DOVER, DE – The Manhattanville College baseball team split its season-opening doubleheader against Wesley College Sunday afternoon, rallying from four runs down for a 7-5 Game 1 win before dropping the second game 9-5.
Sophomore
Peter Iannarilli (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) broke a 5-5 tie with a two-run single in the top of the seventh inning of Game 1, his third hit of the game, capping a Manhattanville (1-1) comeback from an early 4-0 deficit.
Wesley (2-3) got at least one hit from every non-pitching position player and scored in each of the first five innings of Game 2, including a three-run first inning, then held on following another mid-game Valiants rally.
Senior
Austin Pollack (Harrison, N.Y./) went 2-for-4 in both games in his first action in a Manhattanville uniform, while graduate student
Chris Conklin (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Lakeland) finished the twin-bill 3-for-7; junior
Luke Scoggins (Merrick, N.Y./Sanford H. Calhoun) also drove in four runs on the day for the Valiants.
GAME ONE: Senior
Pat Badia (Somers, N.Y./Somers) took to the hill for Manhattanville and ran into some trouble in the second inning as five straight Wolverines reached base safely to start the inning, putting the home team up 2-0 before an error led to the third Wesley run.
The Valiants' comeback started the following inning as the road team loaded the bases with one out, following a walk to Conklin and a single by Pollack. Scoggins got Manhattanville on the board, doubling home Conklin and Lynch, then senior
Danny Gallagher (Nanuet, N.Y./Paramus Catholic) singled home Pollack for a 4-3 game.
A Schmitt RBI single pushed Wesley's lead back to two in the bottom half of the inning, but Manhattanville responded again in the top of the fourth. After Silvestri singled and Lynch walked, Conklin drove in Silvestri with a single to left, and, after Pollack was hit by a pitch, Scoggins drove in Lynch for the second time with a single to right to tie the game.
After coming in to start the bottom of the fourth, senior
Anthony LoFaro (Haworth, N.J./Northern Valley Demarest) silenced the Wesley bats over the next three innings, allowing just one baserunner past second base while striking out three.
With the score still five-all entering the seventh, Scoggins and Gallagher each notched one-out singles and sophomore
Ryan Ninivaggi (Throggs Neck, N.Y./Lehman) walked, putting Scoggins and Gallagher in scoring position for Iannarilli, who singled them both home for Manhattanville's first lead of the game.
LoFaro (1-0) finished his excellent outing in the bottom half of the inning, allowing just a two-out single, before finishing off the win.
GAME TWO: Senior
Billy Tempone (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown East) got the start in Game 2 and allowed five runs in the first two innings, while Manhattanville's offense was held to one hit through three innings.
Conklin started the fourth inning with a base hit and advanced to second on a single by Pollack; Scoggins then doubled home Conklin for his third RBI of the day. After sophomore
Stephen Merrill (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Roy C. Ketcham) drove in Pollack with a sacrifice fly, Iannarilli doubled home Scoggins and freshman
Jack Matero (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay), making his collegiate debut, singled home Iannarilli, slicing the six-run gap down to two. Cody Dmiterchik launched a two-run homer in the bottom half of the inning, pushing the Wesley lead back to four.
The Valiants put two runners on in both the fifth and sixth innings but came away without a run each time as Wesley tacked on another run in the bottom of the fifth. Senior
Thomas Contrelli (Miller Place, N.Y./Miller Place) struck out the side swinging in a perfect sixth inning.
After Pollack doubled and stole third in the top of the seventh, Scoggins drove in junior pinch-runner
Tom Gilmartin (Levittown, N.Y./Island Trees) with a sacrifice fly, but that was all for Manhattanville, as the Wolverines earned the split.
Manhattanville returns to GoValiants.com Field for its home opener on Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. against John Jay.
