Ravens making third straight postseason appearance (first at home) and host Bentley College on Wednesday

RINDGE, N.H. (May 7, 2002) - The Franklin Pierce baseball team is making its third-straight postseason appearance and will host a tournament game for the first time in program history when it faces Bentley College on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m.

Franklin Pierce (29-16, 22-10 NE-10) hosts a Northeast-10 Conference first round game on Wednesday, with the winner advancing to this weekend's double-elimination bracket where it will face NE-10 Pepin Division Champion UMass Lowell (26-15, 21-11 NE-10) on Friday night at LeLacheur Park in Lowell, Mass., at 7 p.m.

The Ravens are the hottest team in the Conference entering the postseason as they have won 16-of-their-last-19 games (with one of those losses a forfeit against Saint Rose) and a school-record six-straight. Franklin Pierce finished the regular season ranked second in the NE-10's Markey Division, just one game behind Division Champ Bryant College.

The strength of the Ravens has been its pitching staff, which enters the postseason ranked third in the in the Northeast-10 with a 4.69 team ERA - 0.33 lower than the school record 5.02 ERA set in 2000. Franklin Pierce pitchers have struck out a school-record 387 batters this season (9.12/9IP) which leads the league. In fact, starting pitchers Chris Shank (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont Regional), Matt Weagle (Charlton, Mass./Shepherd Hill) and Jon White (Medford, Mass./Arlington Catholic) rank one-two-and-three in the NE-10 in strikeouts, repectively.

Shank, the odds on favorite to take home Conference Pitcher of the Year honors, leads the Ravens with an 8-1 record on the mound with an NE-10 best 2.45 ERA and 91 strikeouts with just 18 walks in 77 innings pitched. Opposing batters are hitting a league-low .192 against the junior right-hander this season and he is yielding just 0.92 walks and hits per innings pitched (WHIP). Shank is scheduled to start Wednesday's game for the Ravens and is 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA and 18 strikeouts and just three walks in 15 innings against Bentley this season.

White is without question the most improved player in the Conference this season. After posting a 4- 8 record with a 7.59 ERA and 52 strikeouts in his first two seasons at Franklin Pierce, the junior right-hander has posted a 9-3 mark this season, leads the NE-10 in wins and marks the first time in program history a Ravens pitcher has reached nine victories in a season. White ranks second to Shank among Conference leaders with a 2.46 ERA to go along with 84 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 80.1 innings of work. His .220 opposing batting average ranks fifth in the League.

Weagle, this week's Conference Pitcher of the Week, has been the Ravens top pitcher over the last two weeks after getting off to a slow start. The sophomore right-hander has rebounded from dropping his first five decisions of the spring (six-straight dating back to last season) to win his last four outings. Weagle, an All-Region honoree as a freshman, is currently 4-5 with a 5.05 ERA with 85 strikeouts and 21 walks in 73 innings of work. During his current string of four-straight wins (all complete-games), he has posted a 1.85 ERA with 44 strikeouts (just seven walks) in 34 innings (11.65 Ks/9IP).

The trio has played a huge role in the Ravens rise from four-games behind third place in the Markey Division standings three weeks ago to challenging for the Division title down to the last day of the season as Franklin Pierce has won its last 11 games they have started.

Franklin Pierce has been sparked by an offense that has belted a school-record 65 homeruns this spring (2nd NE-10) and has seen three players reach double-figures in that category for the first time in program history.

Sophomore Dante Blancarte (Amesbury, Mass./Amesbury) enters the postseason as the Ravens top hitter with a .363 (61-168) batting average, 12 doubles, 12 homers and 45 RBIs. An NE-10 Player of the Week honoree once this season, he leads Franklin Pierce with 12 multi-RBI games and ranks second on the team with 17 multi-hit games this spring. His 16 game hitting streak, which ended last week, is the longest of the season by a Ravens batter.

Senior captain Scott Loiseau (Worcester, Mass./St. Peter Marian) is hitting .358 (62-173) with 45 runs scored, nine doubles, two triples, 11 homers and 30 RBIs. His 19 multi-hit games leads the team and he ranks fourth with eight multi-RBI outings. Loiseau, also one of the top defensive shortstops in the Conference, has started a school-record 168 career games (out of a possible 172) - including a record 133 consecutive games before he was sidelined for four games early this season due to injury.

Junior Mike Callahan (Worcester, Mass./St. Peter Marian) is hitting .349 (52-149) with nine doubles, six homers and 34 RBIs. NE-10 Freshman of the Year candidateEric Cavers (Otisfield, Maine/Oxford Hills) has added a .320 (49-153) batting average, nine doubles, six homers and 30 RBIs to go along with 14 stolen bases (one shy of the school record) on 17 attempts. Junior Dan Close (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) rounds out the trio of homerun sluggers with 12, to go along with ten doubles, 27 RBIs and 12 steals.

Franklin Pierce is still in search of its first postseason win in program history. Franklin Pierce
suffered two-straight losses in its inaugural postseason endeavor at the 2000 ECAC Championship at Dowling College. Last season the Ravens earned a berth as the No. 6-seed in the Northeast-10 Tournament in their inaugural season in the League and was up-ended by No. 3 Southern Connecticut State, 6-4, in the first round.

Bentley College (21-21, 16-16 NE-10) is making its tenth postseason appearance after falling to Stonehill College, 7-6, in last year's first round. With one non-conference game remaining (vs. Brandeis today), the Falcons are led by senior Jamie Saccardo with a .364 (60-165) batting average, 50 runs scored, 13 doubles, 12 homeruns and 46 RBIs. Classmate Steve Vickers is batting .361 (61-169) with 18 doubles, nine homers and 40 RBIs.

Sophomore Joe Marchesi leads the pitching staff with a 5-4 record and 5.11 ERA with 44 strikeouts and 15 walks in 56.1 innings pitched. He will only be on two days rest on Wednesday, therefore the start will likely go to either senior Mike Anderson or sophomore Sean Andrews.

Anderson is 3-4 with a 5.89 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 47.1 innings, while Andrews is 2-2 with a 5.59 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.

Franklin Pierce won both encounters between the two teams during the regular season. Franklin Pierce posted a 9-1 victory over the Falcons behind a five-hit, 14-strikeout performance over eight innings by Shank on March 29 and then registered a 7-1 triumph on April 16. 2002

Northeast-10 Conference Baseball Championship

First Round
(Single Elimination)
Wednesday, May 8
Game 1: College of Saint Rose (32-20, 21-11 NE-10) at Stonehill College (24-20-1, 19-13 NE-10) - 4 p.m.
Game 2: Bentley College (21-21, 16-16 NE-10) at Franklin Pierce University
(29-16, 22-10 NE-10) - 3 p.m.

Northeast-10 Championship (Double Elimination For Duration of Tournament)
Friday, May 10, at LeLacheur Park, Lowell, Mass.
Game 3: Winner of Game 1 vs. Bryant College (33-18, 23-9 NE-10) - 4 p.m.
Game 4: Winner of Game 2 vs. UMass Lowell (26-15, 21-11 NE-10) - 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 11, at LeLacheur Park, Lowell, Mass.
Game 5: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 - 11 a.m.
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 - 3 p.m.
Game 7: Loser of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 5 - 7 p.m.

Sunday, May 12, at LeLacheur Park, Lowell, Mass.
Game 8: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 7 - Noon
Game 9: If Necessary (30 minutes after Game 8)