St. John's University Athletics
Saturday, April 8
Queens, N.Y. (Kaiser Stadium)
1 p.m.
St. John's University
16-12, 0
3
vs
8
No. 19 UConn
22-7, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
UCONN
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
1
4
8
14
0
St. John's
0
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
3
5
1
St. John’s Splits with No. 19 UConn in Saturday’s Doubleheader
4/8/2023 8:02:00 PM | Baseball
Red Storm edged the Huskies, 9-7, in game two for its first ranked win since 2020
QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's baseball team picked up its first win over a ranked opponent since 2020 with its 9-7 victory over No. 19 UConn in game two of Saturday's doubleheader at Jack Kaiser Stadium. The Huskies (22-8, 2-1 BIG EAST) took game one, 8-3.
The Johnnies registered its first ranked victory since dominating No. 19 Georgia Tech, 11-1, at the Atlanta Classic on Feb. 16, 2020. It also marked the first home win against a top-25 team since taking down former conference rival No. 8 Louisville, 6-5, on April 21, 2013.
Redshirt junior Tate Ballestero jumped out to a 22-game reached base streak with his walk in game one and a 1-for-3 performance with a pair of walks in game two.
First baseman Aaron Mann strung together four hits in two contests, including a pair of doubles, to go with two RBIs and an eventual game-winning run. Sophomore Austin Machado did it all for the Red Storm, factoring in six of the Johnnies' 12 runs on the afternoon with four RBIs and two tallies.
Game 1
The Johnnies (17-12, 1-2 BIG EAST) fell to the Huskies, 8-3, despite a pair of two-hit performances from Mann and David Glancy .
Following a blank opening frame, UConn broke through with back-to-back one-run innings, seeing an RBI groundout from Paul Tammaro in the second and a Dominic Freeburger sacrifice fly in the third for a 2-0 lead.
The Johnnies responded in the fourth after Kevin Michaels walked with one out. Two batters later, Machado took a 3-1 pitch for a ride down the right-field line, clearing the wall for his first collegiate home run and tying the game at two.
UConn took the lead back on a Korey Morton solo shot in the fifth for a 3-2 edge.
Reliever Dylan Johnson came on with two outs and runners on the corners in the sixth. The Selden, N.Y., native stranded both Huskies by getting Tammaro to tap a slow roller back to the right-hander for the final out of the inning.
St. John's retaliated in the home half with a one-run frame of its own. Glancy slapped a one-out single to right-center and advanced to second on a groundout before diving into home plate on a Mann RBI single for a 3-3 deadlock.
After an empty seventh, UConn rallied to score five unanswered runs over the final two innings before knocking off the Johnnies by five.
Game 2
In a back-and-forth affair that saw its fair share of lead changes and ties after the top of the third, the Red Storm emerged victorious with a 9-7 victory over the Huskies.
UConn struck first in game two with an RBI single in the top of the first, followed by a sacrifice fly in the third to double its advantage to two.
The Johnnies battled back in the home half of the third with a three-spot of its own. After Tucker singled, stole second and advanced to third on a groundout to the right side, Glancy pulled an RBI double down the left-field line, cutting the Red Storm deficit in half, 2-1. St. John's continued to pressure UConn by loading the bases on a walk to Ballestero and Mann getting plunked after a 10-pitch at-bat. With two outs, Machado laced a single to right, plating Glancy and Ballestero for the Red Storm's first lead of the day, 3-2.
After holding UConn off the board in the top half of the fourth, Marty Higgins led off the home portion with a double to the left-center gap, setting up St. John's fourth run of the game. Three batters later, Luke Orbon dribbled a single toward the right side, scoring Higgins easily for the two-run edge, 4-2.
The Huskies fought back with one swing of the bat as Jake Studley hit a two-run homer in the fifth, knotting the game at four.
However, the deadlock was short-lived as the Johnnies plated two more in the home half of the fifth after a Ballestero single and Machado ground-rule double put runners on second and third. Anthony Brienza capitalized on a 1-2 pitch, singling to left and bringing two around to score for a 6-4 advantage.
Once again, UConn responded in the top of the sixth, smacking back-to-back homers for a three-run frame and a 7-6 edge.
The Johnnies had an answer for the Huskies in the bottom half after Jace Jeremiah reached on an error and advanced to second. Following a sacrifice bunt that moved the Johnnies' shortstop up 90 feet, Orbon roped an RBI single up the middle and tied the game at seven.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Red Storm scored once again on a Higgins sacrifice fly that brought Mann in from third and gave the Johnnies an 8-7 advantage they would not relinquish.
St. John's scored for its sixth-straight inning with a one-spot in the bottom of the eighth. Orbon singled with one out before advancing to third on a Glancy base knock. The righty Mann took a 3-2 pitch the other way for an RBI two-bagger, knocking in Orbon for a two-run edge.
Reliever Nick Cirelli came on and shut the door for his fourth save of the season, going two innings and retiring six of the seven batters he faced.
The Johnnies will return to action on Tuesday, April 11, when they travel to Hofstra for a 3 p.m. contest at University Field in Hempstead, N.Y.
The Johnnies registered its first ranked victory since dominating No. 19 Georgia Tech, 11-1, at the Atlanta Classic on Feb. 16, 2020. It also marked the first home win against a top-25 team since taking down former conference rival No. 8 Louisville, 6-5, on April 21, 2013.
