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Written by Chip Armonaitis
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Tuesday, 26 February 2008 |
 Move over Sports Illustrated, there may be a new jinx in town. The All-Gotham jinx struck this weekend, particularly hard on the
pitching staffs, as starters named to the All Gotham team seemed to
have a rough weekend. (See accompanying story for the All Gotham
team.) No one was hit harder than Army’s Cole White, a third team All-America
selection at the utility spot, and the ace of the Black Knights staff.
White was injured running the bases in the first inning of the season
opener, and did not appear the rest of the weekend.
The youthful Black Knights missed both his bat and his pitching over the weekend, dropping a 2-1 decision in the opener to Louisiana Lafayette (ranked 19th by Baseball America), and a 9-1 decision to Lamar, on Friday. Saturday, the Black Knights dropped an 8-2 decision to host UT-San Antonio. Texas Tech sent Army home empty on Sunday, rolling to a 16-2 victory.
A difficult start for the young squad, who was facing an ambitious schedule to start the season, prior to losing their marquee player, but one that was not totally unforeseeable.
Manhattan’s Tom Costigan was hit the hardest he has been in his entire college career, allowing nine runs, all earned in four innings as UNC-Charlotte trounced the Jaspers 11-2. Costigan walked five, and gave up three home runs in taking the loss.
Fordham’s Tom Davis escaped with a no-decision in a 4-3 loss to 10th ranked Wichita State, allowing three runs in five innings. Davis, who was one of the top pitchers in the Atlantic 10 a season ago, kept the Rams in the game, against the highly ranked Shockers.
The weather played havoc with the schedule as well, as most of Friday’s slate was rained out, with some of Saturday’s games joining the mix.
Monmouth’s Brad Brach and Ryan Buch, and Wagner’s Joe Tetsa were immune from the issue, as they do not open their seasons until next weekend.
And the winner is…
If you had Rutgers as the Gotham team to pull off an upset over the weekend, you win. Granted, the Scarlet Knights were an NCAA team in 2007, and the Big East is not a conference to be discounted. Old Dominion was ranked #25 by Baseball America coming into the game, and Rutgers is very young. But Casey Gaynor shut the Monarchs downs, allowing a run in 8 innings, as the Scarlet Knights rolled 7-1.
Weekend Recap
Army (0-4) - This was not the start that Joe Sottolano was looking for, but the Army coach is not going to quit on a team.
“We will look to build on a lot of the things we learned from this weekend; there are a lot of things we can take away from these four games. This team has a bright future and we’ll continue to work hard to improve every day.”
The Black Knights had two true freshman make starts, while 11 freshman, including six pitchers, made their collegiate debuts over the weekend. The Black Knights hit just .185 over their weekend, but made half as many errors (four) than their opponents.
Andy Ernesto went 5-for-14 (.357) over the weekend.
Fordham (0-1) - The weather won more than anyone else, as only Friday’s 4-3 nailbiter was able to be played. All Gotham second baseman Eric Reese went 1-3 with an RBI. J.P. Mack pitched three innings of relief, and picked up the loss in the opener.
Fairfield (0-3) - The Stags ambitious schedule got the best of them this weekend, as they dropped solo games to South Alabama (11-1), Xavier 12-7,and Kentucky 13-3, at the Coca Cola Classic in Mobile, Alabama. All Gotham designated hitter Peter Allen went 5-for-11, with a double and triple, while striking out five times.
Felician (3-2) - The Golden Falcons traveled to Maryland to the Cal Ripken Experience for a weekend of baseball, and came out on the winning end of a five game set. Losses to Mercy, 5-3 and West Chester, 8-1, were surrounded by wins over Queens, 9-4, Dowling 8-1, and Mercy, 6-1. Sophomore righthander Jeff Calabrese’s transition from closer to ace started successfully with a win the season opener, while B.J. Riker and Albie Sanguilino each picked wins with 5+ innings of shutout ball.
Manhattan (0-3) - The Jaspers trip to Charlotte did not go smoothly, as for the second straight year, the Jaspers stagger out of the gate. (In 2006, Manhattan scored the biggest opening season upset of the year with a 1-0, complete game shutout for Chris Cody over #15 Tulane.)
Marist (0-3) - The Red Foxes traveled to California to open the season, dropping three to UC-Santa Barbara, 9-0, 8-4, 13-4 (in 7 innings). Freshman first baseman Ben Henderson was one of three Marist players to homer in the series.
New Jersey Tech (1-2) - The Highlanders, in their second season in Division I, opened the season in Spartanburg, South Carolina, dropping their first two contests, South Carolina-Upstate, 8-3, and George Washington, 12-4, before trouncing Tennessee-Martin, 14-4 on Sunday. Several players swung hot bats for Tech, as Ron Pietrocola (6-for-9), Mike Turner (6-13) and Craig Binkiewicz (6-for-16) led the way. Cory Kuzmik allowed one run in five innings in picking up the Highlanders lone win.
Rider (3-0) - The Broncs jumped out to a quick start for 2008, sweeping a road series at Maryland-Eastern Shore by the scores of 9-1, 6-2, 11-6. Jon Olson was the star of the opener, while Jamie Hayes moved around the field, starting all three games at a different position (second base, rightfield, centerfield), while picking up the win in the series finale in relief.
Rutgers (1-1) - The Scarlet Knights split, with Old Dominion roughing up Matt Giannini (six runs, four earned, in 4.1 innings) in the nightcap Sunday, as rain postponed the first two games of the three game set. All Gotham first baseman Tom Edwards got a position change, moving across the infield to the hot corner.
Seton Hall (1-2) - Ace left-hander Corey Young got the Pirates off the a good start, allowing one run in five innings in a 3-1 win over Memphis, as the Hall took advantage of two unearned runs in the Service Academies Classic in Millington, Tennessee. The Pirates dropped their next two decisions 6-3 to Arkansas State and 6-5 to Ohio State.
St. John’s (3-0) - Ed Blankmeyer picks up his 400th career victory in the second game of the Johnny Gill Memorial Tournament in South Carolina. All Gotham left-hander Scott Barnes picked up the win, allowing one run in six innings, while All Gotham closer Colin Lynch picked up the save, going 1.2 perfect innings.
All Gotham outfielder Chris Anninos hit a two-run home run in the first to give the Red Storm a lead they never relinquished. St. John’s defeated Gardner Webb in the opener, 8-4, behind senior lefthander George Brown (six innings, one run) and freshman Carlos Del Rosario’s three hits and three RBI.
Cole Ryan pitched seven innings of two-hit ball in the finale, as the Johnnies defeated Evansville 3-1, striking out eight. Lynch picked up his second save, while Anninos had three more hits, and Lynch picked up his second save of the season.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK (ending Feb 25)
Casey Gaynor (Rutgers) - Gaynor served notice on the Big East when the sophomore shut down a highly regarded Old Dominion squad, limiting the Monarchs to a run in eight innings. Gaynor was named the Big East Pitcher of the Week after the performance, which saw him strike out eight while holding ODU to three hits.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 26 February 2008 )
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