PURCHASE, N.Y. – In a rain-soaked affair, the Manhattanville College baseball team improved to 4-0 in Skyline Conference play with a sweep of Old Westbury on Saturday. The pair of wins improves Manhattanville's overall record to 7-6 on the year.
Game One Recap: Manhattanville 14, Old Westbury 7
In an exciting opener, the Valiants clawed back from a six run deficit, scoring 13 runs over the final four innings to defeat the Panthers.
Joe McDonald (Coram, N.Y./Longwood) had a stellar performance in Game One, going 4-for-5 at the plate with a pair of RBIs and three runs scored.
Frank Delgado (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) collected three singles with two RBIs and a pair of runs scored, while
Tyler Viscusi (Wappingers Falls, N.Y./Roy C. Ketcham) and
Jake Parisi (Centereach, N.Y./Centereach) both drove in a pair as well.
It was a rough go of things on the mound for starter
Travis Brescia (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley), who lasted three innings while giving up seven hits. Seven Panthers scored off of the junior pitcher, but only three were earned as three Manhattanville errors expedited the damage done by the Old Westbury bats.
While Delgado connected with an RBI single in the first for Manhattanville, the Panthers built out to a 7-1 lead midway through the third. The Valiants began their comeback in the bottom half of the frame as McDonald singled,
Joe LaPorta (Centerech, N.Y./Centereach) walked, and Joe Silvestri was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one away.
Anthony Pressimone (Bronx, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) singled to plate McDonald before Delgado put a ball in play that was mishandled by the Panthers' pitcher to allow LaPorta to score an unearned run.
Silvestri hit a two RBI double in the bottom of the fourth to pull Manhattanville back within two at 7-5 before finally completing the comeback and taking the lead in the fifth. The Valiants used three hits and three Old Westbury errors to score four runs. A pair of errors resulted in Parisi coming up to bat with the bases loaded and one away, singling to plate Delgado. One batter later facing a new pitcher, McDonald lined a single of his own to score
Brian Bornkamp (North Massapequa, N.Y./Plainedge) and
Tyler Mandel (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale). McDonald wasn't quite done, as he stole second with two outs. The throw down from the Panthers' catcher was off line, allowing Parisi to score on the third error of the inning as the Valiants went up 9-7.
In the midst of the Manhattanville rally,
Thomas Iazzetta (Thornwood, N.Y./Westlake) was pitching fantastically in relief. The junior went four innings, allowing just one hit and a piar of walks while striking out four to allow the Valiants to fight back into the game. Iazzetta picked up his first win of the season and lowered his ERA to 1.29.
The Valiants put the game away with five runs on six hits in the sixth. Viscusi hit a 2 RBI single, while Parisi drove in his second run of the game on his second hit. Finally,
Matt Tuite (Shrub Oak, N.Y./Lakeland) found the outfield grass for a two-run double, putting the Valiants up 14-7. Iazetta worked around a leadoff single and walk to retire the last three Panthers in order, ending the game with a strikeout.
Game Two Recap: Manhattanville 14, Old Westbury 4 (Eight Innings)
The headliner of the second game was
Ray White (Mohegan Lake, N.Y./Lakeland), who worked an extremely effective 6.2 innings in the start. The rookie improved to 3-1 on the year with nine hits allowed and three runs, although only one of the runs was earned. While White only struck out one batter, the Mohegan Lake native was able to induce a number of opportune double plays to escape jams and limit potential damage.
With White dealing, the Valiants hung 14 runs on the board for a second straight game. The offense started slowly, as a Tuite RBI double in the second and an error on a
Braden Kunda (Eastchester, N.Y./Eastchester) steal allowing Silvestri to score in the third put the home team up 2-0. Old Westbury got one back in the top of the fourth, but Manhattanville responded with five runs in the bottom half.
With one away, Parisi, McDonald and Tuite drew consecutive walks to load the bases. Silvestri hit into a fielder's choice to score Parisi to regain the two-run lead before Delgado connected with a two-run single. Then, with runners at the corners, Delgado looked to have been picked off after leaving the base early. The rookie was able to draw enough attention to allow Pressimone to sneak home and advance up to third in the chaos. If the sequence couldn't get any more bizarre, the ensuing throw back to the pitcher went awry, allowing Delgado to score and put the Valiants up 7-1. In all, five runs crossed on just one Manhattanville hit.
The Valiants scored four more one inning later, using a little more conventional offense. Parisi lined an RBI double to plate Bornkamp. The Valiants still had one more trick up their sleeves, as McDonald drew a walk and immediately dashed for second base as he caught the Panthers napping. The throw to try and get the rookie out went into the outfield, allowing Parisi to score. Tuite hit an RBI single before the fourth run of the inning crossed on the third Panther error of the frame to score the graduate student and put the Valiants up 11-1.
The Panthers put up a run in each of the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, but with rain beginning to fall hard, the Valiants plated three runs on multiple wild pitches in the bottom of the eighth to invoke the run rule and end the contest with a 14-4 win.
Up Next
Manhattanville plays another Skyline doubleheader tomorrow, traveling to St. Joseph's (Long Island) for a pair starting at noon.
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