EAST PROVIDENCE, RI – Saint Joseph's (14-9, 5-1 GNAC) split a conference doubleheader with Johnson & Wales (16-10-1, 7-1 GNAC) on Sunday afternoon. The Monks suffered a 5-2 setback in the opener but rebounded with a 7-0 victory in the closing contest.
In the opener, JWU got on the board first in the bottom of the third when Matt Yaeger (Glendale, Ariz.) reached on a single and scored on a double by Teddy Katz (Pittsburgh, Pa.). Katz later scored on an RBI groundout by sophomore Pete Rosa (Ambler, Pa.), giving JWU the 2-0 advantage.
St. Joe's cut into the lead in the top of the fourth as senior Ian Lee (Hampden, Maine) drew a walk and came around to score on a double play later in the inning to make it a 2-1 game. JWU broke the contest open in the bottom of the fifth as they tallied three runs, including a two run triple by Katz, to take the 5-1 lead.
The visiting Monks threatened in the top of the seventh as they capitalized on a JWU miscue, trimming the lead to just three runs. It would not be enough, however as the Wildcats held on for the 5-2 victory with junior Marc Sommerhalter (Emerson, N.J.) recording his second save of the season with two thirds of an inning of scoreless relief.
Marine notched the win for JWU, going six and a third innings, allowing one earned run on eight hits with two strikeouts. Yeager was 3-for-4 with a run scored while Katz went 3-for-4 with three RBI in the victory for JWU. Sophomore Zach Boyes (West Warwick, R.I.) was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI for the Wildcats.
Sophomore Mike Pratt (Dartmouth, Mass.) was 1-for-2 with an RBI while junior Dan Brown (Portland, Maine/Deering) added a pair of hits in the setback for the Monks. St. Joe's stranded 10 runners on base and had at least one runner in scoring position in six of seven innings in the loss.
Senior starting pitcher Kevin Chamberlain (Scarborough, Maine), now 1-1 on the year, fanned three with four earned runs allowed off 10 hits and three walks in 5.1 innings. Junior reliever Kyle Neagle (Lisbon Falls, Maine) allowed a hit and struck out a batter in 0.2 innings.
The nightcap saw Saint Joseph's score all the runs they would need in the first inning as they plated three runs, including an RBI single by Lee. The Monks added two more in the fourth and two more in the sixth en route to the 7-0 victory.
Lee was 3-for-3 with a run and two RBI in the win for St. Joseph's while Pratt went 1-for-3 with two runs and an RBI for the Monks. Freshman Joe Gruntkosky (Peabody, Mass.) recorded the complete-game shutout for the Monks, giving up just six hits with no walks and seven strikeouts over seven innings. Gruntkosky, who notched his first NCAA victory in the win, did not allow an extra base hit and only two JWU runners advanced to third base during his outing.
Nick Alosco (Mahopac, NY) went 3-for-3 in the loss for Johnson & Wales, which carried a nine-game winning streak into the nightcap.
Saint Joseph's will host Thomas College in a non-conference twinbill on Tuesday at 4:00 PM while the Wildcats return to action on Wednesday when they host Rhode Island College in a non-conference contest starting at 3:30 PM.
COURTESY OF JWU SPORTS INFORMATION
