Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 DANBURY, Conn.- Freshmen Joe Anselmi (North Rockland, N.Y./North Rockland) and Robbie Lynch (Bronx, N.Y./Fordham Prep) combined for eight hits, seven RBIs and five runs on Tuesday afternoon, leading the Manhattanville baseball team to a two-game sweep of Western Connecticut State by the final scores of 9-6 and 12-4 in the Valiants regular season finale.
 
Manhattanville (22-13) connected on 21 total hits against Western Connecticut (15-19), dominating the Colonials in non-conference play before moving onto the Freedom Conference Tournament this Friday against DeSales.
 
Joining fellow freshmen Anselmi and Lynch in the offensive pursuit was classmate Chris Conklin (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Lakeland), tallying three hits to go with three runs and an RBI.  These three freshmen have remained hot at the plate all season, looking to work that into this weekend's conference playoffs.
 
Senior V.J. Collins (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Arlington) (2-0) started game one for the Valiants, tossing four innings, allowing two earned runs on five total hits. Alongside Collins was junior Zack Zareva (Warren, N.J./Watchung Hills Regional) and sophomore Sam Garito (New Rochelle, N.Y./Iona Prep), offering three innings in relief before winning game one.
 
The Valiants quickly opened the game up in the first inning, scoring three runs off a two-run single from Lynch up the middle, followed by an RBI single from junior Bobby Guerra (Bronx, N.Y./Arlington). As Collins shut down the Colonials in the first, Western Connecticut would soon answer in the second, tying the game up at three when Jeff John doubled to right center.
 
Manhattanville got right back to work in the third inning, starting with a sacrifice fly from Guerra to regain the lead. After a few miscues from the Colonials defensively, junior Nick Euvino (Bronx, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) and senior Eli Tsouristakis (New Rochelle, N.Y./Fordham Prep) each contributed RBI singles, extending the Valiants lead to 7-3.
 
Western Connecticut looked for a comeback in the fourth inning, scoring one more run at home, cutting the Manhattanville lead down to three at 7-4. No more runs would score until the sixth inning as the Valiants brought two more runs home off two errors from the Colonials. Western Connecticut committed four total errors in game one, allowing Manhattanville to take complete advantage.
 
The Colonials eventually scored two more runs in the sixth off Zareva before Garito entered the seventh, picking up the save en route to a 9-6 game one win.
 
Behind the stellar pitching effort of seniors Alex Basso (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley) and Ryan Blinderman (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Warde) (2-0) in game two, Manhattanville's offense picked up right where it left off, dominating the Colonials in the second game. Basso and Blinderman tossed five shutout innings, allowing six total hits before Manhattanville cruised past Western Connecticut.
 
At the plate, Anselmi went 3 for 4 with five RBIs and one run. The Valiants may have gone scoreless in the first two innings of game two, but the third inning was something special. Including two two-run doubles from Anselmi in the third, Manhattanville poured on 10 runs off Western Connecticut pitchers Luke Altieri and Josh Zurita.
 
Anselmi got the rally started in the third inning, belting a two-run double to right center, scoring classmates Lynch and Conklin. Freshman John Delahanty (Mahopac/N.Y.) and sophomore Kurt Hommen (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) also contributed to the offensive pursuit as Delahanty connected on a RBI single while Hommen smoked a double down the right field line, extending the Manhattanville lead to 6-0. Later in the inning, both Conklin and Anselmi added RBI doubles as the Valiants secured a comfortable 10-0 lead after the third.
 
The Valiants eventually scored one more run in the fourth on a wild pitch, making it 11-0. As sophomore Julian Ponce (Port Chester, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) entered the sixth, the Colonials finally scored, tallying all four of their runs off Ponce. Anselmi eventually knocked in his fifth RBI on his third double of game two in the seventh, leading the Valiants to a 12-4 win.
 
Manhattanville will travel to West Lawn, Pa. on Friday, looking for its first Freedom Conference Championship since 2010 when they take on top-seeded DeSales at 4 p.m. Live stats can be found via GoValiants.com