Manhattan Takes Two From UAlbany

Box Score (GM 1) | Box Score (GM 2) | Photo Gallery

Wappingers Falls, NY - Manhattan swept Sunday's doubleheader with UAlbany by scores of 5-3 and 6-4 to earn the series win at Dutchess Stadium.

Junior RHP T.J. Stuart (Milford, CT / Joseph A. Foran) was dominant in earning his second win of the year in the opener, before the Jaspers used a balanced attack to take the nightcap.

Game One
Stuart fired his first career complete game to lead the Jaspers to a 5-3 victory in the opener.
 
Manhattan gave Stuart an early five-run cushion while sending five 10 batters to the plate in the bottom of the first.

Graduate student Shawn Blake (Stratford, CT / Elon) singled with one out and freshman Nick Cimillo (Airmont, NY / Suffern) walked, before junior Dominic Palma (Hilton, NY / Hilton) smoked the first pitch he saw through the right side to plate Blake. After an error loaded up the bases, junior Alex Cerda (Miami, FL / Florida Christian School) delivered a three-run double to right center in extending the lead out to 4-0. Cerda would later come around to score on Matt Fahey's (So., Fair Haven, NJ / Rumson-Fair Haven) first collegiate hit while capping the five-run frame.

UAlbany would get one run back in the top of the second, but left the bases loaded as Stuart fanned Patrick Lagravinese for the final out of the frame.

From that point, the game became a pitcher's duel as the Great Dane RHP Dominic Savino faced just one over the minimum in his final 5.0 innings of work, including retiring the last 14 batters he faced in order.

Stuart was equally dominating in setting down 14-straight UAlbany hitters before running into trouble in the seventh. The visitors plated a pair of runs on a Brad Malm RBI triple and a Jason Bottari run-scoring single in trimming the Manhattan lead to 5-3 with two outs. However, Stuart stranded the tying runs in scoring position by inducing a game-ending fly out to finish off the victory.

Stuart (2-2) registered five perfect frames and struck out six, while yielding just four hits and three walks over 7.0 dominating innings.

Savino (0-2) surrendered five runs, three earned, on four hits with two strikeouts over 6.0 innings for the Great Danes.

Game Two
The Jaspers rallied for a come-from-behind 6-4 win over UAlbany in game two.
 
Matt Wangenstein opened the scoring in game two with a three-run homer in the top of the first, before Manhattan quickly got one run back in the bottom part of the frame.

Freshman Keury Abreu (Bronx, NY / St. Raymond) led off with a single and would come around to score on Cerda's two-out RBI single to left center.

After threatening in the third, the Jaspers tied it up in the fourth. Freshman David Moffett (Oneida, NY / Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Senior) got the rally started with a one-out double to left center, before moving to third on a Jonathan Barditch (Fr., Miami, FL / Belen Jesuit Prep) single. Freshman Matt Alfonso (Miami, FL / Christopher Columbus) was then plunked to load up the bases and Fahey followed with his second RBI single of the afternoon, before Abreu drew a walk to make it a brand new game at 3-3.

UAlbany quickly reclaimed the lead in the top of the fifth as Wangenstein was back at it with a two-out, RBI single. However, the damage could have been worse but sophomore Matt Padre (Flemington, NJ / Hunterdon Central) gunned out Josh Loeffler trying to steal third to end the frame.

Moffett then immediately tied it up at 4-4 with his first career home run, a solo shot to left field in the bottom of the fifth.

The Great Danes would load up the bases with two outs in the top of the sixth, only to be thwarted when sophomore RHP Teddy Sabato (Rye Brook, NY / UNC) came on in relief and induced an inning-ending pop up.

Sabato again stranded a pair in scoring position in the top of the seventh, before Manhattan took its first lead of the game in the bottom part of the frame. Blake led off with a ground rule double before scoring on a Cimillo RBI single to left field.

The Jaspers extended the lead out to 6-4 with a Blake sacrifice fly in the eighth.

In the top of the ninth, UAlbany got the first two runners aboard only to be denied by Sabato, who struck out the next batter before inducing a game-ending double play grounder.

Blake, Fahey and Moffett all notched two hits while Abreu reached safely in all five trips to the plate to pace a 11-hit Manhattan offense.

Sabato (1-3) struck out four while yielding two hits over 3.1 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win. Senior Ryan Takacs (Jackson, NJ / Jackson Memorial) started and struck out five over 5.2 innings.

Wangenstein was 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBI to lead a 10-hit Great Dane offensive effort.

Up Next
Manhattan will play at LIU Brooklyn on Tuesday, March 26 at 3:00 pm.