STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (15-5, 2-0 GNAC) won a pair of drastically different games over Rivier University (5-15, 0-4 GNAC) in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) baseball action at Larry Mahaney Diamond on Sunday afternoon.
The Monks rallied with two runs in the bottom of the seventh to walk off versus the Raiders in the opener, 4-3, and cruised to a 15-0 triumph in the nightcap.
With the opening-game victory, 26th-year Head Coach Will Sanborn '86 claims the 700th win of his illustrious career. He is the 37th NCAA DIII coach – and 19th active – to reach the milestone and becomes just the third active New England skipper to hit the plateau. Sanborn is now 701-369-5 (.655) in 26 seasons at the helm for the Monks, who have now won 12-consecutive games.
GAME ONE – Saint Joseph's 4, Rivier 3:
Saint Joseph's scored single runs in the second and third innings, as junior first baseman Noah McDaniel (Eliot, Maine) plated sophomore Will Martin (Arlington, Mass.) with a single in the former and senior center fielder Chris Gerossie (Chester, N.H.) delivered classmate Jacob White (Salem, N.H.) with a double in the latter.
The 2-0 edge remained until the top of the fifth, when sophomore left fielder Brendan Sullivan (Manchester, N.H.) fisted a bloop single down the left field line with the bases loaded and one out. Frederick Kazalski (Dracut, Mass.) and Michael Cronan (Hope, R.I.) scored on the hit and Tyler Ferdinand (Middleboro, Mass.) scored the go-ahead run on a throwing error when Sullivan tried to advance to second.
The Monks went down in order in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings as the Raiders clung to the 3-2 lead until the bottom of the seventh. Junior shortstop Joey Murphy (Derry, N.H.) led off with a double down the left field line, moved to third on a bunt single off the bat of junior left fielder Jared Gagne (Dover, N.H.), and scored when junior right fielder Anthony DiPrizio (Rochester, N.H.) grounded out to first base. Two batters later, Gagne scored the game-winning run from second base when White reached on an error.
ON THE MOUND:
- SJC sophomore starter Luke Klenda (Yarmouth, Maine) allowed three runs (two earned) off two hits and three walks with six strikeouts in 4.1 innings
- Junior Grayson Jennings (Mililani, Hawaii) picked up the victory in relief after striking out six and allowing one hit over 2.2 dominant innings
- Rivier freshman starter Daniel White (Augusta, Maine) kept the Monks off balance all game long and yielded three runs (two earned) off seven hits over six frames
- Ferdinand suffered the loss after giving up a run off a hit in 2/3 inning of relief
OFF THE BAT:
- Murphy was 3-4 with a run and a double
- McDaniel went 2-3 with an RBI
- Sullivan was 1-3 with a pair of RBI for the Raiders
GAME TWO – Saint Joseph's 15, Rivier 0:
The closing contest was the polar opposite of the opener, as the Monks scored early and often in a 15-0 nightcap romp.
In the bottom of the first, Gagne led off with a walk, stole second and third, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Murphy to make it a 1-0 game. The Monks crossed the plate four times off two hits and a Rivier error in the second, when Gagne roped a three-run double to deep left field and later scored on an infield error.
Leading 5-0, St. Joe's added a pair of runs in the fourth when DiPrizio knocked in Gagne with a triple to center and scored on a passed ball. With multiple subs now in the lineup, the Monks proceeded to score three in the fifth and five in the sixth to account for the 15-0 final.
ON THE MOUND:
- Sophomore starter Roderick Maynard (Baldwin, Maine) fanned one and allowed two hits and three walks in 3.2 scoreless innings
- Sophomore Simon Gonzalez (Peabody, Mass.) picked up the win after allowing two hits with one punch-out in 1.1 innings of relief
- Senior Steven Albert (Worcester, Mass.) tossed a 1-2-3 sixth inning
- Freshman Jonathan Marchia (Chicopee, Mass.) worked a perfect seventh frame
- Rivier junior starter James Magno (New Gloucester, Maine) took the loss after yielding five runs (four earned) off three hits and four walks in 1.1 innings
- Ty Seaton (Pawtucket, R.I.), Enrique Serrano (Chelsea, Mass.), Sullivan, and Brandon Thibault (Methuen, Mass.) combined to allow 10 runs (eight earned) off 10 hits in 5.2 innings of relief
OFF THE BAT:
- Gagne went 1-1 with three runs, a double, two walks, three RBI, and three stolen bases
- Junior Greg Emanuelson (Hudson, N.H.) was 2-3 with a run and a double
- Freshman Dalton Quinn (Lowell, Mass.) went 2-2 with three runs and a pair of walks
- Freshman Dylan Fournier (South Windsor, Conn.) was 2-2 a run and a pair of RBI
- Rivier sophomore Eric Maxfield (Lowell, Mass.) went 2-3 with a pair of singles
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the sweep, Saint Joseph's improves to 26-1 all-time versus Rivier University and has now defeated the Raiders in 21-consecutive meetings dating back to the 2008 campaign.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Bowdoin College tomorrow at 4:00 PM.
#GOMONKS
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visitwww.sjcme.edu.
