Softball opens season with a win; Baseball splits with Illinois College

3/6/22 – Monks Open 2022 Season With Walk-Off Victory

LEESBURG, Fla. – Junior first baseman Olivia Howe (Arundel, Maine) hit a walk-off sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth to lift Saint Joseph’s College (1-0) past Rivier University (0-1) in non-conference softball action in The Spring Games at the Sleepy Hollow Complex on Sunday afternoon.

BOX: https://gomonks.com/sports/sball/2021-22/boxscores/20220306_706w.xml

The Monks were also scheduled to play Illinois College this afternoon, but the game was canceled due to a shortage of umpires. St. Joe’s will likely add another contest to their spring trip schedule later this week.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

St. Joe’s secured a 2-0 edge in the bottom of the second, when junior Amaya Dacier (Warwick, R.I.) sent senior catcher Bailey Rassol (Rehoboth, Mass.) home on a single to center and sophomore Taylor Owen (Wakefield, Mass.) also scored on a misplayed ball by the Rivier center fielder.

The Raiders scored a run but left the bases loaded in the top of the third and the Monks took a 3-1 lead when senior third baseman Emily Jefferds (Scarborough, N.H.) singled and sprinted home on an infield error.

Rivier tied the game at 3-3 with two runs off two hits in the top of the fifth and claimed a 4-3 lead when Kylie Poisson singled, moved up two bases on a pair of wild pitches, and scored on a Kayla Miles single to right-center.

With two out in the bottom of the seventh, Dacier reached on an error and was lifted in favor of a pinch runner in Emily Hodgkins (Raymond, N.H.), who scored the tying run when Jefferds reached on yet another Rivier miscue.

After holding the Raiders off the board in the top of the eighth, the Monks managed to walk off in the bottom of the extra frame. Owen was placed on second to start the inning and moved to third on an infield hit off the bat of senior Ashley Emery (Madison, Maine) to set the stage for Howe, who only had to get the ball into the outfield for the Monks to win. Howe executed the effort perfectly with a fly ball to center for the winning sac fly.

IN THE CIRCLE:

• SJC junior starter Meredith Pence (Remington, Va.) did not factor into the decision after allowing a run off three hits and six walks with six K’s over four innings
• Junior Emily Eagleston (Reading, Mass.) earned the victory after giving up three runs off six hits and a walk with five punch-outs in four innings
• Rivier reliever Nicole Verrette was hit with the loss after yielding two unearned runs off four hits with three K’s in four frames

OFF THE BAT:

• Howe was 2-for-4 with an RBI
• Rassol went 2-for-4 with a run
• For Rivier, Josie Maggiore went 3-for-4 with an RBI and Alicia McKenna was 2-for-4 with an RBI

3/6/22 – St. Joe’s Splits with Illinois College on Opening Day

GM 1: https://gomonks.com/sports/bsb/2021-22/boxscores/20220306_7hlp.xml

GM 2: https://gomonks.com/sports/bsb/2021-22/boxscores/20220306_dx6b.xml

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – The Saint Joseph’s College (1-1) baseball team kicked off the 2022 season with a doubleheader versus Illinois College (2-3) at the Chain of Lakes Complex in RussMatt Central Florida Invitational action on Sunday afternoon.

The Monks took one on the chin in the opener, falling by a 19-2 score, but rebounded nicely with a well-played 5-4 triumph in the nightcap to escape opening day at .500.

GAME ONE:

Illinois College put the first game out of reach early, as the Blueboys plated seven runs off four hits and three walks in the top of the first inning.

The Monks scored their first run of the year in the bottom of the fifth, when junior catcher Jonathan Dube (Rochester, N.H.) singled and later crossed the plate on a two-out single off the bat of junior shortstop Zach Miles (Concord, N.H.).

Freshman Logan Dee (Laconia, N.H.) plated first-year outfielder Peter O’Brien (Scarborough, Maine) with a single in the bottom of the seventh.

SJC junior starting pitcher Samuel Jalbert (Mascouche, Que.) took the loss after yielding seven runs off four hits and three walks with a pair of K’s in 2/3 of an inning. Freshman Hugh Barrett (Durham, Conn.) was sharp in 3.1 innings of relief with three punch-outs and one run allowed off three hits. Relievers Anthony Esposito (Orange, Conn.), Kyle MacKay (Dracut, Mass.), and Sean McDonough (Concord, N.H.) all logged time on the mound in the setback.

For Illinois College, starter Cullen McBride earned the win after giving up a run off three hits with 11 strikeouts in five innings. Kellen Blum was 3-for-5 with two runs, a home run, and six RBI and Peyton Abbott went 2-for2 with three runs, a homer, and three RBI in the triumph.

GAME TWO:

The Blueboys claimed an early lead in the nightcap when shortstop Griffin King roped an RBI single in the bottom of the second, but the Monks tied the contest in the top of the third when grad student Ben Gravel (Rochester, N.H.) doubled home senior second baseman Ronan Chisholm (North Chatham, Mass.).

The Monks grabbed their first lead of the day in the top of the fourth, as sophomore pitcher Luke Stephens (Glastonbury, Conn.) led off with a triple and promptly scored when the next batter, junior catcher Jackson Stanton (Saugus, Mass.), ripped another three-bagger. Freshman right fielder Jordan Valentino (Simsbury, Conn.) sent Stanton home with a double to deep left and later scored on a base hit to left, making it a 4-1 game.

The Blueboys chipped away at their deficit with two runs off three hits in the fifth and tied the game on a McBride single in the bottom of the sixth, but St. Joe’s scored what proved to be the game-winning run in the top of the seventh, when Chisholm reached on an error and later crossed the plate on a Stanton sac fly.

Illinois College made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh as two singles resulted in runners on second and third with two out, but SJC senior reliever Devan Harrison (Pocasset, Mass.) escaped the jam with a harmless infield pop-up.

Stephens pitched well but did not factor into the decision after giving up a run on one hit and three walks with four K’s in three innings of work. Senior Johnny Flynn (Holden, Mass.) and freshman Jason Johnson (Thomaston, Conn.) were effective in relief and Harrison picked up the victory after scattering three hits with one strikeout in 1.2 scoreless innings.

Illinois reliever Andrew Wieneke was hit with the loss after allowing an unearned run off a hit and a free pass in one inning.

Stanton led the SJC offense by going 2-for-3 with a run, a triple, and two RBI and Stephens went 2-for-4 with a run and a triple. O’Brien reached base three times with a single and two walks and Chisholm was 1-for-3 with a pair of runs.

For the Blueboys, McBride went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI in the setback.

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