Manhattan University Athletics

Manhattan-North Carolina A&T Box Score
Manhattan-Hampton Box Score

HAMPTON, VA – After having its scheduled matchup with Drexel cancelled due to weather on Friday, the Manhattan College softball team returned to action on Saturday at the Hampton Invitational.  And the Jaspers (6-3) earned a pair of comeback wins, defeating North Carolina A&T (6-7) by a 7-6 count before notching a 12-4 victory over host Hampton (4-5) at Lady Pirates Stadium.

Against North Carolina A&T, two Manhattan errors led to three Aggie runs in the top of the second.  The Jaspers immediately responded, though, putting up a six-spot in the bottom half of the inning.  Jenn Vazquez (Fairfield, CT) started the rally with a leadoff single to right.  After a pair of walks loaded the bases, Manhattan got its first run on a wild pitch.  Shannon Puthe (Mullica Hill, NJ) then delivered an RBI single before Alexa Dawid (Milford, CT) drew a bases loaded walk.  Lauren Pitney (Ansonia, CT) knocked in a run on a groundout, and Elena Bowman (San Mateo, CA) capped the six-run outburst with an RBI single to left. 

Manhattan picked up another run in the third when Stephanie Reinhardt (Albany, NY) roped a one-out single, moved to second on a walk, stole third, and scored on Puthe's sacrifice fly.

North Carolina A&T made it 7-4 on an RBI single by Talisha Jenkins in the fifth, and the Aggies rallied again in the top of the seventh.  Mohagony Headen led off the inning with a single, then was lifted for a pinch runner.  After a walk and a passed ball, Jenkins drove in a run with a groundout back to the pitcher.  The trail runner, Zadia Davis rounded third on the play and beat the throw home to pull North Carolina A&T within one run.  However, Stephanie Kristo (San Jose, CA) retired the next batter on a grounder to third, preserving the 7-6 Manhattan victory.

Five different Jaspers singled in the game, with Puthe driving in two runs and Reinhardt scoring twice.  Dawid also had an RBI and a run scored.  Kristo (3-1) went the distance in the circle, allowing six runs (two earned) on four hits, striking out six and walking six.

Jenkins went 1-for-3 with a run scored and two RBIs for the Aggies, who were held to four hits as a team.  Jillian Nobles and Alejandra Barcenas each drove in a run.  Starting pitcher Zadaisha Young-Waddell (3-2) took the loss after yielding six runs on three hits and four walks in two innings.  Headen tossed the final four innings, giving up one run on two hits while striking out four and walking two.

In their second game of the day, the Jaspers again fell behind early.  Hampton scored two runs on Taylor McCoy's double in the bottom of the first.  Manhattan got one back on an RBI single by Emily Cutler (Bloomingdale, NJ) in the top of the second before the Lady Pirates increased their lead to 4-1 with a pair of unearned tallies in the bottom half of the inning.

However, Manhattan responded with eight runs in the top of the third.  After Pitney singled and Bowman was hit by a pitch, Vazquez crushed a long three-run blast to center field that tied the game at 4-4.  Briana Matazinsky (Valley Falls, NY) followed with a double to left center, and she scored on Puthe's single to right center.  A Hampton error kept the inning alive, then Dawid drew a walk to load the bases for Pitney.  And she delivered a grand slam to left, giving the Jaspers a 9-5 lead with her first career home run.

The Jaspers then added three more runs on only one hit in the top of the fourth.  Reinhardt drew a leadoff walk, then Puthe singled and Zee Pierce (Bronx, NY) walked to load the bases with nobody out.  Dawid and Pitney each picked up an RBI with a bases loaded walk before Bowman lifted a sacrifice fly to center.

Matazinsky, meanwhile, retired seven Lady Pirates in a row between the two-run second and a two-out walk in the fourth.  She gave up a single in the fifth, but retired the next two hitters on a strikeout and a groundout to cap the Jaspers' five-inning, 12-4 victory.

Puthe finished 3-for-3 with three runs scored and an RBI against Hampton.  Pitney was 2-for-2 with a grand slam, two runs scored and five RBIs, while Vazquez went 2-for-4 with a run scored and three RBIs.  In addition to going 1-for-3 with a run scored at the plate, Matazinsky (2-0) earned the win in the circle.  She gave up four runs (two earned) on four hits, struck out six and walked three in a five-inning complete game.

For the Lady Pirates, McCoy ended up 1-for-3 with two RBIs, while Diamond Ponds went 1-for-2 and scored twice.  Allyson Babinsack (3-2) got the start in the circle and took the loss.  She surrendered nine runs (five earned) on eight hits, struck out four and walked two over 2.2 innings.  Allie Hotetz gave up three runs on two hits while walking five and striking out one over 1.1 innings before Kial Watts allowed one hit in a scoreless fifth.