Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Zach Hopf (Woodbridge, N.J./Woodbridge Township) pitched eight shutout innings and Ed Mejias (Ocean Township, N.J./Ocean Township) got the final three outs in the opener before Mejias recorded the final two outs with the tying run on third in the nightcap to secure a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) doubleheader sweep against Rider on Saturday. The Peacocks won the opener 3-0 and then held on for an 8-7 victory in the nightcap.
Hopf posted eight shutout innings while scattering six hits with 13 strikeouts to earn his second win of the year. Coming into the game, the senior had 214 strikeouts to sit three punch outs behind the program's all-time leader Chris Innis (217, 2005-08). Hopf surpassed Innis in style in the third inning of the opener after striking out the side with the second punch out of the inning making him the program's new strikeout king on his way to 13 strikeouts in the opener. He pitched a season-high eight innings after throwing 123 pitches with 89 strikes on the day.
Mejias retired the side in the ninth for his second save of the season in the first game, but the senior came up big in the nightcap. After the Broncs' Justin Thomas hit a two-run triple to cut the margin to 8-7 in the seventh inning with one out, Mejias secured the win with a pop out to first baseman Nick Henriquez (Paramus, N.J./Paramus) and a fly out to right fielder Kyle Grimes (Iselin, N.Y./John F. Kennedy Memorial) to end the game and clinch the twinbill sweep with his third save in five games.
Chris Hugg (Ironia, N.J./Randolph) paced Saint Peter's (9-21, 4-6 MAAC) with two hits, four RBIs and a run scored, including a two-run homer in the nightcap. Henriquez added three hits, three RBIs and a run scored including a two-run homer in the second game while Rob Moore (Ridge, N.Y./Longwood) tallied four hits, two runs scored and an RBI on the day.
Greg Fazio fueled the Broncs (9-19, 3-3 MAAC) with five hits, an RBI and a run scored. Thomas registered three hits, two RBIs and a run scored while Nick Richter recorded three hits, two runs scored and an RBI in the doubleheader.
With Hopf shutting down the defending regular season champions, the Saint Peter's offense supported its hurler with a run in the fourth and two in the seventh to earn the 3-0 win.
In the fourth, Hugg reached on a throwing error and touched home on Henriquez's RBI single through the left side for a 1-0 edge.
The Peacocks added two insurance runs in the seventh. Ariel Ramirez (San Domingo, Dominican Republic/Babeque) singled to open the inning before three consecutive walks by Grimes, Moore and Hugg forced Ramirez home with the second run before Jim Smith (Hatfield, Pa./North Penn) plated Grimes with a sacrifice fly to center for a 3-0 lead.
Rider had a couple chances to get on the scoreboard against Hopf, but could not score. The Broncs had back-to-back singles by Thomas and Fazio in the first to put runners on the corners, but Hopf got out of the jam with a strikeout. After Fazio doubled with one out in the fourth, Hopf ended the inning with a fly out and a strikeout.
Rider's best chance to score came in the seventh. Nick Crescenzo hit a deep drive to left that Hugg ran down for the first out to open the stanza. Mike Parsons then doubled and James Locklear walked, but a strikeout and a ground out ended the threat. Ritcher and Giavanni Gussen led off the eighth with singles, but two strikeouts and a ground out help end the inning and end a great pitching effort by Hopf.
Kyle Kennett was the hard-luck loser in the opener after allowing an unearned run on four hits with four strikeouts in six innings of work.
In the second game, Saint Peter's jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead en route to an 8-7 win.
Jon Kristoffersen (Jefferson, N.J./Jefferson Township) led off the bottom of the first with a double to left center before Grimes walked and Moore plated Kristoffersen with an run-scoring double to left center for the game's first run. After Smith plated Grimes with a sacrifice fly to center, Henriquez belted a two-run homer to left field to give the Peacocks a 4-0 lead.
The Broncs scored twice in the third to cut the margin in half thanks to a Ritcher sacrifice fly and a Gussen RBI single.
Saint Peter's grabbed a 7-2 lead with three runs in the fifth. Moore singled to right center and came around to score on Hugg's second homer of the year, a two-run shot to left field. Smith then walked and touched home on Vinny Maietta's (Franklin Square, N.Y./St. Mary's) run-scoring single to center.
The five-run lead did not last long after Rider answered right back with three runs in the sixth to trim the margin to 7-5. Fazio plated the first run of the inning before Locklear hit a two-run single to left to make it a two-run game.
The Peacocks added an insurance run in the sixth, which proved to be the difference in the contest. Grimes walked with one out before Moore singled through the right side and then Hugg found the 5-6 hole for a single to bring home Grimes to give Saint Peter's an 8-6 edge.
Ritcher reached on a fielder's choice and Gussen walked before Thomas drilled a ball to deep center field for a one-out triple to plate both runs and make it a one-run contest. Mejias then came into the contest and induced a pop out and a fly out to leave Thomas on third as the game-tying run and help Saint Peter's earn its fourth-straight conference win.
Mark Wilson (Clark, N.J./Arthur L. Johnson) earned his third win of the year after allowing five runs on 11 hits with three strikeouts in 5.2 innings pitched.
The two teams conclude the three-game series on Sunday at Jaroschak Field. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. with Kurt Sowa set to take the mound for the Broncs and John Leiter (Toms River, N.J./Toms River South) on the rubber for the Peacocks.
