Fitchburg State Sweeps Mass-Maritime

Falcons blank Buccaneers 4-0 in game one; post 8-2 victory in game two

LEOMINSTER, Mass. (April 18, 2011) – The Fitchburg State baseball team scored a doubleheader sweep over visiting Massachusetts Maritime Academy this afternoon at McLaughlin Park. The Falcons blanked the Buccaneers, 4-0 in game one before posting an 8-2 victory in game two.

Fitchburg State 4, Mass-Maritime 0

In the opener, Fitchburg State rode the strong pitching performance of sophomore Tynan Flegg (Calgary, AB/National Sport Academy) to post a 4-0 victory and its second conference win of the season.

Flegg tossed a complete game, two-hitter for the Falcons, totaling five K's and two walks over seven innings pitched. The sophomore southpaw was perfect through the first four innings of play before Buccaneer senior Nick Levitre (Pocasset, Mass./Bourne) broke up the no-hit bid with a single to left field in the fifth.

Fitchburg State got on the board early, plating a pair of runs in the second inning behind a Cody Bamforth (Vernon, Conn./Rockville) solo homerun and a Nick Rocheleau (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) RBI single. The Falcons increased their lead to 3-0 in the third with an RBI base knock from Jeff Boice (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) before capping their scoring in the fifth with a single run off a wild pitch.

Boice and senior John Phelan (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) sparked the Falcons offensively, posting two hits apiece, while Bamforth finished 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI. Levitre collected the lone Buccaneers hits of the contest, including a double in the seventh inning.

Senior Corey Murphy (E. Wareham, Mass./Wareham) suffered the loss for Mass-Maritime, yielding four runs (three earned) on nine hits over the complete game effort. Murphy finished the contest with three strikeouts while not issuing a walk.

Fitchburg State 8, Mass-Maritime 2

In the second contest of the afternoon, Fitchburg State continued its solid pitching as senior Marshall Miller (Greenfield, Mass./Greenfield) cashed in a complete game performance to lead the Falcons to the doubleheader sweep, 8-2.

Miller went the distance for Fitchburg State, scattering just two runs and six hits over his seven innings of work. The senior veteran finished with three strikeouts, while only walking one batter.

For the second straight game, Fitchburg State got on the board early, using a wild pitch and sacrifice fly from freshman David Mason (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) to take a 2-0 lead after the first inning of play. Phelan led off the frame with an infield single, stole second and later scored on a wild pitch, while Boice crossed the plate on Mason's fly to center.

Mass-Maritime rallied back, using a pair of solo homeruns over the third and fifth frames to bring the game to a 2-2 standstill. Sophomore Aram Mulhern (Taunton, Mass./Taunton) lifted the Bucs with a  line-drive shot over the centerfield wall in the third, before junior Will Shouldice (Rutland, Vt./Mount Saint Joseph) repeated the task in the fifth.

With the score knotted at 2-2, Fitchburg State broke loose for five runs in the bottom of the fifth stanza, taking advantage of two Buccaneers errors to post four unearned runs. Junior Frank Yavorosky (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont) provided the big blow for the Falcons, plating the go ahead run with a single through the left side, while senior Dave Alexander (Torrington, Conn./Torrington) capped the rally with a two-run double down the left-field line. Phelan  rounded out the Fitchburg State scoring in the sixth with a solo blast over the right field fence.

Freshman starter Keith Sanchez (Monroe Township, N.J./Monroe Township) suffered the loss for Mass-Maritime, allowing seven runs (three earned) on six hits over 4.2 innings of work. Sanchez finished the contest with three K's before giving way to the Buccaneer bullpen.

Yavorosky led the Fitchburg State game two offense, hitting a perfect 3-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI, while Phelan finished 2-for-3 with a homerun, three runs scored and one RBI. Mulhern was the lone Buccaneer with multiple hits, going 2-for-2 with a run scored and one RBI.

Fitchburg State (13-13, 3-5 MASCAC) returns to action on tomorrow as it travels to Fisher College at 7 p.m. Mass-Maritime (9-11, 3-5 MASCAC) will visit Framingham State tomorrow at 3:30 p.m.