Purchase, NY - The University of Mount Saint Vincent dropped both ends of a doubleheader against Manhattanville
, battling offensively but unable to overcome early deficits in each game.
The contests, which were made up after a rain out on Sunday, put the Dolphins at 5-7 in conference play, good for a spot just outside the playoff picture with two weeks left to go.
The Dolphins fell 9-3 in the first game of the day, despite showing signs of life in the middle innings. Will Granata got UMSV on the board with an RBI double, and Andrew Farina followed his strong last week of play with a clutch two-run single to tie the game at 3-3. The Valiants would then respond with a big sixth inning, scoring four runs to break the game open and pull away late.
Game two turned into a back-and-forth battle, but Manhattanville again struck early and held on for a 13-10 win. UMSV trailed 6-0 after the first inning but responded behind reigning Skyline Conference Rookie of the Week Michael Akalski, who delivered a two-RBI double in the second. The Dolphins made their biggest push in the fifth, erupting for six runs, highlighted by RBI hits from Akalski, Kyle Brindisi and a series of productive at-bats fueled by Manhattanville errors, to cut the deficit to one. Carter Niles added an RBI single to keep the pressure on, but Manhattanville answered with insurance runs in the sixth and seventh to secure the sweep.
Granata had three hits in four at-bats in game one, while Farina led the charge with two RBI. Brindisi and Zach Turko each had three hits in game two, and Akalski's four RBI led the Dolphins.
Ryan Sharkey was a bright spot out of the bullpen, as the junior struck out the side in his lone inning of relief.
The Dolphins will look to bounce back this coming weekend, starting with a double header against Purchase on Saturday.
