Manhattan Concludes Regular Season At Niagara

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Niagara University, NY - Manhattan (24-26; 12-9 MAAC) will conclude regular season play at Niagara (22-24; 11-10) beginning with a 12:00 pm doubleheader on Thursday, May 17 before the teams will wrap up the three-game set with a single game on Saturday, May 19 at 12:00 pm.
 
WHAT'S AT STAKE:
MAAC Tournament Berth ... The easiest way for the Jaspers to qualify for the six-team field for a third-straight year would be to take two-of-three from the Purple Eagles ... There are other scenarios in which Manhattan could qualify but they would involve some help from other teams.

LAST YEAR
Niagara lost out on a MAAC Tournament berth after finishing in a three-way tie for fifth at 12-12 with Manhattan and Rider as the Jaspers clinched on the final day of the season with a victory over Saint Peter's.

Schedule:
Game 1 - Thursday, May 17 - 12:00 pm - GS LHP Joe Jacques (1-1; 1.74 ERA; 31.0 IP; 1 SV; 34 K; 9 BB)
Game 2 - Thursday, May 17- 3:00 pm - GS RHP Matt Simonetti (4-5; 3.80 ERA; 71.0 IP; 71 K; 21 BB)
Game 3 - Saturday, May 19 - 12:00 pm - TBA

WALK-OFF FUN
Senior Michael Pfenninger singled home the game-winning run in Manhattan's 2-1 walk-off win over Canisius in the opener between the teams before singling and scoring the game-winning run in the Jaspers 6-5 game-two, series-clinching victory. 

HIGHLIGHTS!!!
Take a look at some of the highlights from the series-clinching win from this past Sunday:
 
FORLOW TURNING IT ON
Graduate student Matt Forlow hit a blistering .615 (8-of-13) with four doubles, two RBI and a run in Manhattan's series victory over Canisius. On the year, he is batting .276 with 19 doubles (2nd MAAC), three triples, two home runs, 36 RBI, 13 multi-hit games and a team-leading 11 multi-RBI games.

HAVE A DAY
Forlow celebrated Senior Day in style, going 7-for-9 with three doubles and two RBI, highlighted by rapping out four hits in the finale.
 
RUNNING THE DEFENSE
Additionally, Forlow has made just three errors, including one during MAAC play, in his first year as the primary shortstop and has posted an impressive .983 fielding percentage.

TRENDS
* Manhattan is 19-0 this year when leading after seven innings and 15-2 when scoring at least six runs.
* During MAAC play, the Jaspers are 9-0 when leading after six innings and 9-3 when scoring at least three runs while pitching to a league-leading 3.23 ERA during league play.
* Manhattan is 9-0 during MAAC play when scoring first.
* The Jaspers are 24-0 when scoring more runs than the opposition, including 12-0 during MAAC play.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Manhattan has outscored the opposition 37-21 after the eighth inning this season.

TOUGH SPOT, NO PROBLEM
The Jaspers evaded a pair of bases loaded, no-out situations in their 2-1 series-opening victory against Marist. This year the opposition is hitting .188 (13-of-69) with the bases loaded, including just .088 (3-of-34) during MAAC play.

GOOD OMEN
Manhattan's series victory over Canisius was their first since their MAAC Championship season of 2012.

TOUCH EM' ALL
Junior Fabian Pena crushed his second career home run against Golden Griffin in the Jaspers' 6-5 series-clinching victory. The 397-foot shot had an exit velocity of 102 mph and gave Manhattan its first lead of the game. On the year, Pena is hitting .261 with 12 doubles, six home runs and 35 RBI.

CLOSE CALLS
Eleven of the Jaspers' 21 MAAC games have been decided by two runs or less with Manhattan going 8-3 during that time, including 6-3 in one-run affairs.

FROM THE TOP
Since returning to the leadoff spot in the order, senior Brendan Bisset has taken his game to a different level. Bisset hit safely in 17 of his last 20 games with seven multi-hit performances en route to posting a .329 ledger (26-of-79) during that time with seven RBI and four extra-base hits. On the year, he is batting .288, including .317 during MAAC play, with 55 hits, 22 runs, 10 doubles and 22 RBI.

PADRE PERFECT
Padre reached base safely in all five trips to the plate in Manhattan's series finale against Canisius and over the last 30 games is pacing the Jaspers in batting (.343), hits (35) and runs (19) while registering 10 extra-base hits and reaching base safely 26 times. On the year, he is hitting .289 with six doubles, two triples, three home runs and 22 RBI while reaching base at a team-best .406 clip.
 
BARRELLA BARRELING IT UP
After hitting just .250 a year ago, junior Richie Barrella is batting a team-leading .310 while ranking eighth in the MAAC with 57 hits to go along with a squad-best 16 multi-hit games and six stolen bases. Barrella batted safely in all three games against Canisius, highlighted by rapping out three hits in the opener.

