SEWELL, N.J., April 19, 2024 – The Monroe College Mustangs baseball team wrapped up a three-game series with NJCAA Div. III No. 3 Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester on Friday with a doubleheader on the Roadrunners' home field. The home team picked up a 15-5 win in Game 1, but the Mustangs bounced back to defeat the Roadrunners, 14-8, in Game 2 to claim a series victory after beating Gloucester in New Rochelle on Thursday. The Mustangs move to 21-17-1 overall with the split, while the Roadrunners go to 31-7.
 
GAME 1: D3 #3 RCSJ Gloucester 15, Monroe 5
The Mustangs fell into a deep hole in the bottom of the second in Game 1. The Roadrunners took advantage of three walks in the inning, complementing that with three hits to total six runs for a big lead early in the game.
 
The Mustangs chipped away at the deficit in the top of the third. Jose Fernandez led off with a single into left, but the next two batters flew out. With two down, Diego Urreta kept the inning alive with a single up the middle. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position. Eli Gries-Smith then singled in Fernandez, getting the Mustangs on the board while extending his hitting streak to 15 games. A wild pitch moved Gries-Smith up to second, and then another wild pitch on ball four to Pedro Vasquez brought Urreta home for a 6-2 score. Keldrin Rodriguez followed with a single into right that brought Gries-Smith home to leave the Mustangs down, 6-3.
 
The Roadrunners extended their lead in the home half of the third. With a runner on, RJ Mustaro hit a two-run homer to right-center, pushing Gloucester's lead to 8-3. The lead then reached 9-3 in the fourth when Ernesto Polanco brought in a run on a ground out.
 
The Roadrunners kept rolling in the bottom of the fifth. A couple of errors put two runners on, and then a hit by pitch loaded the bases with one out. Juan Peralta then doubled to right, plating two runs to leave the Roadrunners up, 11-3. The home team then had a big sixth inning, with a three-hit stretch bringing in four runs to make it a 15-3 ballgame.
 
Christian Carratala blooped a double between the second baseman and right fielder to open the seventh for Monroe. Gilbert Gomez then hit a short fly to right that the right fielder could not reel in on a diving attempt, giving Gomez a double that only advanced Carratala to third. With one out, Gries-Smith hit the third double of the inning for the Mustangs, bringing both runners home to make it a 15-5 game, but that was unfortunately the end of the scoring for Game 1.
 
Roadrunner starter Tim Hartman went just three innings in the game, so the win went to reliever Patrick Taney, who threw the final four innings for the home team. Monroe's Brailyn Cruz took the loss in Game 1.
 
Gries-Smith batted 2-for-4 with three RBIs, a double and a run scored in Friday's opener. Jose Fernandez went 2-for-3 with a run. Carratala and Gomez had matching 1-for-3, one-run, one-double games. Vasquez and Rodriguez also matched each other, with both going 1-for-3 with an RBI. Jeremy De La Mota also went 1-for-3 in the game. Urreta hit 1-for-4 with a run.
 
GAME 2: Monroe 14, D3 #3 RCSJ Gloucester 8
The tables turned quickly in Game 2 as the Mustangs got off to a scorching-hot start. With one out in the first, Gries-Smith homered to left to extend his hitting streak and give Monroe a 1-0 lead. Two batters later, Rodriguez blasted a solo homer of his own with two outs to make it a 2-0 score. Jose Fernandez followed with a walk, and then Anthony Fernandez ripped a triple to right-center, bringing in one more run to leave the Mustangs up, 3-0.
 
The second was even more prosperous for the Mustangs. Carratala got the rally going with a one-out single, and then Urreta doubled down the left-field line to put both runners in scoring position. A wild pitch then brought Carratala home for Monroe's fourth run. Gries-Smith then singled to left to bring Urreta home for a 5-0 lead. Vasquez kept things rolling with a single, and then an error on a grounder by Rodriguez brought Gries-Smith home for a six-run lead. Jose Fernandez hit a sacrifice fly to left to bring Vasquez home for Monroe's seventh run, and then Anthony Fernandez capped off the inning in grand fashion with a two-run homer to right, leaving the Mustangs with a commanding 9-0 lead in the second.
 
The Roadrunners chipped away at the deficit in the third and fourth innings. With two on and two outs in the third, Ernesto Polanco cleared the bases with a single to bring the score to 9-2. In the fourth, the home team had runners on second and third with two outs when a fielder's choice resulted in all runners reaching or moving up safely, bringing in a run to make it 9-3. Caden Dulin then hit a two-RBI double to cut Monroe's lead down to 9-5.
 
Having gone three innings without scoring a run, the Mustangs were able to extend the lead in the top of the sixth. Urreta and Gries-Smith both walked with one out, and then a single into left by Vasquez brought Urreta home for a 10-5 edge. Rodriguez then launched his second homer of the game, this time of the three-run variety to stretch Monroe's lead to 13-5.
 
The Roadrunners had two on and two outs in the bottom of the sixth when Joe Spaccavento hit an RBI single to drop Monroe's lead to seven. Wyatt Hoffman followed with another RBI single to leave Gloucester down, 13-7.
 
De La Mota walked to lead off the seventh, and then Gomez beat out a bunt. De La Mota was picked off at second, but Carratala then doubled down the left-field line, bringing Gomez home to push the lead to 14-7.
 
The Roadrunners were down to their final out in the bottom of the seventh with a runner on second when Dulin hit a single up the middle, scoring Mustaro for a 14-8 score. The next batter struck out for the final out of the game, securing the win for the Mustangs to split the day.
 
Marcos Santiago picked up the win in relief for the Mustangs in Game 2 after taking over in the fourth and throwing two innings with two runs allowed. Gloucester starter Zach Stichweh took the Game 2 loss to fall to 4-1 on the year.
 
Rodriguez homered twice, plated five runs and scored three times himself in a 2-for-3 effort in the win. He is now tied for the team lead with four home runs on the season. Gries-Smith extended his hitting streak to 16 games after going 3-for-4 with two RBIs, three runs scored and his second homer of the year in Game 2. He is now hitting .564 across those 16 games. Anthony Fernandez knocked in three runs and hit his second homer of the season in a 2-for-4 game. Vasquez went 2-for-5 with two runs and an RBI. Carratala doubled, scored a run and plated another in a 2-for-4 outing. Urreta scored twice after going 1-for-4 with a double. Gomez finished 1-for-4 with a run scored. Jose Fernandez knocked in a run and scored one as well despite not recording a hit in the game.
 
The Mustangs will play an alternate-site home game on Saturday, April 20, when they host Citius Prep at Westchester Community College's Vikings Field in Valhalla, N.Y. Tomorrow's matchup will begin at 12 p.m.
 
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