MANCHESTER, N.H. – Manchester rivals Saint Anselm and Southern New Hampshire faced off at Sullivan Park this afternoon, and in yet another low-scoring game between the cross-town rivals, the Penmen evened the season series with a 2-1 victory.  David Giarrusso (Cranston, R.I.) allowed just four hits in his first career complete game, but the Hawks' stranded-runner woes continued to haunt them, as they fell to the Penmen for the first time since 2008.  The win lifts the Penmen past the Hawks and up three spots to eighth in the Northeast-10 standings with a 15-20-1 (8-10-1 NE-10) record, while the Hawks slip to 10-24 (8-12 NE-10).

The Hawks got things started in the bottom of the second inning, when Matt Stone (West Roxbury, Mass.) and James Garrigan (Plymouth, Mass.) hit a pair of one-out singles.  Mike Garczynski (Fort Myers, Fla.) made it second and third with a groundout, but Rett Ostafin (Avon, Conn.) flew out to deep left to end the inning.

Steven Panza (Watertown, Mass.) kept it going in the bottom of the third with a leadoff single to right field.  However, Richie Manzi (Plymouth, N.H.) then roped a line drive up the middle which was snatched out of the air by Southern New Hampshire pitcher Derrick Sylvester for a double play, catching a befuddled Panza between first and second.  TJ Murphy (Reading, Mass.) kept the inning alive, getting hit by a pitch, and Robert Kelly (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.) made it first and third with a single down the right-field line, but Matt Sucharewicz (Peabody, Mass.) then grounded out to Sylvester to end the inning.

After allowing just one base runner over the first three innings, Giarrusso gave up his first hit of the game in the top of the fourth to leadoff batter Tim Rines.  Thomas Quicker followed him with a single to center, and Eric Pelletier made it second and third with a sacrifice bunt.  Brandon Dutch then drove in the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly to deep left field before Giarrusso picked off Quicker at third base to end the inning.

Giarrusso held the Penmen hitless through the fifth and sixth innings, but with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Matt Boulter smashed a bomb over the right field wall to make it 2-0 Penmen.

The Hawks threatened in the bottom of the seventh, as Joshua Lafond (Goffstown, N.H.) got on base with a one-out walk.  However, one pitch before Steven Panza hit a single up the middle, Lafond was picked off for the second out, and Manzi grounded to short to end the inning. 

Giarrusso surrendered a leadoff double to Jon Massad in the top of the eighth, but two diving plays by the Hawks' defense kept him from crossing the plate.  Scott Rogers followed him with a sharp grounder to the right side, which Kelly just got his outstretched glove on to save a hit and keep Massad from scoring.  Giarrusso struck out Brendan O'Brien for the second out of the inning, and TJ Murphy then made a diving catch in the outfield to stop Tim Rines' blooper from dropping in in shallow center.

Riding the momentum from the top of the inning, Kelly started things off for the Hawks with a one-out double.  Matt Sucharewicz flew out to right, but then Matt Stone got hit by a pitch to put the tying run at first.  Eric Baca (Franklin, N.H.) replaced him on the base paths, and James Garrigan then got his third hit of the day with a single to center.  Kelly and Baca, running on contact with two outs, hustled around the bases, but center-fielder O'Brien fired in a perfect throw to third base, getting Baca for the third out of the inning, but not before Kelly crossed the plate to score one for the Hawks.

Giarrusso pitched a perfect top of the ninth, and the Hawks quickly returned to the bench for their final chance at a comeback.  Mike Garczynski led off the bottom of the ninth with a double down the left-field line.  Lafond laid down a sacrifice bunt to put the tying run on third with one out, but Panza then grounded to first baseman Eric Pelletier, who threw out Garczynski at home.  Manzi kept the inning alive, getting on base due to an error by the shortstop, but TJ Murphy then struck out for the third time to end the game, 2-1.

David Giarrusso and Derrick Sylvester both pitched complete games for their respective teams.  Giarrusso allowed two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out two, and Sylvester held the Hawks to just one run on 10 hits and five strikeouts.  James Garrigan continued to swing a hot bat, going 3-for-4 with the Hawks' lone RBI, lifting his batting average over the past four games to .500 (8-16).

The Hawks will face the Penmen in the rubber match at home on Tuesday, but they first must take on the first-place Southern Connecticut State University Owls in an NE-10 doubleheader beginning at noon on Saturday.