STREAK SNAPPED
Senior Brandon Valls saw his on-base streak snapped at 15 games in the season finale against Canisius after doubling twice in game one on Sunday. During the 15-game stretch, Valls hit .293 with a team-best .463 OBP.

STUART THE STOPPER
Sophomore RHP T.J. Stuart earned his team-leading sixth win of the year in the series-clinching victory over Canisius after setting the school record for saves in a season with his ninth stop in the Jaspers' series-opening win over Marist. On the year, he is 6-2 while ranking among the MAAC leaders with nine saves (1st; 35th NCAA), a 2.93 ERA (3rd MAAC) and 5.33 hits allowed per nine innings (1st; 15 NCAA) as Manhattan has gone 17-6 in games that he has made an appearance. 

STUART THE REP
Stuart has been selected to be the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) representative on the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). Stuart is a pitcher on the Jaspers' baseball team and a member of Manhattan College SAAC. He will begin his term with the NCAA on June 1, 2018, and will serve through May 31, 2020.
 
SIMONETTI AT THE TOP
Graduate Student Matt Simonetti has established himself as one of the top starters in the MAAC and is 4-5 while ranking among the MAAC leaders in complete games (4-3rd), strikeouts (71-6th), ERA (3.80-9th) and innings (71.0-10th).

THAT'S SOME STREAK
Earlier in the year, Simonetti registered a 28.0-inning scoreless streak over four starts, going 3-1 during that time with 30 strikeouts, against just five walks, a 0.00 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP while holding opposing hitters to a .190 average.
 
JACQUES STEPS UP
Graduate student LHP Joe Jacques fired 6.0 innings of two-hit, one-run ball in helping Manhattan to a 2-1 series-opening victory over Canisius. During MAAC play, he has struck out 13 over 13.0 innings with a 1.38 ERA as the Jaspers have gone 4-0 in games he has appeared in.

MR 200
Jacques became the eighth player in school history to record 200 strikeouts with his fourth and final K in the Jaspers' series-opening win over Marist and currently has 205 with a 4.00 ERA over 249.2 innings of action.

SAME SCRIPT
For the second-straight week, junior RHP Logan Muratalla earned the win in relief of Jacques with four strikeouts over 3.0 scoreless innings of one-hit ball in the opener against Canisius. The week prior, he struck out three over 3.0 scoreless frames in the victory against Marist and is 2-0 with 11 strikeouts, against six walks, and a 0.00 ERA over 9.1 innings while limiting opposing hitters to a .107 average.

NOBODY BEATS THE NIZ
Junior RHP Joe DiNizio fired 6.0 frames of two-run ball against Marist after spinning 5.0 scoreless innings in the series finale against Monmouth and 3.0 scoreless innings in the series-clinching win over Rider. DiNizio ranks sixth in the MAAC with a 3.54 ERA to go along with 43 strikeouts over 56.0 innings.

HOME SWEET HOME
After playing 32 games on the road to start the season, Manhattan played 14 of its last 18 games at Dutchess Stadium.

TROCH OUT FOR THE YEAR
Freshman Will Trochiano had been arguably the top rookie in the MAAC before a fluke injury ended his rookie campaign. He was hitting .333 (31-of-93) with seven doubles, a home run and 12 RBI while reaching base safely in 21-straight games to start his career.

TROCH FEATURED IN THE ASBURY PARK PRESS
Trochiano was recently featured in an article entitled "Trochiano Brothers Beat The Odds With Manhattan, Monmouth." Click HERE for the full article.
 
COSGROVE EARNS HIS FIRST WIN
Tom Cosgrove, who was a 12th Round selection of the San Diego Padres recently earned his first win of the year for Fort Wayne of the Midwest League, striking out six over 6.0 scoreless innings. Click HERE for his player page.

CULLEN MAKES NIAGARA GO
The Purple Eagles are hitting a MAAC-leading .288 and have arguably the top player in the circuit in Greg Cullen as the junior is hitting a NCAA-leading .466 with 47 runs, 15 doubles, three triples, three home runs, 38 RBI, 11 stolen bases and a .650 slugging percentage. Far from a one-man show, Peter Battaglia is hitting .364 with 15 doubles, two triples. seven home runs and 48 RBI with Owen Dziados checking in at .325 with nine doubles, three home runs and 46 RBI.

BARRELLA, TROCHIANO REPEAT
Barrella garnered MAAC Player of the Week accolades for the second-straight week while Trochiano also repeated in claiming his third weekly rookie citation in helping Manhattan open league play with a three-game sweep of Saint Peter's.
- Trochiano continued his torrid start to the season, hitting .444 (8-of-18) in helping the Jaspers to a perfect week.
- Barrella hit .562 (9-of-16) with four runs, a triple, nine RBI, two stolen bases and a walk while reaching base safely at least twice in all four games.

