Box Score - Game One
Box Score - Game Two
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The Manhattan baseball team's second longest winning streak of the season ended at eight games when the Jaspers dropped a doubleheader at East Tennessee State (26-15) on Saturday. Manhattan (23-14) fell in game one 5-2, before it was upended 7-1 in the second contest.
In game one, Manhattan surrendered a two run lead after getting RBI singles from seniors Mike McCann in the first inning and Mark Onorati in the second frame. Bucs' starting pitcher John Long settled in after giving up a lead off single to Jaspers' sophomore shortstop Nick Camastro in the third inning by retiring the next 11 batters.
While Long found his groove on the hill, the East Tennessee State batters were able to work Manhattan freshman starting pitcher Jared Hirschberg for the next four runs. The Bucs used a two-run homer to right field from junior designated hitter Dylan Pratt in the fourth inning to tie the game at 2-2. East Tennessee State then received the go-ahead run in the fifth inning with right fielder Andrew Green's RBI single.
East Tennessee State scored again in the seventh inning with a bases loaded balk from junior relief pitcher Dan Feinberg who replaced Hirschberg after 6 2/3 innings of work. In the eighth inning, the Bucs went ahead 5-2 on a one-out sacrifice bunt from sophomore left fielder Michael Gonzalez.
Hirschberg set a career-high by recording eight strikeouts in his fifth start of the season. The right-hander from Katonah, N.Y. yielded only five hits in the contest, but three Manhattan errors made it challenging for Hirschberg as he dropped to 3-3 overall this season.
Long earned his third win of the year after pitching 7 2/3 innings before the Bucs turned to the bullpen. Junior reliever Bo Reeder retired all three Jaspers in order in the ninth inning to secure the East Tennessee State victory and his 14th save of the year.
Onorati, Camastro and McCann led Manhattan's offensive effort combining for six of the Jaspers' eight hits by recording two apiece.
East Tennessee State used another solid starting pitching performance in game two from Derek Bushey, going along with four home runs to complete the sweep of Manhattan. Bushey allowed just one earned run over seven innings before turning the ball over to reliever Dak Rissman who limited the Jaspers to just two hits in the final two frames.
Jaspers' senior first baseman Austin Sheffield hit 2-for-2 in the ballgame. Onorati scored Manhattan's only run in the first inning after leading off the contest with a triple.
Reeder knocked home the Bucs first run of the contest to tie the game with a double in the third inning. In the fifth inning, Pratt homered for the second time in the doubleheader, and shortstop Kerry Doane followed with a solo homer of his own to push East Tennessee State out to a 3-1 advantage.
The Bucs got an RBI double from first baseman Paul Hoilman in the sixth inning. Then in the eighth, East Tennessee State received a pair of home runs from center fielder Matthew Scruggs and catcher Derek Trent putting the contest out of reach.
Jaspers' sophomore pitcher Eric Luksis lost his first start since March 12 at Tennessee after going five innings and allowing three earned runs. Luksis finished with two strikeouts as he had his four game win streak snapped. Freshman Scott McClennan pitched the final three innings for Manhattan and recorded two strikeouts.
Manhattan and East Tennessee State will wrap up the three game series on Sunday with the final contest scheduled for 1 p.m.
