ALEXANDRIA, La., February 19, 2020 – Christian Hernandez had a big day at the dish to help fuel the Monroe College Mustangs baseball team to an 11-6 victory in five innings over LSU-Alexandria Wednesday afternoon at Generals Baseball Field. The Mustangs improve to 2-1 on the season with the win.
 
Just three games into the season, the freshman Hernandez supported his case to keep the cleanup spot in the lineup long-term. He finished 3-for-4 in the win, smacking two doubles while knocking in four runs and scoring once himself. After an 0-for-4 debut, Hernandez has gone 5-for-8 in the Mustangs' back-to-back wins.
 
The Mustangs jumped out to a quick lead in Wednesday's win. With two outs in the top of the first, Emile Boies kept the inning alive with a single into right field. Hernandez followed that up with a double to center, bringing Boies around to score from first to give Monroe an early 1-0 lead.
 
Monroe's lead stood until the bottom of the second when the Generals took advantage of miscues to tie the game. With the bases loaded, a passed ball brought in Alex Orenczuk to make it a 1-1 game.
 
The Mustangs responded in a big way in the top of the third. With one out, the Mustangs strung together seven straight singles, followed by a bases-loaded walk, to bring in five runs, taking a 6-1 lead on the Generals.
 
With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the third, Kobe Baker singled to left, bringing in a run for LSA-Alexandria, but Adam Cook was thrown out at the plate by Nathanial Alvarez to limit the damage and leave Monroe up, 6-2.
 
The home team was able to string together a few hits to get back in the game in the bottom of the fourth. Three straight singles, including a two-RBI hit by Seth Patin, made it a 6-4 game. Jordan Ardoin later reached on an error with one out, bringing in one more run to get the Generals within one.
 
The Mustangs put the first three runners on in the top of the fifth with an error, a single and a walk. Joan Sosa, Alvarez and Jared Paladino each drew walks with the bases loaded to make it a 9-5 game. Boies then grounded into a double play, but Sosa was able to score on the play to push the lead to 10-5. Hernandez then capped off his big day with an RBI double to center to make it an 11-5 game.
 
The Generals brought in another run after Bren Faulk drew a bases-loaded walk, but Gabriel Rodriguez took over from there and struck out the final two batters to end the game.
 
Cristhofer Gonzalez picked up the win for Monroe with 1.1 innings in relief, allowing one run while striking out two batters. Seth Trahan took the loss for LSU-Alexandria after yielding six runs in four frames.
 
Boies scored twice after going 2-for-4 in the win. Paladino scored once again knocked in another run in a 2-for-3 effort that included a double. Alvarez scored a pair of runs and added an RBI after hitting 1-for-3. Dante Paolucci batted 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. Joe Rosselli hit 2-for-4 with a run scored. Joshua Lopez went 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI.
 
The Mustangs and Generals will face off again tomorrow, Feb. 20, in Alexandria. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 31 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 12 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Mustangs), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).