Handzel leads Lasell Baseball to GNAC split with Saint Joseph’s (Maine)

NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. – Sophomore Zach Handzel (Palmer, Mass.) pitched a five-hit shutout with eight strikeouts Friday afternoon to lead Lasell College to a 1-0 victory over Saint Joseph's College (Maine) to help the Lasers earn a split of the Great Northeast Athletic (GNAC) baseball doubleheader at the New England Baseball Complex.

The Monks took the opening game of the twin bill, 11-5, scoring seven runs in the first two innings and holding on for the win. With the split, Lasell moves to 6-17 overall and 5-5 in the GNAC while Saint Joe's is now 20-8 overall and 5-1 in conference play.

Lasell gets back into action Sunday, April 22, with a GNAC doubleheader at the same field against Anna Maria College, beginning at 4;00 p.m. The Monks will host Mitchell College in a non-conference affair on Saturday, April 21, and GNAC rival Johnson & Wales University in a key doubleheader Sunday, April 22, at 1:00 p.m.

Game 1 – Saint Joseph's 11, Lasell 5

The Monks jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the top of the first, when senior catcher Jacob White (Salem, N.H.) notched an RBI double and later scored on a Noah McDaniel (Eliot, Maine) base hit and junior Greg Emanuelson (Hudson, N.H.) launched a three-run homer over the right field wall.

St. Joe's tacked on two runs off two hits and a Lasell error in the second. Freshman second baseman Dalton Quinn (Lowell, Mass.) led off with a single and later scored on an outfield throwing error and junior Jared Gagne (Dover, N.H.) singled and scored on a Joey Murphy (Derry, N.H.) sac fly to make it a 7-0 game.

McDaniel doubled and scored on a two-bagger off the bat of Emanuelson in the third and the Monks added three runs off a pair of long balls in the fourth, when White belted his first career homer – a two-run shot to right-center – and McDaniel lofted a solo blast to center, lifting the visitors to an 11-0 lead.

The Lasers found the board with four runs off four hits in the fourth, when sophomore Luke Scholand (Albuquerque, N.M.) roped a two-run triple and junior Chris Maringo (Farmingville, N.Y.) lofted a two-run homer. Freshman Wyatt Sihvonen (Lebanon, Conn.) produced a run-scoring single in the bottom of the seventh to account for the 11-5 final.

SJC sophomore starter Matt Demma (Worcester, Mass.) earned the win after allowing four runs off seven hits and three walks with five K's over five innings. Senior Marc Poirier (Lunenburg, Mass.) allowed a run off three hits with a strikeout in two innings of relief

Emanuelson was 3-4 with a double, a homer, and four RBI for the Monks, and McDaniel went 3-4 with three runs, a double, a home run, and two RBI. White was 2-3 with two runs, a double, and a home run, and Gagne went 2-3 with two runs scored.

Junior baseman Andre Marchesseault (Cheshire, Conn.) was 3-3 with a run and a double for Lasell.

Game 2 – Lasell 1, Saint Joseph's 0

Handzel scattered five hits and two walks to post his first victory of the season (1-5). The Monks loaded the bases in the second inning on a hit batter and two singles, but Handzel struck out the next batter to end the threat.

The Monks put a runner in scoring position with one out in the fifth but Handzel fanned the next two batters to keep the shutout intact. A one-out double in the sixth put another runner in scoring position but Handzel got two infield ground outs to end the inning. The Laser right-hander whiffed two in the final inning, including the final batter to seal the win.

The Lasers scored the only run in the bottom of the fourth, when Sihvonen executed a bases-loaded squeeze play. Junior Brett Sherron (Howard Beach, N.Y.) was hit by a pitch and classmate Rob Cutone (Tewksbury, Mass.) singled to put two runners on, Maringo walked to load the bases, and Sherron came home on Sihvonen's squeeze bunt.

SJC sophomore starter Luke Klenda (Yarmouth, Maine) was hit with the loss after giving up a run off four hits with three strikeouts over three innings. Freshman Jonathan Marchia (Chicopee, Mass.) tossed 2.2 effective innings, allowing a hit and two walks with three K's. Senior Josh Partridge (Deerfield, N.H.) sat down the only batter he faced in the bottom of the sixth

(Courtesy of Saint Joseph's Sports Information)

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