BUFFALO, N.Y. - Four consecutive innings of offensive power propelled the Manhattan Jaspers baseball team to a series-clinching victory, highlighted by a season-high four home runs, securing a 12-8 win over the Canisius Golden Griffins Saturday afternoon at the Demske Sports Complex.
"Was a big team win for the Jaspers today," said head coach Dave Miller. "After a heartbreaking finish yesterday we challenged the boys today to come out strong and they did. They competed the whole weekend and it was good to see them win a tough road series in Buffalo."
Manhattan (9-17, 3-3) trailed 6-3 heading into the fifth inning before unleashing a barrage against Canisius (7-15, 1-2). Daniel Perez launched a solo home run, his first of the season, to narrow the lead, and an RBI single from Chase Swain drove home Frankie Marinelli, who had reached on a walk and advanced to scoring position on a balk. Drew Wyers drew a walk, and Vincent Davis brought in the tying run with a single laced up the middle.
A pair of runs in each of the subsequent three innings bolstered Manhattan's lead, while the Jaspers' pitching staff held Canisius to just three hits and two runs over the final four frames.
Garret Garbinski (2-3) secured the win with 3.1 innings of remarkable relief, holding the Golden Griffins scoreless while allowing just one hit and two walks, and adding three strikeouts to his season tally.
Dylan Mayer, Trevor Santos, along with Wyers and Perez, each recorded two hits to lead Manhattan at the plate. Mayer added his third homer of the series with a solo shot in the third inning. Wyers extended the Jaspers' lead to 12-8 with his two-run shot in the top of the eighth, while Trevor Hansen initiated the team's scoring with a two-RBI homer to left-center in the second.
"Good to see the bats come alive and show some power top to bottom," said Miller. "This was a great weekend to step up and get us ready for a competitive conference schedule."
The Jaspers return to midweek action Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. against non-conference challenger FDU before concluding a seven-game road stretch at Saint Peter's University beginning Friday at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday's matchups are set for 1 p.m. to conclude the three-game MAAC conference series. All four games can be streamed live on ESPN+ and gojaspers.com.
