QUEENS, NY - Although the Jaspers jumped out to an early lead, the Manhattan University (7-12) baseball team fell victim to a couple of big innings in an 11-7 loss to St. John's University (7-11) in a non-conference tune-up Tuesday at Jack Kaiser Field in Queens.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- A two-strike, two-out single sparked a first-inning rally that plated the opening two runs of the game for the Jaspers. In a seven-pitch at-bat, Andreaus Lewis lined a two-RBI double down the right-field line, staking Manhattan to the early 2-0 lead on the road.
- Manhattan's Ryan McLaughlin ran into trouble after taking the bump, allowing five runs in the home first after inducing a flyout to open his outing. McLaughlin was ultimately chased after his one inning of work, as the Jaspers trailed the Red Storm, 5-2.
- Manhattan threatened again in its half of the third, loading the bases with none out. After St. John's went to their bullpen, Jeremy Sosa scored on a groundout to cut into the Red Storm lead, but a caught stealing and a strikeout kept the Jasper comeback at bay.
- The hosts commenced another five-run outburst in the bottom of the fourth, earmarked by a three-RBI bases-clearing double off the bat of Jon LeGrande, the Red Storm's No. 9 hitter, widening the gap to 11-3.
- Manhattan wouldn't go down quietly. In sending ten batters to the plate in the sixth, the Jaspers stormed back with four runs, cutting the deficit in half.
- As the visitors climbed back into it, Manhattan's Braedon Romero never allowed a pitch to leave the infield in a scoreless sixth. Romero tossed a one-hitter over two scoreless innings of relief.
- St. John's eventually retired the side in order over the final three innings, locking down the victory over their local opponent.
STATS AND NOTES
- Seven different hitters in the starting lineup picked up a hit on the day for Manhattan.
- It marked the second-straight game with multiple RBIs for Andreaus Lewis, who drove in two RBIs in Saturday's (3/15) loss to Fairfield. Not only does Lewis lead the team with a .368 average, but he is also hitting .500 (13-of-26) over his last seven contests, with five multi-hit games.
- Jeremy Sosa now possesses the team's longest active hitting streak at four games, after today's outing. He is also batting .470 (8-for-17) over that stretch.
- The Jaspers surrendered 11 runs on 12 hits–marking the ninth time in the team's first 19 games that Manhattan allowed double-digit runs and hits to its opposition.
- Manhattan has now lost its last four games, after taking their initial MAAC conference series from Siena back on Mar. 7-9.
QUOTES FROM THE JASPERS:
Head Coach Steven Rosen: "Not the outcome we wanted in the midweek. Some things as a group we need to tighten up. A few bright spots at different moments in the game we can work to build on and get right back to practice tomorrow."
NEXT UP
Manhattan (7-12, 2-4 MAAC) returns to MAAC competition on Friday for the start of a three-game series against Sacred Heart University (9-9, 4-2 MAAC) in Fairfield, CT. First pitch is scheduled for 3PM.