Westminster (Mo.) Snaps Baseball’s Win Streak in Florida Finale

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Riding a seven-game win streak, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) baseball team (8-2-1) battled Westminster College (Mo.) in their final game of the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. The Blue Jays (3-4) won convincingly, however, blanking SJC in an 18-0 triumph.

How It Happened
SJC Starters: Schwartz (SS), Gonzalez (DH), Palermo (3B), Reyes (LF), DeLuca (1B), Caputo (C), Langan (RF), McLaughlin (2B), Zinser (CF); Egan (P)

Westminster drew a walk, had a hit batsman, and roped a double in their first three at-bats of the game for two quick runs. They went on to score three more in the top of the first on a trio of singles and another base on balls for a 5-0 lead.

The Blue Jays kept the offense going as they loaded the bases to open the second and an SJC error, followed by a base hit to right, gave them three runs in the frame and a commanding, 8-0, edge early into the contest.

Vincent Juliano (Staten Island, N.Y./Tottenville) retired WC one-two-three in the third, but the visitors put up a score in the fourth, four more in the fifth, and ended the game with five additional runs in the final inning. St. Joseph's bats could only muster two hits on the day as they were held scoreless for just the second time this season.

For the Bears

• Senior shortstop Adam Schwartz (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan E. Wagner) was walked twice on the day and stole a base.
• Michael Gonzalez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Midwood) was 1-for-2 with a walk and second baseman J.J. McLaughlin (Elmont, N.Y./Sewanhaka) hit a single (1-for-3).
• Senior right-hander Matthew Rienzi (Maspeth, N.Y./Xavier) threw 1.2 scoreless innings of relief giving up a walk and no hits with two strikeouts.
• Joseph Langan (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) tossed a near-perfect inning of relief with no hits, no runs, and one walk.

Next Up for the Bears
Traveling back up north for a doubleheader on Friday (Mar. 22) at Centenary University (N.J.) with first pitch set for noon and a link to live stats available at SJCBears.com.