April 20, 2008
O'CONNOR VAULTS NO. 25 BRYANT TO 1-0 WIN OVER MERRIMACK COLLEGE
WITH TWO-OUT DOUBLE IN TENTH; BULLDOGS COMPLETE REGULAR-SEASON
SWEEP OF WARRIORS
Boxscore
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. - With a two-out double to right
centerfield in the top of the tenth inning Sunday, junior
leftfielder Pat O'Connor (Mattapoisett, Mass.)
boosted the No. 25 Bryant University baseball team to a 1-0 victory
over Merrimack College at Warrior Field, completing the three-game
regular-season sweep started with two Saturday wins.
O'Connor's second double of the series came with third baseman
Jason Alexander (Simsbury, Mass.) in scoring
position, thanks to a leadoff single and sac bunt from Pat
McKenna (Orange, Conn.), and scored the lone run of the
ballgame.
It looked as though the Bulldogs (30-14, 18-5 Northeast-10)
would break the scoreless deadlock in the ninth, when they loaded
the bases with just one away. But a double play that saw
Taylor Ferguson (Charlton, Mass.) gunned down at
home plate ended the inning without any damage to the Warriors
(13-21, 9-12).
Lefty Ryan O'Rourke started the game for Merrimack, striking out
a career-high 12 Bulldogs through nine. The sophomore fanned nine
in the first six frames before leaving the game in the tenth in
favor of reliever Josh Sohn. Sohn took the loss, moving to 1-5 on
the season.
Bulldog starter Dan Lozeau (Pelham, NH) got the
win in the complete-game effort, scattering four hits over 10
shutout innings with a pair of strikeouts. The junior surrendered a
trio of hits through the second before staying near-perfect until
the tenth, when Mike Dooling hit a single in the final frame.
Ferguson and designated hitter Mark Dondero (Medfield,
Mass.) led the Bulldogs offensively, each registering a
pair of hits on the afternoon. Ferguson went 2-for-3 while Dondero
went 2-for-4.
Bryant, who begins its transition to Division I next season,
gets no rest to start the week and will travel to nearby Brown
University Monday, April 21 for a 3:15 p.m. matchup against the
Division I Brown Bears. Monday's game is the first of two contests,
with the second to be played at the Bryant Baseball Complex April
30.
--
#25 Bryant 1, Merrimack 0 (April 20, 2008)
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Bryant University...
000 000 000 1 - 1 11
2
Merrimack College...
000 000 000 0
- 0 4
1
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WP - Lozeau (4-2) LP - Sohn (1-5).
