STROUDSBURG – East Stroudsburg University redshirt senior pitcher
Brent Francisco fired his third consecutive complete-game shutout and set the ESU career strikeout record in the process as the 13th-ranked Warriors blanked Bloomsburg twice, 7-0 & 1-0, in a PSAC East doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Creekview Park.
Francisco struck out five Huskies (12-25, 8-18 PSAC East) and walked just one as the back-to-back PSAC East Pitcher of the Week extended his scoreless-innings streak to 26.0, improved to 9-0 in 10 starts and lowered his ERA to 1.45 on the season.
The Burlington, N.J. native now has 304 strikeouts in his career, passing former teammate
Chase Nowak who previously had the record of 302. Additionally, Francisco notched his 27th career victory to move into a tie with Nowak for the most all-time.
ESU, who totaled eight runs and 14 hits across the twin bill, improved to 32-6 on the season, 20-2 in the PSAC East and 19-1 at Creekview Park.
Prior to today's game the Warriors honored nine seniors including
Mike Kelly,
Jeremy Piatkiewicz, Cam Hubbard,
Tim Haverstick,
Nick McAuliffe,
Vincent Cenname,
Brent Francisco,
Jack Nielsen and team manager
Matt Haverstick.
Batting Notables
- Redshirt freshman Walker Zampella went 2-for-3 in the opener with his second home run of the season, two RBI, two runs and in the finale, he was credited with the game-winning RBI on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning
- Sophomore Shanley Wall finished the twin bill with three hits (3-for-6), including a double, to go along with three RBI
- Redshirt freshman Chaise Albus was 2-for-5 with a pair of runs and an RBI, while Tim Haverstick finished 2-for-4 with a run
- In game one, junior Jack Rothenhausler went 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Mike Kelly, Cameron Hubbard and Parker Frey each added hit and run scored
Pitching Notables
- Francisco continued to close in another program record as the redshirt senior registered his 265th career inning pitched which trails Nowak by 2.1 innings for the school record
- In game two, Ryan Dewees improved to 5-0 as the sophomore fired 6.0 scoreless innings and struck out five while allowing only two hits
- Caden Parker continued to close in on the single season record for saves as the junior recorded his eighth of the campaign
How it Happened – ESU 7, Bloomsburg 0
ESU put together a two-out rally in the bottom of the first inning as Hubbard tripled to left centerfield before coming around to score on an infield single off the bat of Rothenhausler to put the Warriors ahead 1-0.
In the bottom of the second inning, ESU used a pair of hits and took advantage of a Bloomsburg error to scratch across two runs which increased the lead to 3-0. With two outs and the bases loaded, Wall laced a double to right centerfield to plate Albus and Zampella.
The Warriors pushed across another run in the home half of the third inning to increase their lead to 4-0 as Frey singled and Haverstick doubled with one out before Albus collected an RBI on a groundout.
ESU continued to add to their lead in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Warriors plated three runs on four hits to ultimately make the final score 7-0. Zampella got the scoring started with a two-run home run to left field before Wall collected an RBI on a single.
How it Happened – ESU 1, Bloomsburg 0
ESU finally broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth inning as a sacrifice fly off the bat of Zampella pushed across a run to give the Warriors a 1-0 lead. The stage was set for the redshirt freshman after a walk to Haverstick and a double from Albus put the runners into scoring position.
Up Next
ESU and Bloomsburg wrap up the PSAC East series on Sunday at Danny Litwhiler Field with a doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m.
