GROTON, Conn., April 13, 2024 – The Monroe College Mustangs baseball team split a doubleheader at UConn Avery Point Saturday afternoon. The Pointers picked up a 10-8 win in Game 1 before Mustangs reciprocated with a 10-8 win of their own to close out the day. Monroe moves to 18-16-1 overall with the split, while UConn Avery Point goes to 9-11.
 
GAME 1: UConn Avery Point 10, Monroe 8
The Mustangs fell into a 3-0 hole over the first two innings of Saturday's opener. They then rallied back in the top of the third. With two on, Diego Urreta doubled to center to bring in Monroe's first run. Pedro Vasquez then hit a one-out single to center, bringing both runners home to tie the game at 3-3.
 
The tie was short-lived, as the Pointers picked up another run on a wild pitch in the home half of the third. Monroe bounced right back in the fourth, beginning with back-to-back singles by Jose Fernandez and Eli Gries-Smith. Anthony Fernandez then doubled to right, clearing the bases to put the Mustangs ahead 5-4.
 
The Pointers rallied right back in their next at-bat. A bases-loaded double by Roman Hausmann cleared the bases to put the home team up, 7-5. Ben Schulz then doubled him in, and he later came home on a single by Riley Carew, leaving the Pointers up, 9-5.
 
Vasquez led off the fifth for Monroe with a solo homer to right to get back within three, but a sacrifice fly by Carew in the fifth gave UConn Avery Point a 10-6 advantage. With one out in the sixth, Urreta launched a solo shot to center to make it a 10-7 score. With two outs in the frame, Keldrin Rodriguez doubled to center to bring Vasquez home to bring the score to 10-8, but that proved to be the last run of Game 1.
 
Liam Chamberlain earned the win for UConn Avery Point in Game 1 after allowing six runs across five innings. Brailyn Cruz took the loss for Monroe after yielding six runs (four earned) on just two hits in 3.1 frames.
 
Vasquez went 2-for-3 with his third homer of the year, three RBIs and two runs scored in Game 1. Urreta batted 2-for-4 with his third home run of the season and a double, totaling two RBIs and two runs scored. Rodriguez hit 3-for-4 with a pair of two-baggers and an RBI. Anthony Fernandez knocked in two runs and scored once himself after hitting 1-for-2 with a double. Vianney Goris scored once in a 1-for-2 effort. Gries-Smith finished 1-for-3 with a run scored. Jose Fernandez scored a run after going 1-for-4.
 
GAME 2: Monroe 10, UConn Avery Point 8
The Mustangs got off to a quicker start in Game 2. Urreta and Gries-Smith led off the game with back-to-back singles. Vasquez then continued his big day with a two-RBI single to center, giving Monroe an early 2-0 advantage on the Pointers. UConn Avery Point responded with a run in the home half of the first on a bases-loaded walk to make it a 2-1 game.
 
The Pointers then tied the game in the bottom of the second. With a runner on first, Elian Collado Martinez doubled to center to score a run and knot things up at 2-2.
 
The Mustangs took the lead back in the fourth. With Jose Fernandez on third following a double and a ground out, a wild pitch brought him home to put Monroe ahead, 3-2. UConn Avery Point bounced back in a big way in their next at-bat. After William Estronza tied the game with an RBI single, the bases were loaded for Hausmann, who blasted a grand slam to left, giving the Pointers a 7-3 lead.
 
A resilient Monroe team responded in a big way in the fifth. Gilbert Gomez and Urreta hit a pair of singles to get things going, and then an errant throw on a bunt by Gries-Smith brought in Gomez to make it a 7-4 game. Vasquez cleared the bases with a two-RBI single, leaving the Mustangs down just a run with nobody out. Rodriguez then put the Mustangs in the lead with one swing, launching a two-run homer to left to put Monroe up, 8-7.
 
The Mustangs then extended their lead in the sixth. An error put Urreta on base, and then Gries-Smith was hit by a pitch. With one out, Rodriguez ripped a single into right, bringing in Urreta, and then Gries-Smith managed to make it all the way home from first as well, making it a 10-7 advantage for Monroe. The Pointers got one run back in the bottom of the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Schulz, but the Mustangs held them off the board from that point forward to hang on for an exciting 10-8 win.
 
Emmanuel Ramos earned the win for the Mustangs after going four innings in the game, improving to 1-1 overall. Samuel Herrera picked up his second save after going the final 2.2 frames for the Mustangs. Daniel Lang took the loss for the Pointers in Game 2.
 
Rodriguez and Vasquez had matching 2-for-4, four-RBI, one run games, with Rodriguez hitting his second home run of the season in the win. Urreta scored three times after hitting 2-for-5, while Gries-Smith scored three times as well after going 1-for-2. Jose Fernandez batted 2-for-3 with a double and a run in the game. Gomez scored a run in a 1-for-3 effort. Anthony Fernandez also hit 1-for-3 in the victory.
 
Monroe was set to play this coming Monday, April 15, at SUNY Sullivan, but the doubleheader was canceled due to a scheduling conflict. Monroe will now play next on Wednesday, April 17, when they visit Suffolk County Community College in Selden, N.Y. Wednesday's matchup is set for a 3:30 p.m. first pitch.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven 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 Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs). Read Full Article