ANDOVER, Mass. (April 10, 2022) – Saturday's weather delay did not slow down the Mount St. Mary's baseball team. Holding a 9-3 lead when play halted, the Mount added 13 more when play resumed Sunday to earn a 22-3 victory over Merrimack. For the scheduled showdown, the Mount escaped a bases loaded jam up one in the ninth with a game-winning double play.
 
The 22 runs are the highest run total for any Mountaineers team since 2008, when that unit defeated Sacred Heart 23-6. Winners of five out of the last six, they find themselves matching last year's win team needing 11 fewer games to get there. Standing 4-5 in Northeast Conference play, the Mount places in a three-way tie for fourth with Central Connecticut and Merrimack.
 
Outfielder Tristan McAlister registered six hits, with three coming in each victory. He also added four runs driven, two runs scored and two stolen bases. Tyler Long and Hunter Hebert had big showings in the 22-run game, with Long tallying four hits and Hebert sending home three runs. The second game featured home runs from Efrain Correa, Jr. and Matt McTighe. McTighe's blast marks the first in his collegiate career.
 
The pitching duo of Luke Pryor and Cooper Adams delivered solid starts for the second straight weekend. Steve Schenning pitched four innings of shutout ball in relief, retiring six Warriors via the strikeout.
 
Mount's scoring onslaught in game one began in the second inning. McTighe's single brought home Shane Wockley for a 2-1 lead. After Merrimack tied proceedings at two, the Mount posted a three-run third. They would replicate that performance four more times in the game while adding a five spot in the fifth. McAlister's single in that frame pushed the Mountaineers over the double-digit mark and Hebert followed him with a two-run double. A home run by Jason Rivera – also a collegiate first for the freshman – pushed the total past 20 runs.
 
A more competitive affair awaited the teams in the series finale. Bats were held silent through four innings until Correa's shot in the fifth. The lead held at 2-0 until the bottom of the sixth when Merrimack rallied courtesy of an Andrew Selima home run to make it 3-2 Warriors. An error by the Mount increased the lead to 4-2 before the visitors stormed back. McTighe's solo shot lit the fuse in the eighth. Two batters reached base setting up a game-tying single from Thomas Bramley. McAlister logged another RBI single to allow the Mount to regain the lead. Bramley came around off a failed pickoff for a 6-4 advantage.
 
In the ninth and down 6-5, Merrimack staged a rally as weather descended on the field. Two Warriors reached base and after a failed sacrifice attempt, the fourth batter followed suit with a single. The bases loaded with one out and the winning run in scoring position, Mount's Blake Beal fired home to Kurtis Stadnicki. The catcher hit a tailor-made double-play ball to Long, who began to 6-4-3 that finished off the ballgame.
 
Challenges await Mount St. Mary's at home this week, with games against Navy (Apr. 13) and a three-game set with NEC leader Fairleigh Dickinson.