Fitchburg State Sweeps Colby Sawyer

Falcons post 9-5 victory in game one; rally late for 4-3 victory in nightcap

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (March 7, 2009) - Fitchburg State kicked off its 2009 campaign, sweeping a Saturday non-conference double-header with Colby-Sawyer College this afternoon.

Fitchburg State 9, Colby-Sawyer 5

MATT MORRISON

Junior Matt Morrison (Beverly, Mass./Bishop Fenwick) and senior Kris Breen (Griswold, Conn./Griswold) led the Fitchburg State game one attack, combining for a 4-for-5 effort with three runs scored and three RBI. Breen lifted the Falcons with a 2-for-2 performance, including a homerun, three runs scored and one RBI, while Morrison hit 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI. Sophomore Matt Corvo (Stratton Mountain, Vt./Stratton Mountain) was solid for Colby-Sawyer, going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI.

Colby-Sawyer opened the scoring early in the first inning, taking advantage of two Fitchburg State errors for the first two runs of the contest. The Falcons cut the Chargers lead in half in the top of the second as Breen connected for a lead-off homerun, but Colby-Sawyer notched another score on a RBI single by Corvo to take a 3-1 lead..

In the third, Fitchburg State struck for three runs on four hits to grab a 4-3 edge. Senior Aaron Granahan (Thomaston, Conn./Thomaston) kicked the rally off with a RBI triple, while classmate Andy Sauer (Willington, Conn./E.O. Smith) and Breen followed with back-to-back singles. Morrison put the Falcons on top later in the inning with a two-out, RBI double.

After the teams traded a pair of runs over the fourth and fifth frames, Fitchburg State exploded for three runs in the top of the sixth inning to clinch its first victory of the season. Sauer was solid on the mound in the Falcons season-opener, allowing only three earned runs over five complete innings, while striking out three. Sophomore hurler Mike Bertuccio (Millstone Township, N.J./Pennington) suffered the loss for the Chargers, going 4.2 innings with four earned runs and 7K's.

Fitchburg State 4, Colby-Sawyer 3

Sophomore Ricky Graham (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) paced the Fitchburg State,  attack in game two, posting three singles and three RBI. Classmate AJ Balderelli (Holland, Mass./Tantasqua Regional) was also strong for the Falcons, finishing a perfect 3-for-3 with a double and one RBI, while Granahan chipped in with two doubles, one run and one RBI.  

Senior Tom White (Libson, N.H./Libson) led the Colby-Sawyer offense in game two, hitting a perfect 2-for-2 with a triple, one run scored and one RBI. Classmate Chris Gaeta (Lynn, Mass./St. Mary's) added two hits and one RBI for the Chargers, while junior Chris Hartery (Billerica, Mass./Billerica) connected for a RBI single.           

In the bottom of the fourth, Fitchburg State broke the scoring silence, pushing home the game's first run on three hits. Sauer started the Falcons off with a lead-off single and moved to second on a Colby-Sawyer balk. After a Breen fly-out moved Sauer over to third, Morrison blasted a RBI single to left-field, giving the Falcons the 1-0 advantage.

Colby-Sawyer battled back in the top of the sixth inning as White connected for an RBI triple, driving home Gaeta who singled to start the inning. One batter later, the Chargers grabbed the lead as Hartery singled through the left side, driving home White. After a single by Chris Martin (Lebanon, N.H./Lebanon), classmate Joe Guidi (Derry, N.H./Pinkerton) notched a RBI single to give Colby-Sawyer and two run advantage (3-1).

Trailing 3-2 heading into the final frame, Fitchburg State rallied for two runs in the bottom of the seventh to clinch the series sweep. Freshman Patrick Hughes (North Port, Fla./North Port) and Granahan sparked the Falcon rally with one double each, while Graham sliced a single up the middle for the game-winning RBI.

Sophomore Marshall Miller, III (Greenfield, Mass./Greenfield) picked up the victory for the Falcons, tossing 1.2 solid innings of relief, while striking out two. Junior Nick Ryan (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) was also solid on the mound for Fitchburg State, scattering eight hits and three runs over 5.1 innings of work. Junior Jarrett Lowe (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) suffered the loss for the Chargers, allowing one earned run in the final inning.

Fitchburg State (2-0, 0-0 MASCAC) will be in action again tomorrow as it takes on Rhode Island College at 3 p.m. Colby-Sawyer (0-2, 1-0 TCCC) will hit the field tomorrow as it battles SUNY-IT in a Sunday afternoon doubleheader.