MARCH 18, 2018
MONARCH BASEBALL SPLITS WITH MANHATTANVILLE
WILKES-BARRE, PA --- The King's College baseball team opened conference play with a doubleheader split with Manhattanville College on Sunday afternoon at Lipo Field in Wilkes-Barre. The Monarchs won the first game 4-3 before dropping the nightcap 11-5.
The Monarchs now hold a 4-6 overall record and 1-1 mark in Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom play while the Valiants are 3-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play.
Manhattanville got on the board first in game one with two runs in the third inning. The Valiants loaded the bases with one out before Jack Matero knocked in the runners on second and third with a single to left field. John Wickiser got out of the jam on a nicely turned 6-4-3 double-play. King's responded in the bottom half of the inning with two outs when Sean McKee singled to center and then scored on a Dan Hartson double to deep left. Hartson advanced to third on the throw home from the outfield but was stranded there as the Valiants were able to get a groundball to shortstop to get out of the inning.
Wickiser set the Valiants down in order in the fourth on 13 pitches including two strikeouts. The Monarchs threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the inning with another two-out rally. Matt Mellinger hit a double to the right-centerfield gap and Bruce Breithaupt walked to put runners on first and second. However, Manhattanville got another groundball to get out of the inning with the lead still intact.
They weren't so lucky in the fifth as Sean Padden and Sean McKee had back-to-back singles to lead off the inning. McKee legged out a perfectly placed bunt to the pitcher down the third base line. After Dan Hartson sacrificed them over to second and third, Christian Pack gave the Monarchs a 3-2 lead with a single to right field on the first pitch he saw.
The Valiants responded in the sixth putting runners on the corners with one out. Ryan Ninivaggi evened the score with a pinch-hit sac fly to left. In the bottom of the inning Bruce Breithaupt led off with a double down the right-field line and Sean Padden singled through the left side to put runners on the corners with one out. McKee knocked in the go-ahead run when he beat out a possible 6-4-3 double-play. Chris Lupole, who had entered the game for Wickiser in the sixth, worked a perfect seventh inning to close out the victory for the Monarchs.
McKee led the Monarchs with two hits, two runs, and knocked in the game-winning run in game one. Hartson and Padden added two hits apiece while Pack knocked in two runs. Wickiser picked up a no-decision on the mound after allowing three runs, two earned, on five hits and two walks and three strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched. Lupole got the final five outs and only allowed a hit and struck out one to pick up his first victory of the year.
Jack Matero led the Valiants with two hits and two runs batted in. Anthony LoFaro picked up a no-decision on the mound pitching five innings and allowing three runs on seven hits and two walks with two strikeouts. Mike Rothman got the loss after only facing one batter who happened to get a hit and score the winning run. Justin Proteau allowed one hit in one inning of relief.
The second game started out as a pitcher's duel in the first couple of innings as neither team was able to score. The Monarchs had the best chance in the second after their first two batters reached on back-to-back hit-by-pitches. Manhattanville got out of the inning with no damage done.
The Valiants scored five runs in the third despite the ball not leaving the infield. Manhattanville took advantage of two walks, three hit-by-pitches, two wild pitches, and an infield single to take a 5-0 lead.
King's got two runs back in the bottom of the inning with back-to-back walks from McKee and Zack Godfrey to start the inning, an RBI single to left by Pack and then an RBI double down the right-field line by Chris Rebar on the first pitch he saw. Manhattanville ended the threat with two strikeouts to get out of the inning.
Rebar made it a two-run game in the fifth when he doubled home Harston with a shot to right that hit up against the wall. Kyle Lupas then knocked in Rebar and Pack to even the score with a single up the middle.
The Valiants responded in the top of the sixth with six runs on six hits to take an 11-5 lead. Manhattanville hit three doubles in the inning and received four straight hits to retake the lead. In the bottom of the inning, King's loaded the bases with two outs and Rebar up but his liner up the middle was grabbed by the Valiant pitcher to end the threat.
Pack led the Monarchs with three hits in the second game including two infield singles into the hole in between third and short. He also knocked in a run and scored a run. Rebar had two hits and knocked in a pair of runs. Lupas also added two runs batted in. Billy Neill picked up the loss on the mound in relief of Alex Bruneio and Matt Hassick. Neill pitched 2.1 innings and allowed four runs on four hits with three strikeouts. Bruneio was unable to get out of the third inning in his second start. The freshman only allowed two hits but had trouble with his control walking two and hitting three batters which led to five runs. He did manage to strike out four batters. Hassick walked one in a third of an inning. Nick Deno got the final five outs and allowed two runs on four hits with one strikeout.
Christian Pack had four hits and knocked in three runs on the day while scoring one run. Sean Padden added three hits while Dan Hartson and Chris Rebar had two hits each. Rebar had two doubles and knocked in two runs while Kyle Lupas also had two runs batted in. Sean McKee had two hits and scored three runs.
King's will return to the diamond with a scheduled home-and-home series with local rival Marywood University this week. The Monarchs will travel up 81 to face the Pacers on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. in Scranton before hosting Marywood at Lipo Field on Wednesday with first pitch scheduled for 4:00 p.m.