Fitchburg State Powers Past Gordon, 17-7
Fitchburg State Powers Past Gordon, 17-7
Balderelli and Breen lift Falcons to third victory of the season; Kendrick tosses five strong in first collegiate start
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AUBURNDALE, Fla. (March 9, 2009) - Sophomore AJ Balderelli (Holland, Mass./Tantasqua Regional) and senior Kris Breen (Griswold, Conn./Griswold) combined for nine RBI as Fitchburg State registered a 17-7 victory over Gordon College in non-conference action this afternoon.
Balderelli ignited the Fitchburg State attack, hitting 3-for-6 with a triple, three runs scored and four RBI, while Breen connected for two doubles and a game-high five RBI. Freshman Tom Dolan (Stamford, Conn./Westhill) added three hits, one run and two RBI to the mix, while sophomore Nick Rocheleau (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) finished 3-for-5 with three runs scored and one RBI.
Junior Robert Mansfield (Wall, N.J./Wall) led the Gordon offense with a 2-for-5 performance and three RBI, while freshman Eric Wolak (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull) finished with two base-hits.
Breen opened the scoring for the Falcons with a two-out, base-clearing double early in the third inning as Fitchburg State posted a 5-0 lead in the first 3 ½ innings of play. Gordon battled back in the bottom of the fourth frame, manufacturing a pair of runs on two walks and a fielder's choice to cut the Falcon lead to 5-2.
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Fitchburg State responded quickly in the top of the fifth inning as the Falcons plated four runs on three hits. After a lead-off walk to Breen and a double by sophomore Ricky Graham (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), Balderelli sliced a line drive base-hit through the left side to score two. Rocheleau followed suit with an RBI single, while Dolan posted a sacrifice fly to give the Falcons a 9-2 cushion.
The Falcons continued to pump the offense in the sixth, posting a three run rally on two hits and three walks. Senior Aaron Granahan (Thomaston, Conn./Thomaston) led off the inning with a single through the left side while Balderelli smashed an RBI triple for his third and fourth RBI of the day.
In the eighth, Fitchburg State continued to soar, crossing the plate four times to take a commanding 16-4 lead. Sophomore Brian Ware (Beverly, Mass./Beverly) notched a two RBI double to get the Falcons started, while Breen capped the rally, belting a two-RBI double to the left center wall.
Fitchburg State freshman Tyler Kendrick (Montague, Mass./Smith Academy) earned the victory in his collegiate debut, totaling four strikeouts and only three earned runs in five innings of work. Senior Adam Clark (Woburn, Mass./Woburn) suffered the loss for the Fighting Scots, allowing nine earned runs over 4.1 innings on the mound.
Fitchburg State (3-1, 0-0 MASCAC) is back in action tomorrow as it faces Emerson College and Bethany Lutheran in a double-header starting at 9:30 a.m. Gordon (0-1, 0-0 TCCC) will battle SUNY-IT in a double-header tomorrow starting at 12 p.m.