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Box Score 2 Worcester, Mass. - The Assumption University Baseball team kicked off their weekend four game series at home versus the Franklin Pierce University Ravens with two wins on Saturday afternoon. The first game saw the Greyhounds slug 17 hits in an early back and forth battle along with five homers, three of them coming from senior shortstop Jake Hamel who also hit a go ahead grand slam in the seventh to break a 6-6 tie. The Hounds would win game one 14-9 and in game two were backed by another stellar performance from Jack Choate who had 14 strikeouts and would take the win on walk off single from Emilio Acosta.
Game One: Assumption 14, Franklin Pierce 9
Assumption opened the scoring in game one thanks to an RBI single from Emilio Acosta (Cromwell, Conn.) but the Ravens would take the lead in the second getting two runs in the frame. Jack Barry (Bridgewater, Mass.) would tie the game immediately in the home half of the second with a solo homer to right center. The Ravens would gain the lead again in the top half of the third on an RBI single from Jake Miller.
The Greyhounds would take the lead in the fifth on RBI singles from Acosta, Jared Berardino (Rowley, Mass.) and Barry to give them a 5-3 lead. Franklin Pierce would add a run in the 6th on Hunter Wilichowski solo homer, but Assumption would respond in the home half with a solo homer from Jake Hamel (Uxbridge, Mass.) to give the hosts a 6-4 lead. Franklin Pierce would continue to battle and would tie the game in the 7th on a Randy Flores 2 run double.
In the bottom half of the seventh the Greyhounds would score six runs on five hits with the big blow of the inning coming from Hamel who would belt a Grand Slam to right field to give the hosts a 10-6 lead and Acosta would bring home two on a single past the diving Flores to push the lead to 12-6. Acosta would finish game one going 4for5 with four RBIs.
The Ravens would add three runs in the eighth to make it 12-9 and give the Greyhounds a scare but freshman pitcher Alexander Meesig (Nashua, N.H.) would get out of the jam and strand the bases loaded. Assumption would add two more runs in the 9th with back to back homers. Hamel would hit his third homerun of the game with a shot to left field, finishing the day going 3for5 with 6 RBIs and Owen Podolec (Berwick, Maine) would hit a no doubter to left to give Assumption a 14-9 lead.
Spencer Cipro (Brookfield, Mass.) would pitch the 9th for the hosts and would finish the game getting two strikeouts in the frame. Patrick Harrington (Bedford, N.H.) would start the game for the hosts tossing 6 innings, allowing 9 hits, 6 runs and would have 5 strikeouts. Justin Ray (Portland, Maine) would come on in relief and pick up the win. Jake Ursillo would take the loss for the Ravens going 1.1 innings allowing four hits and three runs.
Game Two: Assumption 3, Franklin Pierce 2 (7 Innings)
Game two of the day would turn out to be a pitchers duel between Jack Choate (North Grafton, Mass.) and Kyle Roche. Assumption picked up where they left off in game one and would score two in the first on an RBI groundout by Conor Wironen (Leominster, Mass.) and a Jared Berardino single. Choate would strike out the side in his first two innings, but the Ravens would get a run back in the third on a RBI single from Ian Battipaglia and would tie the game when Ryan Lavalle would score to tie the game in the fifth when he would steal third and score on a throwing error.
The game would be a back and forth battle between the two pitchers with both of them trading strikeouts as the day would go on. Assumption would come up in the seventh facing a new arm from the Ravens bullpen and Hamel would reach on a bang bang play at first and Podolec would reach on a bunt single setting up Emilio Acosta to play hero. Acosta would come through in the clutch hitting a single to left and Hamel would wheel home from second to score the winning run and give the Greyhounds the walk off win.
Kyle Roche would go 6 innings for the Ravens and would strike out 13 and Andres Auffant would take the loss allowing three hits and the game winning run. Choate would pick up the win throwing a complete game, allowing two runs on one hit and striking out 14.
The Greyhounds are back in action tomorrow when they look to complete the sweep of the Ravens with a doubleheader starting at 11.
