Box Score (GM 2) | Box Score (GM 1)
Lawrenceville, NJ - Manhattan took both ends of a doubleheader from Rider by scores of 11-4 and 6-3 at Sonny Pittaro Field.
The Jaspers improve to 20-27 and 12-5 in the MAAC while the Broncs fall to 13-33 and 4-13 in the league.
Graduate student
Cam Crabbe (White Plains, NY / USF) was a lightning rod all day for the offense, going 3-for-4 with three walks, a double, run and a sacrifice bunt.
Game Two
Junior RHP
T.J. Stuart (Milford, CT / Joseph A. Foran) fired a complete game five-hitter with five strikeouts to lift Manhattan to a 6-3 victory over Rider in the nightcap.
Freshman
Jonathan Barditch (Miami, FL / Belen Jesuit Prep) delivered the key hit with a three-run homer to pace a five-hit offense, while Crabbe and junior
Alex Cerda (Miami, FL / Florida Christian School) each had two hits.
In the top of the second, junior
Jake Knop (Portland, ME / Portland) and Crabbed singled, before Barditch blasted his first career home run to deep left field.
The Jaspers were back at it in their next trip to plate, scoring three runs in jumping out to an insurmountable 6-0 lead. Graduate student
Shawn Blake (Stratford, CT / Elon) led off with a walk, before freshman
Nick Cimillo (Airmont, NY / Suffern) reached on a fielding error, before Cerda reached via a bunt single. On the play, Blake and Cimillo scored on a throwing error while Cerda moved to third. Sophomore
Matt Padre (Flemington, NJ / Hunterdon Central).
Trailing 6-0 in the bottom of the fourth, the Broncs got two runs back on Kyle Johnson's two-out, two-run triple. Rider further dented the lead with one more run in the fifth, but was unable to get any closer as Stuart stranded a pair in the bottom of the seventh.
The Nutmeg State native improves to 6-4 on the year with his sixth complete game to go along with 65 strikeouts and a 3.63 ERA over 67.0 innings.
Game One
The Jaspers erupted for eight unanswered runs en route to posting an 11-4 win over the Broncs in the opener.
Rider opened the scoring in the bottom of the first on Riley Mihalik's 10th home run of the year, a two-run shot to right field.
Manhattan answered with three runs in the top of the third thanks to rapping out a pair of clutch two-out hits. Sophomore
Jake Knop (Portland, ME / Portland) led off with a double, before stealing third with one out. Freshman
Sam Franco (Bardonia, NY / Clarkstown South) followed with a walk and Blake took advantage with a two-run double to right center. Cimillo then smoked the first pitch he saw to left field to give the Jaspers a 3-2 advantage.
In the bottom of the third, the Broncs reclaimed the lead as Johnson hit a two-run homer to left field..
Manhattan immediately stunted the Rider momentum in the top of the fourth as Cerda led off with a double down the left field line, before sophomore
Matt Padre (Flemington, NJ / Hunterdon Central) crushed a two-run homer to left field in giving the visitors a 5-4 lead.
The Jaspers extended the lead out to 6-4 in the top of the seventh when Cerda chased home Blake with a RBI ground out.
Knop then led off the eighth inning with his first career home run, before freshman pinch hitter
David Moffett (Oneida, NY / Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Senior) delivered a two-run, bases loaded single to left center in making it a 9-4 game.
In the ninth, Crabbe belted a RBI double and Franco a sacrifice fly in providing the final 11-4 count.
Graduate student LHP
John Cain (Middletown, NY / Lafayette) improved to 7-3 with the win, yielding four runs, three earned, on on nine hits with two strikeouts over 8.0 innings.
Johnson and Mihalik each delivered two-run homers to lead the way for Rider.
The teams will conclude their series with a single game tomorrow at 12:00 pm.
