and a stolen base in the closing contest. Freshman designated hitter Taylor Reuillard (Biddeford, Maine) was 2-4 with three runs, a pair of RBI and a stolen base and Chase continued to swing a hot stick by going 2-2 with two runs, a double, an RBI and a steal in the nightcap. Freshman left fielder Tim Beaudette (Uxbridge, Mass.) went 2-4 with two runs, a triple and an RBI and senior Sam Butts (Saco, Maine) drove in a pair of runs for Saint Joseph's.
Junior starting pitcher Nick Whittaker (Yarmouth, Maine) improved to 3-1 on the season after allowing two unearned runs off three hits and two walks with seven K's in 5.2 innings. Cox closed out the contest and struck out a pair in 1.1 innings of relief.
Junior Andy Brightman (North Wales, Penn.) took the loss after yielding nine runs (four earned) off 10 hits with three walks in 4.1 innings. Junior Nick Kelly (McLean, Va.) let up three runs (one earned) and walked a pair in 1.2 frames of relief for the visitors.
With the sweep, Saint Joseph's improves to 12-0 in the history of the series with Emerson College, which is leaving the GNAC next fall to join the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC).
Saint Joseph's will host non-conference opponent Curry College on Wednesday in a single nine-inning game slated to begin at 3:00 PM. Emerson is set to play two games at Rivier University on Saturday with the opener starting at 1:05 PM.
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.
