Baseball Repel Raiders with Rapturous Runs

MARLBOROUGH, MA: On Saturday afternoon, the Anna Maria College Baseball hosted the Rivier University Raiders for a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader at Marlborough High School.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, April 15, 2023
• Game 1: Rivier 3, Anna Maria 10
• Game 2: Rivier 3, Anna Maria 11
• Records: Rivier Raiders 7-19 (4-6 GNAC) | Anna Maria AMCATS 15-12 (9-1 GNAC)

HIGHLIGHTS

• Game #1
  • Senior designated hitter James Powers (Folsom, CA) wasted no time in getting the AMCATS on the scoreboard, hitting a leadoff home run down the right field line in the bottom of the first inning. Initially, Powers was stopped at second but after the umpires got together, it was determined that the ball got the yellow part of the foul pole for a home run.
  • The AMCATS weren't satisfied with the leadoff home run though and started a two-out rally when graduate student right fielder Jarrod Marifiote (Framingham, MA) walked and then stole second and third bases. Graduate student shortstop Kosta Drosidis (Holden, MA) and senior centerfielder Hunter Dunithan (Reno, NV) both walked to load the bases. Freshman third baseman David Doherty (North Smithfield, RI) then lined a hot shot off the second baseman's glove into right field scoring both Marifiote and Drosidis and moving Dunithan to third. On the first pitch to freshman left fielder AJ Guitron-Moore (Newport Harbor, CA), Doherty took off for second and as the catcher threw down to second Dunithan took off for home and scored ahead of the return throw from the shortstop.
  • After the Raiders scored two runs in the top of the fourth, the AMCATS responded with five runs in the bottom of the fifth, making the most of five hits. With one out sophomore first baseman Jeremy Rosenberg got the party started with a single through the right side of the infield. Marifiote then homered on a 1-1 pitch into right field. Drosidis then walked and stole second base before moving to third on a single through the left side by senior centerfielder Tommy Sasso (Charlton, MA). With Doherty hitting, Sasso took off for second as the Raiders' pitcher uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Drosidis to score from third and Sasso continued on to take his place. Perhaps a bit rattled, the Raider's pitcher then proceeded to knock Doherty down with an inside pitch before hitting him with an off-speed pitch to put runners on the corners. Looking for a bit of revenge, the bruised Doherty then stole second base before Guitron-Moore doubled off the wall in right-center field, knocking in two more runs.
  • The Raiders did score one in the top of the fifth on a home run by Luis Tejada, but the run was taken right back by the AMCATS in the bottom of the frame when the AMCATS made the most of a sloppy fielding effort by the Raiders. With one out, Rosenberg walked and moved to second on a wild pitch before moving to third on a ground out to first. Drosidis then reached on a hit by pitch and moved to second on a wild pitch. Sasso was also hit by a pitch to load the bases for Doherty and leading to a pitching change. Doherty hit a slow ground ball to the shortstop but the first baseman came off the base before he caught the ball leading to an unearned run for the AMCATS.
  • Sophomore pitcher Nick Choate went the first five innings, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out five to improve his record to 4-3.
• Game 2
  • Junior right-hand pitcher Anthony Pingeton (Charlton, MA) was dominant going eight innings allowing just two runs, and scattering eight hits while striking out a career-high 14 Raiders. The win improved his record to 6-1 on the year.
  • The AMCATS scored first in the first inning again in the second game. Powers led off with a double to the right-center field gap and moved to third on a single to center by Doherty. Doherty then stole second and moved to third when Powers scored on a sacrifice fly to left field by Rosenberg. Marifiote then hit his second homer of the afternoon, a towering shot to right field on a 1-2 pitch that leaked back over the plate for a two-run shot and a 3-0 lead.
  • The Raiders got back into the game with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth but the AMCATS came back with a run of their own in the fifth as the AMCATS played some small ball. Powers opened the frame with a walk and were moved to second by a sacrifice bunt from Doherty. Rosenberg then singled to center field to put runners on the corners. Powers came around to score on a single down the right-field line by Marifiote.
  • The AMCATS hit machine powered up again in the sixth inning. Guitron-Moore singled into right field and was advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore left fielder Joseph Castellano III (Holmes, NY). Graduate student Nick Genatossio (Sutton, MA) pinch hit for sophomore catcher Ben O'Connell (Milford, NH) and singled through the right side to score Guitron-Moore before giving way to pinch runner, senior Seref McDowell II (Wareham, MA). Two batters later Powers sent the first pitch of the at-bat for a ride over the right field fence and a two-run home run.
  • The AMCATS tacked on four more runs in the eighth to stretch their lead to 11-2. Sasso, Doherty, and Rosenberg all walked, and then Marifiote was hit by a pitch to force in Sasso. Drosidis doubled to center scoring Rosenberg and Doherty. Guitron-Moore was also hit by a pitch to once again load the bases before Castellano forced in a run when he was hit by a pitch.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• With the 14 strikeouts, Pingeton moved back into a tie with Johnson and Wales Aidan Vining for the GNAC lead with 64 strikeouts. Pingeton is also tied with Lasell's Adam Marsh for the conference lead with six wins.
• Speaking of conference leaders, with his six hits in seven at-bats combined effort between both games today Marifiote moved into first place in the GNAC with a .442 batting average. Marifiote is also two off the pace for the lead in RBI, trailing Elms' Tyler Galenski 35 to 33.

UP NEXT:

Anna Maria will be back in action on Sunday when they travel to Franklin, MA to meet the Dean College Bulldogs for a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) doubleheader at the Longley Athletic Complex. The first pitch is scheduled for noon.

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