MANCHESTER, N.H. – On Sunday, the Saint Anselm College baseball team split its final home doubleheader of the season against Pace. The two sides traded leads in game one, but the Setters pulled away after a five-run fifth inning to win, 10-7. Game two turned into a pitchers' duel as the Hawks shut out the opposition to secure a 5-0 victory. Prior to the games, eight student-athletes from the Saint Anselm College Class of 2025 were recognized as part of the Senior Day ceremony.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm hosts Saint Michael's for its final home game of the regular season on Tuesday, April 29th. The game is a makeup from an earlier rainout and will be a single nine-inning contest set for 3:30 p.m.
GAME ONE
Score: Saint Anselm 7, Pace 10
Win: Santealla (3-0) |
Loss: Betty (0-2)
Records: Saint Anselm (10-30, 4-16 NE10), Pace (21-19, 9-11 NE10)
Location: Manchester, N.H. (Sullivan Park)
Date: Sunday, April 27th, 2025
HOW IT HAPPENED (GAME ONE):
- Pace took advantage of an error in the top of the first to plate Josh Miller for the opening run of the game.
- Saint Anselm responded in the second inning, starting with a leadoff walk by fifth-year senior Aidan Dow (Lynn, Mass.). Dow advanced to third on a double by senior Brenden Harris (Altamont, N.Y.) and then scored on a sacrifice fly by sophomore Austin Brune (Billerica, Mass.) that tied the game.
- The Setters regained the lead in the third as Andrew Heppner scored on an RBI single by Mason Baronian.
- Harris continued his strong start at the plate in the fourth inning, homering into the netting in left-center field to tie the game once again at 2-2. Brune promptly made it back-to-back home runs, clearing the left field fence to give the Hawks their first lead of the game, 3-2.
- Pace flipped the lead again in the fifth, getting runners aboard via an error and a single before Baronian launched a three-run homer to right-center field. The Setters then blew the game open later in the frame with a two-RBI double by Robbie Caffrey to make it 7-3.
- Saint Anselm answered once again in the bottom half, starting with an RBI single by freshman Jackson Powers (Woburn, Mass.) that scored sophomore Mavrick Bourdeau (Billerica, Mass.). Harris then picked up his second RBI of the game, this time on a bases-loaded walk. An error and a wild pitch allowed two more runs to score, which tied the game at 7-7.
- The Setters broke the tie in the eighth as Heppner homered to center field for the go-ahead run, giving the visitors an 8-7 edge.
- Pace added a pair of insurance runs in the ninth. Benjamin Tullo stole home after a failed pickoff attempt to first base, and another runner touched home later in the frame on an error to push the lead to 10-7.
- Saint Anselm loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth, but three straight strikeouts by Eric Santaella ended game one with a 10-7 victory for Pace.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS (GAME ONE):
- Pace recorded 10 runs and 10 hits in the game, five of which were for extra bases. They also walked five times and left 11 runners on base.
- Saint Anselm totaled seven runs and 11 hits, three of which went for extra bases. They drew three walks and left 10 base runners stranded.
- Both teams committed three errors in the field.
- All seven of Saint Anselm's runs were scored by different players.
- Harris had a strong game at the plate on his Senior Day. He finished with two hits, including his fourth career home run.
- Sophomore Brendan Gonzalez (Mechanicville, N.Y.) recorded two hits as well, marking his team-high 13th multi-hit game of the season. He is batting .340, which leads the team amongst players averaging at least two plate appearances per game.
- This was the 26th all-time meeting between Pace and Saint Anselm, with the Setters moving into a tie in the series at 13-13.
GAME TWO
Score: Saint Anselm 5, Pace 0 (7 inn.)
Win: Chenevert (1-1) |
Loss: Gilch (0-1) |
Save: Knudsen (1)
Records: Saint Anselm (11-30, 5-16 NE10), Pace (21-20, 9-12 NE10)
Location: Manchester, N.H. (Sullivan Park)
Date: Sunday, April 27th, 2025
Attendance: 171
HOW IT HAPPENED (GAME TWO):
- After two scoreless innings to start the game, Saint Anselm broke the tie in the third on a sacrifice fly to deep center field by freshman George Slauson (Plymouth, Mass.). Bourdeau scored on the play for the game's opening run.
- The Hawks added to their lead in the fourth after perfectly executing a safety squeeze play. Freshman Luke Douglas (Bellingham, Mass.) dropped down a perfect bunt that scored Brune from third to make it 2-0.
- Saint Anselm tacked on insurance runs in the sixth, starting with a two-RBI single by Bourdeau that brought home Douglas and freshman Peter Fischer (Marshfield, Mass.).
- Later in the frame, a single by Gonzalez plated Bourdeau to stretch the lead to 5-0 heading into the final inning.
- The Setters loaded the bases in the top of the seventh, but were unable to push a run across as the Hawks completed the shutout to win 5-0 and split the doubleheader. It was just the second shutout win of the season for Saint Anselm.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS (GAME TWO):
- Saint Anselm scored five runs and finished with nine hits, all of which were singles. They also drew three walks, left nine runners on base, and committed one error in the field.
- Pace tallied seven hits, including one double, but was shutout for the third time this season. They did not record a walk nor an error in the game and left six runners stranded.
- Sophomore Andrew Chenevert (Dracut, Mass.) earned the start and was terrific on the mound for the Hawks. He picked up the win after tossing 6.2 scoreless innings where he allowed just six hits, struck out four batters, and did not issue a walk.
- Freshman Gabe Knudsen (Hanover, Mass.) earned his first career save, striking out the final batter of the game with the bases loaded to secure the win.
- Bourdeau had two runs, two hits, and two RBIs. He has recorded a run in 12 of his last 15 starts and leads the team with 38 runs this season – 15 more than his next closest teammate. Bourdeau is currently tied for 10th in program history for runs in a single season and also owns the team's longest active hitting streak, which is now at nine games.
- Powers led the team with three hits, marking his 11th multi-hit game of the season. It was also his sixth outing with three hits. Powers extended his on-base streak to 21 games, the longest active streak on the team and second-longest this season.
- This was the 27th all-time meeting between Pace and Saint Anselm, with the Hawks regaining the series lead at 14-13.
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