Fort Pierce, Fla. - The Manchester University Baseball Team traveled to Florida for a five-game stretch from March 1 to March 3. Manchester faced Elizabethtown in a doubleheader on Sunday, followed by single games against Susquehanna and Misericordia on Monday. Tuesday morning was supposed to mark the finale of the trip for the Spartans, however, heavy rain sent the game, against Alvernia, into a weather delay in the bottom of the first inning. The half inning would be the end of the line for Manchester in Florida as the final game was scratched from the schedule with the field not being playable and time a factor for the Spartans' travel plans.
Game One vs Elizabethtown:
Manchester jumped out to an early lead but could not hold off a late surge from Elizabethtown, falling 10–4.
The Spartans came out swinging in the opening inning. After a walk by Michael Dierckman, Joel Kennedy delivered a single through the right side to put two runners aboard. Cam Bortone followed with an RBI single that scored Dierckman, and later in the inning Evann Schmidtendorff added another RBI single to plate Kennedy and give Manchester a 2–0 advantage.
Manchester added another run in the second inning when Owen Ritchie doubled to right field to start the frame. After a sacrifice bunt from Beau Kaler moved him to third, Ritchie came home on an Elizabethtown error, pushing the Spartans' lead to 3–0. Manchester added one more run in the third inning to extend the advantage to 4–0.
Ritchie had a strong day at the plate for Manchester, going 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored. Schmidtendorff also finished with two hits and drove in two runs, while Bortone added an RBI single. Kennedy and Donavin Massing each recorded a hit as the Spartans totaled seven hits in the contest.
On the mound, Ty Layson started for Manchester and tossed five innings, allowing seven hits and three runs while striking out four. He kept the Spartans in control through the early portion of the game before Elizabethtown began to chip away at the lead.
After Manchester's early offensive burst, Elizabethtown slowly worked back into the game before a six-run eighth inning broke it open and secured the comeback victory.
Game Two vs Elizabethtown:
Manchester scored twice in the fifth inning, but an early six-run surge by Elizabethtown proved too much as the Spartans fell 6-2 in the second game of the doubleheader Sunday at Lawnwood Stadium.
After four scoreless frames at the plate, Manchester finally broke through in the top of the fifth. Freshman catcher Matthew Subler drew a leadoff walk and moved into scoring position when Beau Kaler reached on an error. Max Horner followed with a single up the middle to drive in Subler for Manchester's first run. The Spartans stayed aggressive on the bases all afternoon—finishing with four stolen bases—and manufactured their second run moments later when Kaler came home on a wild pitch to make it 6-2.
Manchester's best offense came from the top of the order. Horner went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a stolen base, while Alex Westfield also collected two hits and swiped two bags. Owen Ritchie chipped in a hit, a walk, and a stolen base as the Spartans worked to create opportunities despite being limited to five hits.
On the mound, starter Jake McGrath battled through five innings, striking out five. Elizabethtown did most of its damage in the second and third innings, taking advantage of traffic on the bases and a pair of Manchester miscues to build a 6-0 lead. Luke Diebold provided a steady finish out of the bullpen with a scoreless sixth inning, allowing no hits.
Game Three vs Susquehanna:
Manchester picked up a hard-fought 6–5 win over Susquehanna, using a late offensive surge to break open a tight game.
Susquehanna struck first in the third inning. Manchester starter Tyler Bortone settled in after the early run, working through six innings while allowing just four hits and two runs. Bortone struck out four and kept Susquehanna from building any big innings early.
Manchester answered in the fourth inning to tie the game. After reaching base earlier in the frame, Evann Schmidtendorff came around to score to make it 1–1. The Spartans took their first lead in the sixth inning. Manchester pushed across two runs in the frame, taking advantage of baserunners and timely hitting to move ahead 3–2.
Susquehanna responded in the seventh, scoring two runs to regain the lead at 4–3 and putting the pressure back on Manchester heading into the late innings.
Manchester delivered the decisive rally in the bottom of the eighth. The Spartans plated three runs in the inning, highlighted by clutch hitting from Beau Kaler and Schmidtendorff. Kaler finished the day 2-for-4 with three RBIs, driving in key runs in the comeback. Schmidtendorff also had a big performance at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs and scoring three runs. Donavin Massing added two hits and two runs scored as Manchester's offense produced six hits in the win.
On the mound, Bortone gave Manchester a strong start with six innings of work before Drew Pressler came on in relief. Pressler earned the win after tossing three innings, striking out three and working around traffic to close out the game despite Susquehanna scoring once in the ninth.
Game Four vs Misericordia:
Manchester scored twice in the opening frame, but couldn't push across another run as the Spartans dropped a 4-2 decision to Misericordia.
The Spartans jumped in front immediately thanks to patience at the plate. Max Horner and Evann Schmidtendorff opened the game with back-to-back walks, and Cam Bortone followed with an RBI single up the middle to plate Horner for the game's first run. Manchester made it 2-0 moments later when Schmidtendorff came home on a throw to third that resulted in an error, allowing another run to score.
After the quick start, runs were hard to find. Misericordia grabbed the lead with a three-run third inning, capitalizing on a pair of Manchester defensive miscues. The Cougars added what proved to be the deciding run in the sixth, again taking advantage of an error to extend the margin to 4-2.
Manchester threatened late. In the ninth, Joel Kennedy singled to start the rally and Bortone followed with another base hit to put two on with nobody out. The Spartans moved runners up with a sacrifice bunt, but Misericordia's bullpen answered with back-to-back strikeouts to end the game.
Bortone led the Manchester offense with a 2-for-4 day and an RBI, while Kennedy and Michael Dierckman each collected a hit as the Spartans finished with five hits. On the mound, Jackson Todor went the distance for Manchester, allowing four runs (all unearned) over eight innings with three strikeouts.
