STAC Falls; Nyack College Sweeps Rival

Chargers trip Spartans

The Dominican College baseball team used a four-run fifth- inning rally to defeat local rival St. Thomas Aquinas College, 6-3, at Provident Bank Park in Pomona.

Freshman southpaw Tim Tedesco’s three hitless innings of relief was not enough to prevent the Spartans from dropping their fourth game in their last five, as their record stands at 11-8 overall.

The Chargers improved to 4-13 by breaking a slide that saw them lose five of their previous six.

Spartans’ starter Robert Frank of Closter, NJ, escaped a bout of wildness in the first as he allowed one hit, three walk, and the inning’s only run on a wild pitch.

STAC took the lead in the second off junior Caleb Whiteley of San Antonio, TX, with both runners coming home on sacrifice files by Matt Marotta of Suffern, and Efrain Bautista of the Bronx.

Both pitchers settled in, though, while Frank allowed just one hit through his first four innings of work, but wildness proved his undoing in a decisive fifth.

Frank, who had already walked seven while fanning nine, hit the first two batters in that inning, forcing the call to the bullpen. Freshman Mike Roestenberg of Long Island yielded two hits but also was victimized by three errors, staking the visitors to a 5-2 lead.

Whiteley kept St. Thomas Aquinas off-balance, leaving in the eighth after hitting leadoff batter Nick D'Angelo of Mt. Sinai. While D'Angelo eventually scored on an error, Whiteley’s line was no less impressive, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits in his seven frames.

Freshman Nicholas Kevlin of Conway, NH, closed out the ninth to earn the save.

The Spartans open East Coast Conference competition with a doubleheader against Dowling College at Provident Bank Park at noon, and then travel to Brookville on Sunday to meet the same Golden Lions for a solo, also slated for noon.

Junior Frank Salerno of New City, an alum of Clarkstown South, went 0 for 3 as his 12-game hitting streak came to an end, and he failed to reach base for the first time in 25 games.

Junior hurler Joe DePool of New City, also an alum of Clarkstown South, picked up three saves for the Spartans as they went 4-3 in their last seven games.

Senior outfielder Joe Antenucci of Westwood, NJ, is batting .339 and went 2 for 2 with two RBI in the win over SNHU. 

Dominican travels to Concordia College in Dobbs Ferry today for a game at 3 p.m., and on Saturday challenges Chestnut Hill College (10-8) in a noon-time doubleheader at Latshaw-McCarthy Field in Norristown, PA.

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Mortarboard musings

• The Manhattan College men’s lacrosse team hopes to reach .500 on Saturday when it travels to Buffalo to challenge Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) rival Canisius at 11 a.m. at the Demske Sports Complex. The Jaspers lifted their overall mark to 3-4 with an 11-10 win over Binghamton at Gaelic Park in Riverdale. Sophomore goalie Rich Akapnitis of Hauppauge made a career-high 19 saves, and junior attack Paul Moreau of Pearl River took four shots in the victory.

• The Manhattan College softball team, following a doubleheader loss at St. John’s, faces another twin-bill on Saturday against Lafayette in Easton, PA. First pitch is set for noon. The Jaspers and Amanda Babcock of Haverstraw picked up a 1-0 victory over the Leopards during the Rebel Spring Games on March 12. Babcock, a junior infielder, is batting .256, second-best on the team.

• The Nyack College baseball team opened the Central Atlantic Athletic Conference (CAAC) portion of their schedule with a sweep of local rival Dominican College, 3-2, 6-4, at Provident Bank Park (PBP) in Pomona. The Warriors (9-6 overall) are visiting Houghton College (3-11) today in western New York, and on Tuesday host Post at 3 p.m. at PBP.

• Junior Jennifer Califano of Suffern and sophomore Kelly Harris of Yorktown Heights are both playing as defenders on the Springfield College women’s lacrosse team. The Pride (3-3) host Wheaton (IL) College at noon on Saturday.