Baseball Rides Five-Run First to Victory

Tuesday, April 14

West Point, N.Y.

6:30 PM

Army West Point

17-17

Manhattan

9-22

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Manhattan	0	0	0	1	0	0	3	0	0	4	10	2
Army West Point	5	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	X	8	8	2

Baseball Rides Five-Run First to Victory

April 14, 2015 | Baseball

Box Score

April 14, 2015

Box Score | Box Score (PDF)

WEST POINT, N.Y. - A five-run first inning powered the Army West Point baseball team to an 8-4 victory over the visiting Manhattan Jaspers on Tuesday evening at Johnson Stadium at Doubleday Field. Senior shortstop Alex Jensen set the tone for the Black Knights offensively with his two-run first inning double, while Alex Dickerson went yard as part of a three-run fifth.

Army West Point improved to 2-0 at home this season and 17-17 overall, while Manhattan dipped to 9-22.

"Every game we take as the most important game of the year," head coach Matt Reid said. "We came out and scored five runs, which was huge for us. It is always good to get a win, but I still think there are some things we need to clean up as we head into the weekend. These next two days of practice are important for us to sharpen our skills offensively, defensively and on the mound."

Army West Point batted around in its first trip to the plate and plated five runs in the inning. Jensen started the scoring with a bases-loaded, two-run double to the gap in left center field. Dickerson followed and with an RBI, Jensen scored on a passed ball to make it 4-0 before Levenhagen's infield single increased the advantage to 5-0. All the runs came off of Manhattan starting pitcher Steve Arntsen, who finished off the frame before being lifted for Joe Jaques. Arntsen's line was five earned runs on four hits, with two walks and two strikeouts.

The lead held for the Black Knights until the top of the fourth inning. Brenden Bisset sliced a one-out single over a leaping Jensen into left field and moved into scoring position on a groundout to second base. Evan Brown ripped a single through the hole on the right side to chase home Bisset for Manhattan's first run of the night. Ball picked off Brown at first base to close the frame and Army West Point led 5-1 after four complete innings.

Ball pitched into the fifth for Army, but was replaced by right-hander Stu Schley after conceding a leadoff single up the middle to Chris Kalousdian. The rookie reliever retired the first three batters he faced and stranded the inherited runner.

The Black Knights got to Jaques in the last of the fifth with a pair of extra base hits. Page legged out a double to left field and two batters later, Dickerson barreled a two-run shot over the left center field wall to extend Army West Point's lead to 7-1. The long ball was the first of Dickerson's career. With two outs and two men in scoring position, an error led to another run for the Cadets and Jaques left the game at that point. Jaques surrendered three runs, two earned, on three hits. The southpaw fanned four and walked two others.

The Jaspers threatened by loading the bases with one away in the top of the seventh and took advantage of an error to plate a run on a ground ball off the bat of Joe McClennan. Santisteban followed up with a two-run single through the hole on the left side to draw Manhattan within four runs at 8-4, but Schley limited the damage there with a groundout and a popup on the infield.

Patrick Gardner worked around a base hit in a scoreless eighth, prior to Garrison Franklin coming on to seal the victory with a clean ninth. Schley earned the victory to improve to 2-0 on the season.

Patriot League play picks up this weekend when Army West Point hosts Holy Cross. First pitch in Saturday's doubleheader is slated for noon. The Crusaders own an 8-4 Patriot League record and are tied for first-place in the conference standings.

Game Notes: Matt Ball made his first-career start on the mound ... the contest was the second-ever night game played at Johnson Stadium at Doubleday Field ... Greg Carter made his first start of the season in left field ... Alex Jensen posted his fifth multi-hit game of the season ... Alex Dickerson recorded his first-career three-hit game ... Dickerson drove in three for the second time in 2015.