St. John’s Splits Doubleheader with Manhattan

Wednesday, March 13

Queens, N.Y. (Red Storm Field)

1 p.m.

St. John's University

10-12

Manhattan

2-15

Manhattan

St. John's

3/13/2024 7:46:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score (Game 1)Box Score (Game 2)

The Red Storm took game one, 7-1, before falling in game two, 5-1

QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's softball team (10-13) split a doubleheader with Manhattan (3-15) on Wednesday at Red Storm Field. The Red Storm took game one by a score of 7-1 before dropping game two, 5-1.

Starter Hannah Mearns tallied her third win from inside the circle during game one. The Santa Monica, Calif., native tossed five scoreless frames and tallied five strikeouts.

Katie Whittaker launched her second home run of 2024 in game one to help secure the St. John's victory. The sophomore reached base safely in five of seven at-bats between the two contests.

Junior London Jarrard drilled her team-leading eighth double and second triple of the season in game one. The shortstop scored two runs and notched a pair of RBIs in the Red Storm's win.

In game two, Ana Serafinko set a new career-high with 14 strikeouts against the Jaspers. The left-hander pitched 6.2 innings of relief, allowing just two earned runs on four hits.

Game 1

Jarrard kicked things off in the bottom of the first with a one-out triple off the right field wall before coming home on a Cassidy Stouffer sacrifice fly to give St. John's the early 1-0 lead.

Mearns continued to set the tone from the circle in game one, striking out five through four innings to keep the St. John's lead at 1-0.

The Red Storm offense struck again in the bottom of the fourth with Sydney Totarsky singling and Jess Bianco drawing a walk to put two on with one out. Jarrard delivered her second extra-base hit with a two-RBI double into right field, 3-0. Stouffer and Whittaker then reached on a walk and hit by pitch to load the bases for Elanna Lysiak who hit a deep sacrifice fly to center field to plate Jarrard, 4-0. The Johnnies tacked on one more on a double-steal play initiated by Whittaker stealing second that allowed Stouffer to swipe home, 5-0.

In the top of the fifth, Mearns completed her day in the circle with a quick 1-2-3 inning to hold St. John's five-run advantage.

The Jaspers finally got on the board in the top of the sixth after loading the bases for Lily Fish who recorded an infield single to make the score, 5-1.

Whittaker responded on behalf of the Red Storm in the bottom of the sixth, cranking a solo home run over the left field wall, 6-1. The Johnnies were not done as Celia Macari and Anese Thompson singled and walked to put two on with two out before Amy Mallah drove an RBI single through the left side to increase St. John's lead to 7-1.

Reliever Loreley Francia closed the door on the Jaspers in the top of the seventh, recording two strikeouts and securing the 7-1 Red Storm triumph.

Game 2

The Jaspers started game two with a pair of walks to put a runner in early scoring position. Lindsey Hoag then drove a double into left-center to plate the first run of the ballgame, 1-0. Manhattan followed up with a pair of RBI singles by Kaitlyn Flood and Tajiana Pickett to increase the lead to 3-0. Serafinko then entered the circle in relief to record two quick outs and strand runners at first and second.

The score remained 3-0 until Pickett hit a two-run home run in the top of the third to give the Jaspers a 5-0 lead after three.

Lysiak sparked the Red Storm offense in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out double into deep center field ahead of Macari driving her home on an RBI single back up the middle, 5-1.

St. John's Serafinko and Manhattan's Mollie Charset locked into a pitcher's duel for the majority of the contest. Serafinko recorded six consecutive strikeouts from the end of the third to the start of the sixth frame while on her way to setting a new career best.

In the top of the seventh, Serafinko struck out two more batters to finish the game with 14 punchouts.

Natalie Casto sliced a one-out double into right-center in the bottom of the seventh, but Manhattan's lead and Charset proved to be too much as St. John's fell, 5-1.

St. John's will now look ahead to this weekend when it welcomes Butler to Queens for a three-game series. The first pitch for game one is slated for 2 p.m. on Friday.