Baseball Wins Rain-Shortened Opener at Stonehill, 5-1

Links: Box Score

EASTON, Mass.  – The Merrimack College baseball program hit three home runs and won its series opener at Stonehill College, 5-1, as the game was called after six complete innings due to rain. With the win, the Warriors are officially locked into third place in the Northeast Division and will travel to Franklin Pierce for the opening round of the Northeast-10 Conference Championship on Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. from Rindge, N.H.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 5, Stonehill 1
Records: Merrimack (25-17, 17-10 NE10, 12-7 NE DIV)
Records: Stonehill (16-20-1, 9-14-1 NE10, 8-10-1 NE DIV)
Location: Lou Gorman Field | Easton, Mass.

NE10 Championship Outlook:
The top-four programs in the Northeast Division standings will advance to the NE10 Championship, which begins with the first round one week from Tuesday. With the win, Merrimack is locked into third place in the Northeast Division and will play Franklin Pierce in the opening round of the NE10 Championship on Tuesday, May 8

1. SNHU – 16-3 NE DIV
2. Franklin Pierce – 15-5 NE DIV
3. Merrimack – 12-7 NE DIV
4. Assumption– 8-10-1 NE DIV
5. Stonehill – 8-10-1 NE DIV
6. Bentley – 7-11 NE DIV
7. Saint Anselm – 5-13 NE DIV
8. Saint Michael's – 4-16 NE DIV

Rapid Recap

• After ending Wednesday's game with a walk-off double, sophomore Joey Porricelli hit a leadoff homer to stake Merrimack to a 1-0 lead. Later in the frame and with runners on the corners, the Navy and Gold executed a first-and-third play that saw graduate student Tyler Lyne score from third. Merrimack looked to extend its lead past 2-0, but left the bases loaded to end the inning
• Stonehill tacked on a run in the bottom of the first, but senior Matt Nicholson answered in the top of the third with his team-leading sixth home run of the season to make it a 3-1 game
• Merrimack continued to rely on the long ball in the top of the fifth, when senior Ricky Smith knocked a two-run shot out of Lou Gorman Field. On the mound, senior Anthony Lupi settled in after relenting one early run, throwing four straight scoreless innings and striking out seven Skyhawks through five frames
• A fielding error and a walk gave Stonehill two baserunners to start the bottom of the sixth, but Lupi rolled up a 5-4-3 double play to leave the Skyhawks with just a runner at third. The southpaw ended the game with his season-high tying eighth strikeout of the afternoon

Notes and Notables:

• WP: Lupi (5-4) | LP: White (2-3)
• Lupi's Final Line (W): 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K
• The three homers on the day tied Merrimack's season high. Nicholson tied his career best with his sixth round-tripper of the season
• The cleanup hitter became the first Warrior since 2014 with a 40-RBI season after the solo homer. He now boasts 19 career long balls, moving within one of becoming the fourth Warrior ever with a 20-homer season
• Porricelli crossed the plate for a team-leading 51^st time this season. The Monroe, Conn. native is just the seventh player in school history to total at least 50 runs in a single season. He ranks second in runs scored in the conference
• Lupi's performance officially goes down as a complete game, which marked his staff-leading second of the season. The Dover, N.H. native ended his outing one K away from tying his career high, and increased his career-best innings total to 62.1 over 12 outings

Up Next
The Warriors return to Lou Gorman Field tomorrow for a 3:30 p.m. first pitch in Easton, Mass.