The St. Thomas Aquinas College Baseball team held on for a 7-6 Sunday afternoon road victory over Mercy College to pick up their 20th win of the season. The win moves STAC to 20-3, 14-3 ECC, while Mercy falls to 17-9 and 13-5 within the conference.
On the day, the Spartan offensive charge was led by James Versage (2-for-4, Double, 2 RBI, Run), Andrew Jemison (2-for-5, 2 Doubles, RBI, Run), Anthony Maisano (1-for-3, Home Run, RBI, Run), Sean Lynch (1-for-3, 2 RBI, Run) and Matthew Johnson (1-for-3, Run).
STAC starting pitcher John Archer lasted only one inning, giving up two hits and three runs (3 earned), while walking two and k-ing one to pick up the no-decision. Relievers Yanni Orfanidis, Orin Winslow and Reyan Mustafoski combined to surrender six hits and three runs (3 earned), while walking two and fanning five over 6.2 innings. Orfanidis earned his second win of the season (2-1) on the strength of throwing 2.0 shutout innings, while only allowing a hit and striking out two. Closer James Reilly recorded the final four outs of the ballgame, to pick up his fourth save of the year, only allowing a hit and a walk, while striking out one over 1.1 innings pitched.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS - STAC 7/MERCY 6
| 1st Inning - Anthony Maisano homered to left field, RBI. | 1 - 0 STAC |
| 1st Inning - James Versage singled to left field, 2 RBI; Andrew Jemison scored; Andrew Guerra scored. | 3 - 0 STAC |
| 1st Inning - Sean Lynch singled to left center field, 2 RBI; Joseph Scamardella scored; James Versage scored. | 5 - 0 STAC |
| 1st Inning - Anthony Murphy homered to right field, 3 RBI; Miguel Ortiz Sanchez scored; Nolan Giblin scored. | 5 - 3 STAC |
| 6th Inning - Andrew Guerra reached on a fielder's choice to second base, RBI; Anthony Maisano out at second 2b to ss; Matthew Johnson advanced to third; Sean Lynch scored. | 6 - 3 STAC |
| 6th Inning - Andrew Jemison doubled to left center field, RBI; Andrew Guerra advanced to third; Matthew Johnson scored. | 7 - 3 STAC |
| 7th Inning - Charles Lebron singled to first base, RBI; Miguel Ortiz Sanchez scored. | 7 - 4 STAC |
| 8th Inning - Francisco Paulino homered to left field, RBI. | 7 - 5 STAC |
| 8th Inning - Miguel Ortiz Sanchez singled to shortstop, RBI; Nolan Giblin advanced to third; Justin Glennerster scored. | 7 - 6 STAC |
| PITCHERS | Innings Pitched | Hits | Runs | Earned Runs | Walks | Strikeouts | Home Runs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Archer | 1.0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Yanni Orfanidis (W, 2-1) | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Orin Winslow | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Reyan Mustafoski | 2.2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| James Reilly (Sv, 4) | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 9.0 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 2 |
FACTS & FIGURES
- The Spartans posted 7 runs on 7 hits, while Mercy earned 6 runs on 9 hits.
- STAC pitchers struck out 7 Mavericks hitters, while walking 5.
- St. Thomas Aquinas stranded 9 runners on base. Mercy left 11.
UP NEXT
The push to the playoffs continues for the Spartans this week, as first they take on Dominican College in a non-conference matchup on Wednesday, May 5 at 3:30pm, before heading to Buffalo, New York for a 3-game set against newest conference member D'Youville College. The final ECC regular season series takes place Friday and Saturday, May 7 & 8.