Redshirt junior Tate Ballestero jumped out to a 22-game reached base streak with his walk in game one and a 1-for-3 performance with a pair of walks in game two.
First baseman Aaron Mann strung together four hits in two contests, including a pair of doubles, to go with two RBIs and an eventual game-winning run. Sophomore Austin Machado did it all for the Red Storm, factoring in six of the Johnnies' 12 runs on the afternoon with four RBIs and two tallies.
Game 1
The Johnnies (17-12, 1-2 BIG EAST) fell to the Huskies, 8-3, despite a pair of two-hit performances from Mann and David Glancy .
Following a blank opening frame, UConn broke through with back-to-back one-run innings, seeing an RBI groundout from Paul Tammaro in the second and a Dominic Freeburger sacrifice fly in the third for a 2-0 lead.
The Johnnies responded in the fourth after Kevin Michaels walked with one out. Two batters later, Machado took a 3-1 pitch for a ride down the right-field line, clearing the wall for his first collegiate home run and tying the game at two.
UConn took the lead back on a Korey Morton solo shot in the fifth for a 3-2 edge.
Reliever Dylan Johnson came on with two outs and runners on the corners in the sixth. The Selden, N.Y., native stranded both Huskies by getting Tammaro to tap a slow roller back to the right-hander for the final out of the inning.
St. John's retaliated in the home half with a one-run frame of its own. Glancy slapped a one-out single to right-center and advanced to second on a groundout before diving into home plate on a Mann RBI single for a 3-3 deadlock.
After an empty seventh, UConn rallied to score five unanswered runs over the final two innings before knocking off the Johnnies by five.
Game 2
In a back-and-forth affair that saw its fair share of lead changes and ties after the top of the third, the Red Storm emerged victorious with a 9-7 victory over the Huskies.
UConn struck first in game two with an RBI single in the top of the first, followed by a sacrifice fly in the third to double its advantage to two.
The Johnnies battled back in the home half of the third with a three-spot of its own. After Tucker singled, stole second and advanced to third on a groundout to the right side, Glancy pulled an RBI double down the left-field line, cutting the Red Storm deficit in half, 2-1. St. John's continued to pressure UConn by loading the bases on a walk to Ballestero and Mann getting plunked after a 10-pitch at-bat. With two outs, Machado laced a single to right, plating Glancy and Ballestero for the Red Storm's first lead of the day, 3-2.
After holding UConn off the board in the top half of the fourth, Marty Higgins led off the home portion with a double to the left-center gap, setting up St. John's fourth run of the game. Three batters later, Luke Orbon dribbled a single toward the right side, scoring Higgins easily for the two-run edge, 4-2.
The Huskies fought back with one swing of the bat as Jake Studley hit a two-run homer in the fifth, knotting the game at four.
However, the deadlock was short-lived as the Johnnies plated two more in the home half of the fifth after a Ballestero single and Machado ground-rule double put runners on second and third. Anthony Brienza capitalized on a 1-2 pitch, singling to left and bringing two around to score for a 6-4 advantage.
Once again, UConn responded in the top of the sixth, smacking back-to-back homers for a three-run frame and a 7-6 edge.
The Johnnies had an answer for the Huskies in the bottom half after Jace Jeremiah reached on an error and advanced to second. Following a sacrifice bunt that moved the Johnnies' shortstop up 90 feet, Orbon roped an RBI single up the middle and tied the game at seven.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Red Storm scored once again on a Higgins sacrifice fly that brought Mann in from third and gave the Johnnies an 8-7 advantage they would not relinquish.
St. John's scored for its sixth-straight inning with a one-spot in the bottom of the eighth. Orbon singled with one out before advancing to third on a Glancy base knock. The righty Mann took a 3-2 pitch the other way for an RBI two-bagger, knocking in Orbon for a two-run edge.
Reliever Nick Cirelli came on and shut the door for his fourth save of the season, going two innings and retiring six of the seven batters he faced.
The Johnnies will return to action on Tuesday, April 11, when they travel to Hofstra for a 3 p.m. contest at University Field in Hempstead, N.Y.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kirby, Devin (4-1)
L: Johnson, Dylan (1-2)
Batting:
2B: Smith, David 1 ; Studley, Jake 1
HR: Morton, Korey 1
RBI: Freeberger, Dominic 1 ; Studley, Jake 2 ; Broadhurst, Luke 1 ; Padilla, Bryan 2 ; Tammaro, Paul 1 ; Morton, Korey 1
SF: Freeberger, Dominic 1 ; Broadhurst, Luke 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Smith, David 2 ; Huber, Ben 2 ; Studley, Jake 1 ; Broadhurst, Luke 1 ; Morton, Korey 2
SB: Smith, David 2 ; Morton, Korey 1
CS: Freeberger, Dominic 1
HBP: Padilla, Bryan 1
Batting:
HR: Machado, Austin 1
RBI: Mann, Aaron 1 ; Machado, Austin 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Glancy, David 1 ; Michaels, Kevin 1 ; Machado, Austin 1
HBP: Ballestero, Tate 1 ; Orbon, Paul 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C/INF
/ Baseball
INF
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1B/RHP
/ BaseballOF
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INF
/ Baseball
INF
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RHP
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/ Baseball
INF
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INF
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