The St. Thomas Aquinas College Baseball team swept a Monday afternoon doubleheader against Lincoln University in dramatic fashion, as the Spartans scored walk-off victories of 9-8 (Final-10 Innings) in game one and 7-6 in game two at Palisades Credit Union Park in Pomona, NY. STAC improves to 14-1 overall, with a 8-1 ECC mark, while Lincoln now stands at 4-10, 4-4.
Powering the Spartan offense in the ECC twinbill were; Andrew Jemison (7-for-12, RBI, 4 Runs Scored), Gregory DiGiaro (4-for-7, Double & Triple, 4 RBI), Danny Di Marzo (3-for-7, Double, 4 RBI, 1 Run Scored). Also, contributing to the 2-game sweep were Kyle Lagrutta (2-for-5, Double, 2 RBI, 1 Run Scored) and James Versage (2-for-3, 2 RBI and 1 Run Scored).
Aaron Dona got the start in game one for STAC and was outstanding on the mound, but picked up the no-decision. Dona pitched 5.2 innings, giving up only 5 hits and 1 run (0 earned), while walking 1 and striking out 10. The Spartan relief corps of Justin Baeyens, T.J. Gregory, Yanni Orfanidis, Will Kindl and James Reilly combined for 4.1 innings, surrendering 10 hits and 7 runs (7 earned), while walking 2 and striking out 4. Reilly picked up his first win of 2021 giving up a single hit in the tenth inning.
In game two, starter Reyan Mustafoski was also tagged with a no-decision, as he threw 5.0 innings, giving up 2 hits and a run (0 earned), while walking 4 and striking out 5. Relievers Mateo Reyes, Ryan Lutz, Austen Martinez and Justin Baeyens combined for 2.0 innings of work, surrendering 2 hits and 5 runs (4 earned), while walking 1 and striking out 1. Baeyens picked up his first win of the season, working the seventh inning, in his second appearance of the day.
GAME 1 HIGHLIGHTS - STAC 9/LINCOLN 8 (FINAL/10-INNINGS)
| 2nd Inning - Gregory DiGiaro tripled to center field, RBI; Joseph Scamardella scored. | 0 - 1 STAC |
| 3rd Inning - Danny Di Marzo doubled to left center field, RBI; Andrew Jemison scored. | 0 - 2 STAC |
| 6th Inning - Kyle Lagrutta singled, advanced to second base on an error by left field, RBI; Danny Di Marzo scored. | 0 - 3 STAC |
| 8th Inning - Hilman Truss reached first on a fielding error by first base; Elias Beltre scored, unearned. | 1 - 3 STAC |
| 9th Inning - Hilman Truss homered to right field, 3 RBI; Alex Jones scored; Elias Beltre scored. | 4 - 3 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Jefry Azcona singled to left field, RBI; Willie Hines scored. | 5 - 3 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Kashif Hill homered to right center field, 2 RBI; Jefry Azcona scored. | 7 - 3 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Elias Beltre homered to left field, RBI. | 8 - 3 LINC |
| 9th Inning - James Versage hit by pitch, RBI; Andrew Jemison advanced to second; Christopher Conti advanced to third; Anthony Maisano scored. | 8 - 4 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Danny Di Marzo flied out to center field, sacrifice fly, RBI; Andrew Jemison advanced to third; Christopher Conti scored. | 8 - 5 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Kyle Lagrutta doubled to left field, RBI; James Versage advanced to third; Andrew Jemison scored. | 8 - 6 LINC |
| 9th Inning - Gregory DiGiaro singled to right field, 2 RBI; Kyle Lagrutta scored; James Versage scored. | 8 - 8 |
| 10th Inning - Andrew Jemison singled through the right side, RBI; Christopher Conti advanced to second; Anthony Maisano scored. | 8 - 9 STAC |
| PITCHERS | Innings Pitched | Hits | Runs | Earned Runs | Walks | Strikeouts | Home Runs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Dona | 5.2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 |
| Justin Baeyens | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| TJ Gregory | 1.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Yanni Orfanidis | 0.0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Will Kindl | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| James Reilly (W, 1-0) | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 10.0 | 15 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 3 |
GAME 2 HIGHLIGHTS - STAC 7/LINCOLN 6
| 1st Inning - James Versage singled to center field, RBI; Anthony Maisano advanced to third; Andrew Jemison scored. | 0 - 1 STAC |
| 1st Inning - Danny Di Marzo singled to left field, RBI; James Versage advanced to second; Anthony Maisano scored. | 0 - 2 STAC |
| 3rd Inning - Kashif Hill doubled to left center field, RBI; Willie Hines scored, unearned. | 1 - 2 STAC |
| 3rd Inning - Danny Di Marzo singled to right center field, RBI; James Versage scored. | 1 - 3 STAC |
| 5th Inning - James Versage infield fly to 1b; Andrew Jemison scored on an error by first base. | 1 - 4 STAC |
| 5th Inning - Billy Minett advanced to second; Danny Marzo advanced to third; Joseph Scamardella scored on a wild pitch. | 1 - 5 STAC |
| 6th Inning - Bradley Regalado reached first on a throwing error by shortstop; Hilman Truss advanced to third; Malcolm Smith scored. | 2 - 5 STAC |
| 6th Inning - DeAndre Bowens singled to center field, RBI; Josiah Lara advanced to second; Hilman Truss scored. | 3 - 5 STAC |
| 6th Inning - De Andre Bowens advanced to second; Josiah Lara stole third, scored on an error by c, unearned. | 4 - 5 STAC |
| 6th Inning - Williw Hines flied out to center field, sacrifice fly, RBI; Jefry Azcona advanced to third; De Andre Bowens scored. | 5 - 5 |
| 6th Inning - Alex Jones out at second c to ss, caught stealing; Jefry Azcona scored. | 6 - 5 LINC |
| 6th Inning - James Versage walked, RBI; Anthony Maisano advanced to second; Andrew Jemison advanced to third; Matthew Johnson scored. | 6 - 6 |
| 7th Inning - Gregory DiGiaro doubled to right center field, RBI; Paul DeVito scored. | 6 - 7 STAC |
| PITCHERS | Innings Pitched | Hits | Runs | Earned Runs | Walks | Strikeouts | Home Runs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reyan Mustafoski | 5.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| Mateo Reyes | 0.0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan Lutz | 0.0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Austen Martinez | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Justin Baeyens (W, 1-0) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 7.0 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
FACTS & FIGURES
- The Spartans posted 16 runs on 22 hits, while Lincoln earned 14 runs on 20 hits.
- STAC pitchers struck out 20 Lions batters, while walking 8.
- St. Thomas Aquinas stranded 16 runners on base. Lincoln left 16.
UP NEXT
St. Thomas Aquinas (14-1) hosts ECC foe Molloy College at Palisades Credit Union Park in Pomona, NY on Friday, April 23. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30pm.