Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
RIVERDALE, NY – The Manhattan College softball team didn't allow a run in 14 innings of action on Wednesday. Briana Matazinsky (Valley Falls, NY) and Stephanie Kristo (San Jose, CA) combined on a four-hit shutout in the opener, a 9-0 victory, then Nicole Williams (Ansonia, CT) tossed a complete-game four-hitter in the nightcap, as the Jaspers (13-9) notched a 2-0 triumph to secure a doubleheader sweep of Sacred Heart (7-14) at Pioneer Park.
This marks the first time that Manhattan has posted a shutout in both ends of a twinbill since the Jaspers earned a pair of 8-0 wins over Iona on May 5. The Jaspers have now won six in a row and shut out their opponent in three of their last four games.
Walks to Matazinksy, Stephanie Reinhardt (Albany, NY) and Dominique Palagruto (Sewell, NJ) loaded the bases for Victoria Ross (Bloomfield, NJ) in the second inning of game one. And Ross continued her hot streak with a bloop single to shallow left that knocked in two runs. The Jaspers added another run in the third when Alexa Dawid (Milford, CT) stole three bases after drawing a walk, the last coming on the back end of a double steal with Lauren Pitney (Ansonia, CT). Ross then picked up another RBI in the fourth, as Reinhardt scored on her single to left.
Matazinsky, meanwhile, was cruising in the circle. She gave up singles to the first two batters she faced, before striking out the side to get out of the jam. Sacred Heart only got two more hits the rest of the way and didn't advance a runner past second base.
It was still 4-0 heading into the seventh, when the Jaspers put up a five-spot to break the game open. Christine Gebhardt (Middletown, NJ) started the rally with a single, and Pitney and Jenn Vazquez (Fairfield, CT) followed with back-to-back doubles to virtually the same spot in right center. After Matazinsky reached on an error and Reinhardt was hit by a pitch, Palagruto beat out an infield single to knock in a run. Puthe then smacked a double to center that made it 9-0. Kristo relieved Matazinsky in the bottom of the seventh and retired the Pioneers in order to preserve the shutout.
Ross finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs in game one. Puthe and Vazquez each drove in two runs, while Reinhardt crossed the plate three times. In addition to scoring twice, Matazinsky (7-3) earned the win. She struck out seven and walked one while issuing just four singles over six innings. Kristo was credited with a strikeout in her perfect seventh.
Jamie Carlson (5-6) took the loss for the Pioneers. She surrendered four runs (three earned) on two hits, struck out six and walked six over 4.1 innings. Emily Orosco pitched two innings, yielding four runs (three earned) on three hits with three strikeouts and a walk. Jessica Dubbioso was charged with one run on two hits and recorded two strikeouts in 0.2 innings.
In game two, Manhattan struck for an unearned tally in the top of the first. Puthe reached on an error to start the game, then moved to third on a pair of groundouts. After Pitney was hit by a pitch, the Jaspers attempted a double steal. Pitney was chased back to first, but Puthe broke for home and was able to beat the throw to the plate. However, Pitney was called out on the play when she was tagged off the base, ending the inning. The run had already scored, though, giving the Jaspers a 1-0 lead.
After Reinhardt drew a two-out walk in the fourth, Kat Prevo (San Diego, CA) ripped a double to left center that increased Manhattan's advantage to 2-0. It was still a 2-0 game in the bottom of the sixth when Sacred Heart loaded the bases with two out. However, Williams induced a popup to end the threat before pitching a 1-2-3 seventh to close out the Jaspers' second shutout victory of the day.
Prevo had two of Manhattan's four hits in the contest, and she recorded the Jaspers' only RBI. Singles by Dawid and Matazinsky were the only other Manhattan hits, while Puthe and Reinhardt scored the game's only runs. Williams (3-2) extended her personal streak to 17 consecutive scoreless innings after yielding just four hits and four walks. She also struck out six in the complete game shutout.
Four different Pioneers singled off Williams. Sacred Heart hurler Kristen McCann (2-6) threw a complete game. She allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits with six strikeouts and six walks.
Manhattan returns to Gaelic Park on Saturday for its first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) doubleheader of the season. The Jaspers (0-0 MAAC) will face Monmouth (7-16, 0-0 MAAC) at 1:30 p.m. This marks the first time that the teams are squaring off since the Hawks eliminated Manhattan from the 2016 MAAC Tournament.
