LAKELAND, Fla. – Saint Joseph's College (2-6) capped the 2023 spring trip with a 7-3 setback at the hands of Grove City College (10-3) in RussMatt Central Florida Invitational baseball action at Lake Bonny Park on Saturday morning.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Saint Joseph's stood toe to toe with one of the hottest teams in D3 baseball as the Monks and Wolverines – who entered today's action riding a seven-game winning streak – were locked in a 3-3 tie game through eight innings. Unfortunately for St. Joe's, the Grove City bats came alive in the top of the ninth with four runs off seven hits to ultimately claim the 7-3 victory.
The Monks showed some fight in the bottom of the ninth and had the bases loaded with two out and cleanup hitter Luke Stephens (Glastonbury, Conn) at the plate, but GC reliever Mally Kilbane (Olmsted Falls, Ohio) struck him out to close out the triumph.
Grove City opened the scoring in the top of the third when Nick Sampson (Venetia, Pa.) plated a pair with a single up the middle. Saint Joseph's answered immediately in the bottom of the frame with three runs on four hits, as sophomore third baseman Michael Wearne (Ellington, Conn.) singled home senior shortstop Zach Miles (Concord, N.H.) and later scored – along with freshman second baseman Jack Moltenbrey (East Longmeadow, Mass.) – when Stephens came up clutch with a two-out, two-run single.
The Monks' 3-2 edge did not last long however, as David Leslie (Butler, Pa.) belted a solo home run to tie the game.
Four scoreless innings ensued as neither team mounted much of a scoring threat until the top of the ninth. Grove City second baseman Luke Vittone (Seven Fields, Pa.) drove in what proved to be the game-winning run with a one-out single while Sampson, Kilbane, and Markus Williams (Sewickley, Pa.) completed the game scoring with RBI base hits. The damage could have been worse if outfielders Cliff Ward (Cohasset, Mass.) and Terry Morrissey (Andover, Mass.) had not thrown out a pair of runners at home plate in the ninth.
ON THE MOUND:
- Senior righthander Samuel Jalbert (Mascouche, Que.) was brilliant in his second outing of the young season, as he allowed three runs on six hits and two walks with eight strikeouts over seven strong innings
- Sophomore Hugh Barrett (Durham, Conn.) worked a scoreless eighth inning while allowing two hits and fanning one batter
- Senior reliever Sean McDonough (Concord, N.H.) suffered the loss after giving up a hit and allowing a run in 0.1 innings of work
- Freshman Dylan Brander (Merrimack, N.H.) gave up three runs on three hits and first-year southpaw Padraig Mac Seain (Brookline, N.H.) allowed two hits in 0.1 innings
- For Grove City, freshman starter Kenny Lavrich (Franklin, Pa.) fanned two and gave up three runs off four hits and four walks in 2.2 innings, Robby Randolph (Cranberry Township, Pa.) scattered two hits with a walk and a strikeout in 3.1 innings, and Kilbane earned the victory in relief after tossing three shutout innings with three K's and three hits allowed
OFF THE BAT:
- Moltenbrey went 3-4 with a run and a walk
- Senior Jackson Stanton (Saugus, Mass.) was 2-4
- For the Wolverines, Williams was 3-5 with an RBI, Sampson went 2-4 with a run, a double, and three RBI, and Vittone and Josh Minnich (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) posted two hits apiece
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will play a pair of games at WPI on Saturday with the first contest slated to start at 12:00 PM.
