STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (18-10, 11-1 GNAC) won a pair of Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) baseball games over fellow contender Anna Maria College (17-13, 8-4 GNAC) at Larry Mahaney Diamond on Friday afternoon. The Monks posted two 3-1 victories over the AMCATS with results sure to have GNAC Tournament implications going forward.
GAME ONE:
The Monks grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when senior third baseman Ronan Chisholm (North Chatham, Mass.) singled and later scored on a base hit off the bat of junior catcher Jonathan Dube (Rochester, N.H.).
The 1-0 edge held true until the top of the sixth when junior James Powers (Folsom, Calif.) hit a pop up to right that was lost in the sun, resulting in a two-base hit, and eventually scored the tying run on a Noah Holland (Sandwich, Mass.) fielder's choice.
St. Joe's managed to secure the 3-1 advantage with two runs on two hits in the bottom of the sixth. With one out and the bases loaded, Chisholm came to the plate and chopped a seeing-eye single up the middle to send freshman pinch runner Cliff Ward (Cohasset, Mass.) and junior shortstop Zach Miles (Concord, N.H.) across the plate and account for the 3-1 final.
ON THE MOUND:
- Junior starter Samuel Jalbert (Mascouche, Que.) worked his way through a tight strike zone to toss five effective innings while allowing a run on four hits and five walks with five K's; sophomore Luke Stephens (Glastonbury, Conn.) picked up the win after hurling two no-hit innings with three strikeouts in relief
- Anna Maria freshman starter Nick Choate (Grafton, Mass.) gave up a run on four hits and four walks with nine strikeouts over five innings; graduate reliever Fili Veras (Sleepy Hollow, N.Y.) took the loss after allowing two runs on two hits and a pair of walks in an inning of work
OFF THE BAT:
- Chisholm went 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI
- Dube was 2-for-4 with an RBI
- For the AMCATS, Powers was 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored
GAME TWO:
Saint Joseph's took a 1-0 lead without posting a hit in the bottom of the third, when Miles worked a one-out walk and scored two batters later when Chisholm grounded out to second base.
The Monks tacked on a run in the fourth when senior center fielder Ryan Tessier (Concord, N.H.) worked a bases-loaded walk and claimed a 3-0 advantage when senior Jake Laplume (Old Orchard Beach, Maine) notched an RBI single with two out in the bottom of the fifth.
The 3-0 remained until the top of the seventh when the visitors threatened to tie the game but were held to a run on two hits. After two quick outs, the AMCATS proceeded to extend the contest and had runners on second and third for senior shortstop Kosta Drosidas (Holden, Mass.), who put his team on the board with an RBI single. Powers then came to the plate with runners on first and third but was limited to a harmless groundout to second base to end the game.
ON THE MOUND:
- Freshman starter Jason Johnson (Thomaston, Conn.) was outstanding with seven strikeouts and three hits allowed over five shutout innings and improved to 3-1 with the win; Stephens closed out the contest and picked up his fourth save of the season after giving up an unearned run on two hits over two frames
- For Anna Maria, graduate starter Jack Marzec (Northbridge, Mass.) fell to 3-3 on the season after yielding two runs on two hits and seven walks with three K's in 3.2 innings; sophomore reliever Anthony Pingeton (Charlton, Mass.) allowed a run off one hit and a walk with one punch-out in 2.1 innings of effective relief
OFF THE BAT:
- Drosidas was the only repeat-hitter in the contest after going 2-for-2 with an RBI
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the sweep, Saint Joseph's improves to 19-3 all-time versus Anna Maria College.
NEXT!
The Monks will play a pair of non-conference games at New England College on Monday. The first game is slated for a 1:00 PM start.
