SUMTER, S.C., March 13, 2018 – In its first game action in two weeks, the Monroe College baseball team split a doubleheader at University of South Carolina (USC) – Sumter Tuesday afternoon to kick off the Mustangs' week in the Carolinas. Monroe fell late in the opener, 7-6, but bounced back to grab an 8-7 win in Tuesday's finale. Monroe leaves the day with a 4-2 overall record, while USC Sumter moves to 17-8.
 
Game 1: USC Sumter 7, Monroe 6
The Mustangs got off to a strong start in Game 1 when Lenyn Napoleon blasted a two-out, two-run homer over the left-field fence to give Monroe an early 2-0 lead.
 
The Mustangs extended their lead to 3-0 in the third when Napoleon came up clutch once again. With Marquis Orozco standing on third, Napoleon ripped an RBI single into left field, plating Orozco to push the lead to three runs.
 
The Fire Ants got on the board for the first time in Tuesday's opener in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs and the bases loaded, Austin Price doubled to center, allowing two runs to score and make it a 3-2 game after four.
 
A walk by Orozco and a double by Edgardo Bernard put two runners in scoring position to start the fifth for Monroe. Napoleon then drew a walk to load the bases, and Leandy Castro knocked in Orozco with a sacrifice fly to center, pushing Monroe's lead back to two. A walk for Shadrach Meulens loaded the bases once again, and then Troy Davern drew another base-on-balls, bringing in Bernard to make it a 5-2 lead for the Mustangs.
 
USC Sumter put runners on the corners to start the fifth, and then one came around to score on a passed ball, but Monroe starter Francisco Justo managed to strike out the next two batters to nearly work his way out of trouble. Daniel Twitty then hit a two-run homer to right, tying the game up at 5-5. A single, walk and a hit-by-pitch then loaded the bases for the Fire Ants, and a walk by Chris Edwards brought in the leading run, leaving the home team up, 6-5, after five.
 
Orozco got on with one out thanks to an error by the pitcher. Napoleon then hit a two-out single to keep the inning going. Castro then singled to right, plating Orozco from second to ties things up at 6-6.
 
Tyler Mangum led off the home half of the sixth with a solo home run to center, scoring what proved to be the game-winning run for the Fire Ants.
 
Justo did not factor into the decision for the Mustangs after yielding six runs in 4.2 frames, but he turned in an impressive 11 strikeouts after totaling 14 in his debut a couple weeks ago. Francisco Perez shouldered the loss after being responsible for the winning run in the sixth, dropping him to 0-2 on the season. Tristen Campbell got the win in relief for the Fire Ants with one inning of work, while JD Burrows earned his sixth save of the season by getting the final out of the game.
 
Napoleon finished 3-for-3 for the Mustangs, knocking in three runs and scoring another to go with his second home run of the season. Bernard went 1-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Castro knocked in two runs in a 1-for-2 outing. Orozco scored three times and stole a base despite an 0-for-3 game.
 
Game 2: Monroe 8, USC Sumter 7
After a late defeat in Game 1, Monroe once again came out firing in Game 2. With Javier Ortiz on third, Bernard singled to right, scoring Ortiz to give the Mustangs a quick 1-0 lead in the first. The Mustangs later loaded the bases, allowing Ryan Hartigan to knock in another run with a sacrifice fly to right, making it a 2-0 game.
 
An error put Kevin Garcia on base to start the second, and then Xeno Daal doubled to right to put both runners in scoring position. A wild pitch then allowed Garcia to score and left Daal on third without an out. Later in the frame, with the bases loaded, Napoleon drew a walk to bring in Monroe's fourth run of the game. Iasid Bernal then ripped a single through the left side, plating Ortiz and Bernard to push Monroe's lead to 6-0.
 
With two on and two outs in the home half of the second, an error allowed Tayon Hart to score, cutting Monroe's lead down to five.
 
USC Sumter got back on the board in the bottom of the fifth with a two-out rally. Brett Young brought in Vince Hanna on an RBI double to center to make it a 6-2 game. Young later ended up scoring from third on a balk, cutting the deficit to three runs.
 
The home team continued to chip away at the Mustangs' lead in the sixth when Donta Green hit a two-out homer over the centerfield wall, getting the Fire Ants within two.
 
The Mustangs put runners on the corners in the seventh, and a wild pitch was able to bring Bernal in to score and give Monroe a 7-4 lead. Daal later singled to center, bringing in Juan Torres to leave the Mustangs up, 8-4, needing three outs for a victory.
 
Hanna led off the seventh for the Fire Ants with a double, and then Twitty reached on a walk. A balk moved both runners into scoring position, and then a three-run homer by Young got the home team within a run. Michael Crispino then took the mound for Monroe, and immediately struck out the next batter for the first out of the frame. Hart managed to reach on an error, and then Edwards singled to get two runners on. Crispino then fanned then final two batters of the game, picking up the save to add one in the win column for the Mustangs.
 
Richard Moesker got the win for Monroe after allowing just two earned runs in 4.2 frames with four strikeouts to improve to 1-0. Crispino got his first save with three strikeouts in one inning of relief work. USC Sumter starter Sam Hart shouldered the loss after giving up four runs in one inning.
 
Daal hit 2-for-3 with a double, a run and an RBI in the win. Bernard batted 1-for-3 with two runs and an RBI. Bernal knocked in two runs and scored another in a 1-for-2 outing.
 
The Mustangs will now head up to Huntersville, N.C. on Wednesday, March 14, to take on USC Lancaster at Hopewell High School. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's rugby, and the newly added club women's rugby team, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has six teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level as of the fall of 2017.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).