GORHAM, Maine -- The visiting Saint Joseph's College Monks banged out 14 hits and six pitchers combined for a four-hit shutout as the Monks blanked the 11th-ranked University of Southern Maine Huskies 5-0 in a non-conference baseball game at Ed Flaherty Field on Wednesday afternoon.
            The win was the third straight for the Monks, and improved their overall mark to 9-9.  The Huskies dropped their second straight, and fourth in the last five, to fall to 10-5.  The two teams are scheduled to play again at St. Joseph's on April 28.
            Senior Hunter Richardson (North Monmouth, Maine/Monmouth Academy) led the Monks' attack going 3 for 3, including a double and a sacrifice fly, with two RBI.  Senior Dylan Fournier (South Windsor, Conn./East Catholic), and grad students Ben Gravel (Rochester, N.H./Spaulding) and Drew Healy (Rochester, N.H./Spaulding) each had two hits.  Every starter in the Monks' lineup had at least one hit in the game.
            Junior George Welch (Derry, N.H./Pinkerton Academy), freshmen Luke Stephens (Glastonbury, Conn.), Brian Berthiaume (New Boston, N.H./Goffstown), and Matt Thibault (Nashua, N.H./Bishop Guertin), junior Devan Harrison (Bourne, Mass./St. John Paul II) and senior Jonathan Marchia (Chicopee, Mass.) combined to limit the Huskies offense to four singles and five walks while striking out nine.  Stephens, who pitched two innings, was credited with the win to raise his record to 2-0.
            USM senior Andrew Hillier (Bangor, Maine) reached base four times with two singles and two walks.  Senior Dylan Hapworth (Winslow, Maine) and sophomore Colby Dexter (Belgrade, Maine/Messalonskee) had the other Husky hits.
            Junior starting pitcher Joshua Joy (Smithfield, Maine/Messalonskee) was tagged with the loss.  Joy went five innings allowing three runs on eight hits and two walks.  He struck out two.
            The Monks scored a run in the first on consecutive singles from Fournier, Gravel and Healy.  They added a run in the second inning on Richardson's RBI inside the third base bag.  Richardson scored in the fourth inning on Fournier's RBI single to make it 3-0.
            The Monks added two insurance runs in the eighth on Richardson's sacrifice fly and an infield error.
            Southern Maine looks to rebound this Friday when it hosts Western Connecticut State University for a Little East Conference doubleheader.  St. Joseph's travels to Lynn, Mass., on Saturday to play a doubleheader against Lasell College.