BREAK OUT THE BROOMS
Manhattan swept the weekly MAAC awards with Barrella (Player), Stuart (Pitcher) and Trochiano (Rookie) taking home top honors on March 20 after the Jaspers won three-of-four, including a pair of games at La Salle and Villanova.
- Barrella batted .571 (8-of-14) with a double, four runs, four walks, a HBP and two stolen bases while hitting safely in all four games en route to posting a .643 slugging percentage and a .684 OBP.
- Stuart notched saves in all three Manhattan wins last week, striking out four while yielding just one hit and one walk over 5.0 scoreless frames while limiting opposing hitters to a .063 average.
- Trochiano earned his second MAAC Rookie of the Week honor after hitting safely in all four games en route to batting .316 (6-of-19) with five runs, two doubles, two RBI and one stolen base.

PENA NAMED MAAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- Pena hit a blistering .438 (7-for-16) with two doubles, two home runs, seven runs, eight RBI and two walks over four games last week while slugging at a .938 clip en route to being named MAAC Player of the Week on March 13.
- After singling against Stony Brook, Pena went 3-for-4 in the opener at UNC Asheville with two home runs, five runs and five RBI while reaching base safely five times.
- Pena capped the doubleheader sweep with two more hits, three RBI and a run in the nightcap.
- The Miami native put the finishing touches on his big performance with a double and a run in the finale.

TROCHIANO CLAIMS FIRST MAAC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONOR
The Garden State native hit .385 (5-of-13) at CSUN with a home run, two runs and three RBI while reaching base a .429 clip.

PENA NAMED TO JOHNNY BENCH WATCH LIST
Pena has been named to the official watch list for the 2018 Johnny Bench Award presented by BaseballSavings.com as announced by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. 

THE RETURNERS
The Jaspers return 25 letterwinners, including seven starting position players, for the second-straight season. Click HERE for the entire prospectus.

PENA GARNERS PRESEASON HONORS
Pena was tabbed as the top MAAC pro prospect by both Baseball America (BA) and D1Baseball.Com.

PENA PACES THE OFFENSE
One of the top players in the Northeast since he set foot on campus as a freshman, Pena has hit .317 (189-of-597) with 58 doubles, 18 home runs and 121 RBI while starting all 158 Manhattan games during his time in Riverdale.

PENA PROFILED BY THE RIVERDALE PRESS
Pena was highlighted in the local paper in an article entitled 'Pena Looking To Be MLB's Next Big Hit ... Click HERE for the entire article.

JACQUES LAUDED
Jacques was tabbed as the No. 10 prospect in the MAAC by BA and No. 11 by D1.Baseball.Com.

TOP TWO IN 2019 ...
Stuart was lauded as the No. 5 pro prospect from the MAAC in 2019 while sophomore RHP Nick Massa was tabbed as No. 9. Both players made an immediate impact as rookies a year ago and will figure prominently this season.

FROM THE BRONX TO THE PROS
Cosgrove decided to forgo his final year of eligibility after being drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 12th round of the 2017 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft while Jose Carrera inked a professional deal with the New York Yankees. Additionally, signee Tai Tiedemann was selected by the Texas Rangers in the eighth round of the 2016 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

DUTCHESS STADIUM
Manhattan called Duchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, NY home for the fourth-straight season, and went 8-6 at the home of the Short-A Hudson Valley Renegades (Tampa Bay Rays).
 
MAAC PRESEASON POLL
The Jaspers were tabbed to finish 10th out of 11 teams.

THE STAFF
Former Manhattan great and 2017 Athletic Hall of Famer Chris Cody and Vincent Redmond complete Cole's first staff.

MAAC MAGIC
The Jaspers will be attempting to qualify for their third-straight MAAC Tournament and the fourth in five years after earning the sixth spot on the final day of the 2017 season.

SEE YOU IN STATEN ISLAND
The 2018 MAAC Baseball Championship will be held at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in Staten Island, NY from May 23-26. The 2019 and 2020 championships will also be held at the home of the Single-A Staten Island Yankees.

WHAT'S A JASPER?
The unique nickname of Manhattan College's athletic teams, the Jaspers, comes from one of the College's most memorable figures, Brother Jasper of Mary, F.S.C., who served as the College's athletic director in the late 19th century. One of the greatest achievements of Brother Jasper was that he brought the then little-known sport of baseball to Manhattan College and became the team's first coach. Since Brother Jasper was also the Prefect of Discipline, he supervised the student fans at Manhattan baseball games while also directing the team itself. During one particularly warm and humid day when the college was playing a semi-pro baseball team called the Metropolitans, Brother Jasper noticed the Manhattan students were becoming restless and edgy with the team coming to bat in the seventh inning of a close game. To relieve the tension, Brother Jasper called timeout and told the students to stand up and stretch for a few minutes until the game resumed. Since the College annually played the New York Giants in the late 1880's and into the 1890's at the old Polo Grounds, the Manhattan College practice of the "seventh inning stretch" spread into the major leagues, where it has now become a time-honored custom practiced by millions of fans annually.