COLCHESTER, Vt. – The Saint Anselm College baseball team posted a doubleheader sweep of Saint Michael's College in Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division play on Saturday by a scores of 9-0 and 14-3.
With the sweep, the Hawks improve to 16-20 on the season and 9-9 in conference contests. The Purple Knights fall to 3-22 overall and 2-10 in league games. The teams will conclude their four-game series on Sunday, Apr. 24 with another doubleheader scheduled for start times of 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Saint Anselm reaches 16 wins in a single season for the time since the 2013 season. The Hawks nine conference victories are the most since the 2015 team posted 10.
In the doubleheader, the Hawks slugged five home runs which brings their season total to 43. The 2022 team needs just two more home runs to tie the single season home run record of 45, set by the 2001 squad. The 2022 team currently sits in second in team annals, surpassing last season's 40 home runs.
Sophomore Zack Clough (Newbury, Mass.) led the Hawks offense in the doubleheader, collecting five hits in nine at-bats. The sophomore scored five runs and drove in three. Sophomore Nolan Elmore (Brentwood, N.H) and junior Mike Borrelli (Salisbury, Mass.) posted four hits each while senior Jack Dunklee (Wilbraham, Mass.) and graduate student Salvatore Pezzolla (East Greenbush, N.Y.) registered three hits apiece. Pezzolla drove in eight runs on the day with five coming in game one. That is a career-high for Pezzolla and it matches a team-high this season.
Senior Kyle Maurice (Exeter, N.H.) drove two balls out of Doc Jacobs Field in game one which extended his hitting streak to 16 games. However, the senior did not collect a hit in game two snapping the longest streak for a Saint Anselm student-athlete this season. Maurice has hit 21 home runs as a member of the Saint Anselm baseball program which is fourth most in program history. His 11 this season are tied for third most in a single season.
Freshman Adam Betty (Lowell, Mass.) and sophomore Matthew Michel (Haverhill, Mass.) picked up wins on the mound for the Hawks. Betty allowed just three hits in eight innings of work in game one while Michel gave up two runs, one earned on four hits in six innings in game two. Freshman Harry Peters (Hull, Mass.) and junior Mark Monahan (Quincy, Mass.) both recorded one inning pitched each in relief.
GAME ONE: Saint Anselm 9, Saint Michael's 0
Saint Michael's threatened in the bottom of the second inning as an error and a hit by pitch put runners on first and second. Both would advance on a sacrifice bunt but Betty would get a strikeout and a fly out to get out of the jam.
The Hawks struck first as Maurice drove his 10th home run of the season over the right center field fence, giving Saint Anselm a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth.
Senior Matt Collins (Beverly, Mass.) opened the sixth inning with a double and Clough followed with a single. Both would come in to score on a home run by Pezzolla, giving the Hawks a 4-0 lead. That was quickly added to as Maurice would go back-to-back with Pezzolla for his second homer of the day and extend the lead to 5-0.
The Purple Knights managed to put runners on first and third with two outs in the bottom of the sixth but a groundout would close the frame.
Saint Anselm added four more runs in the top of the seventh as Dunklee led off with a double. He would advance to third on a double by Clough and both would come around to score on a two-bagger by Pezzolla. Borrelli later plated Pezzolla before scoring on another double, this one coming from Elmore. The Hawks led 9-0 through their half of the seventh.
Saint Michael's managed to put runners on first and second in the eighth inning following a single by John Luke Ciancolo but a fly out got Betty out of trouble again.
Peters got the Purple Knights to go three-up and three-down to close game one for the Hawks, posting a 9-0 win.
GAME TWO: Saint Anselm 14, Saint Michael's 3
The Hawks jumped on the board in the top of the first as Collins reached on an error before scoring on a double by Clough. Clough would score on an RBI ground out from Maurice. The Hawks continued to threaten in the inning as Borrelli reached on an error and would advance to third following a single by senior Mike Pierro (North Andover, Mass.). A walk to Elmore loaded the bases but a strike out left the bases loaded with the Hawks leading 2-0.
A two-out double by Clough in the second inning set up Pezzolla who singled through the left side to score the sophomore, extending the lead to 3-0.
An error and two singles loaded the bases for Collins who netted another single to score Borrelli, pushing the advantage to 4-0. Clough would get hit by a pitch to plate another but a fly out would leave the bases loaded for the second time in three innings as Saint Anselm led 5-0 through three innings of play.
Borrelli homered to left field in the top of the fourth before the Hawks put up six runs in the fifth. Dunklee was hit by a pitch to get the Hawks in business. Three consecutive walks would plate Dunklee before Maurice registered a sacrifice fly, plating another. Borrelli singled to left center to score Clough, who recorded one of the walks. Pierro would take advantage of his opportunity and launch a three-run homer to left center, giving the Hawks a 12-0 lead.
Saint Michael's pushed across two runs in the bottom of the fifth as Nate Rogers led off with an eight pitch walk. He would eventually reach third on a double play ball following a Matt Sevigny single. With two outs in the inning, Andrew Lanthier singled to score Rogers and get Saint Michael's on the board. Lanthier later scored on a wild pitch to close the fifth inning with the Hawks leading, 12-2.
The Hawks plated two more runs in the top of the sixth as a pair of walks brought Clough to the plate who singled to score Dunklee before Pezzolla recorded a sacrifice fly to score Collins.
The Purple Knights pushed across a third run on an error in the bottom of the seventh but a fielder's choice with the bases loaded closed the contest for Saint Anselm at 14-3.
