PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville College baseball team was swept on Wednesday afternoon by neighboring rival Purchase as the latest chapter of the Battle of Anderson Hill Road carried heavy postseason implications. The pair of loss drops the Valiants to 16-21 overall and 9-9 in the Skyline Conference, dropping to seventh in the conference standings. The Valiants will enter the final weekend of the season sitting on the outside looking in, needing to climb into sixth to advance to the postseason.
Game One Recap: Manhattanville 7, Purchase 9
The Panthers plated five runs in the sixth to jump into the lead late in the opener, ultimately holding off a final inning rally by the Valiants.
Purchase plated their five runs in the sixth on five hits and a Manhattanville error. With the game tied 4-4, Patrick Reyes lined a two run double to left center. The Panther left fielder then stole third as the throw sailed off target, allowing him to come home with the third run of the innings. A Cameron Cruz sac fly and Jemal Betances RBI single put the Panthers up 9-4 with the Valiants having just six outs to work with.
After being held scoreless in the sixth, the Valiants pieced together a comeback effort in the seventh. Manhattanville loaded the bases with one out off singles by
Tyler Mandel (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale),
Joshua Gillison (Buchanan, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) and
Chris Goohs (Nesconset, N.Y./Smithtown H.S. East).
Michael Matica (Pleasantville, N.Y./Pleasantville) kept the carousel going as everyone advanced a bag on his single, plating the pinch running
Jordan Wazolek (Yonkers, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac).
Marco Clara (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset) then delivered as a pinch hitter, lacing a two run double to make it a two run game with the tying run in scoring position. It would be as close as the Valiants would get as Betances recorded a strikeout and game-ending pop up to shut the door with two-out save.
Travis Brescia (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley) suffered the loss for Manhattanville, being charged with all five runs (four earned) in the sixth. He would throw 1.1 innings out of the pen, allowing five hits and a pair of walks while striking out two.
TJ Fuerst (Purchase, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) made the start, throwing the first four innings and allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits. Command was an issue for the sophomore as Fuerst walked five batters while striking out two.
Jackson Branigan (Yonkers, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) closed out the game for Manhattanville, throwing a hitless final 1.1 innings.
The Valiants led in the first courtesy of a Mandel two-run home run, his sixth of the year. After the Panthers tied up the game in the third on RBI singles by Matt Castrogiovanni and Frank Rega,
Brian Bornkamp (North Massapequa, N.Y./Plainedge) put the Valiants back in front in the bottom of the frame with a sac fly to score
Jake Parisi (Centereach, N.Y./Centereach).
A Manhattanville throwing error resulted in a pair of Panther runs soring in the fourth to give Purchase their first lead of the day, 4-3. Mandel evened the score with his third RBI of the game, plating Parisi on a single in the fifth to set the stage for Purchase's sixth inning eruption.
Mandel finished 4-for-4 at the plated, while Parisi collected three hits himself, including a double and a triple.
Game Two Recap: Manhattanville 4, Purchase 6
The Panthers once again scored late to break up a tied game and take a lead that Betances saved to complete the sweep for the visiting team.
A Reyes RBI single and Castrogiovanni sacrifice fly in the eighth broke what was a 4-4 tie. The Valiants drew three walks over the final two innings, but were held without a hit as the Panthers completed the sweep.
Manhattanville led in the second game as well, with a Bornkamp RBI single plating Clara with the opening run in the second. Purchase would ultimately get to Manhattanville starter
Chris Antonelli (Yonkers, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac) in the fourth, scoring four times on four hits and an error to take a 4-1 lead.
The Valiants responded by tying the game in the bottom half on five hits to plate three runs. All the damage was done with two outs and was started by a Clara single. Goohs doubled to right and advanced to third while Clara scored on a wild pitch. Goohs came across the plate a batter later on a Bornkamp infield single. The Valiant center fielder put himself in scoring position with a steal of second before racing home on a
Gabe Astrologo (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Kennedy Catholic Prep) single to tie the game at 4-4.
The scoring took Antonelli off the hook, as he would finish with a no-decision after 4.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits while striking out two.
Ryan McCann (Medford, N.Y./Longwood) spelled Antonelli and would take the loss after tossing the final 4.1 innings. Outside of the two-run eighth, the rookie pitched well, ultimately going 4.1 innings and allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits while striking out five.
Bornkamp went 3-for-4 at the plate. Parisi and Mandel finished with two hits apiece.
Up Next
The Valiants will make their final push towards the postseason when they conclude the regular season on Saturday. The team will celebrate Senior Day between games of the doubleheader against Old Westbury, with first pitch of Game One scheduled for noon.
VALIANTS on SOCIAL MEDIA For the latest on Manhattanville Athletics, follow the Valiants via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. #WeAreValiant #GoValiants
