Ramapo Baseball Splits Doubleheader with Stockton

Photo by Justin Roth

The baseball team split a doubleheader against Stockton on Saturday, winning game one 13-6, and losing the second game 10-2.

The Roadrunners moved to 15-8 overall and currently are part of a  three-way tie for second place in the NJAC standings with a 4-2 conference record.

“We’re working very, very hard, and everybody’s doing their best,” said head coach Rich Martin.  “I always tell the guys ‘when you do your best you can’t lose.’  You can lose the game, but you can’t do more than your best. We’re going in the right direction.”

In the first game of the doubleheader, senior Tom Portesy earned his fifth win on the year. He spent six innings on the mound and let up five hits, three runs and five strikeouts; however, Portesy walked six batters and and hit two batters with his pitch.

“I think he just had an off day,” said Martin. “He wasn’t as sharp as he’s been in the past, and it happens, but he did a nice job of keeping us in the game.”

Portesy, who is 5-0 this season, now holds a 2.38 ERA with a 1.26 WHIP. He’s also striking out batters at a rate of 12.18 strikeouts per nine innings.

After a walk off home run against Penn State Berks on March 29, junior Joe Venturino kept his hot bat in flames as he went four for five at the plate in the first game with a double and three RBIs. He also crossed home plate three times in the victory.

After going one for four in game two, Venturino is batting a team-high .443, good for the fourth-best average in the NJAC. His .716 slugging percentage and five home runs lead all players in the conference.

Senior Chris Werr went 4 for 4 with three RBIs and two runs. His .400 batting average is the second-best for Ramapo and the 10th best in the NJAC.

Venturino and Werr have the second and sixth most hits in the conference with 39 and 32, respectively.

“If they don’t hit, then we have a problem,” said Martin.  “I’m not surprised by [their success].”

Venturino and Werr both received NJAC Player of the Week honors earlier this season.

However, game two did not go so well for the Roadrunners, as the Ospreys did not look back after a six-run sixth inning.

The Roadrunners were held to just three hits in the game, two from junior Jared Ensmenger, and one from Venturino.  The pitching staff let up 10 runs, but only five of them were earned.

“I think it was the mistakes catching up to us,” said Martin.  “When you make mistakes, we’ve come back from a lot of mistakes, but you can’t always come back. We just couldn’t overcome all of the mistakes we made.”

The Roadrunners are back in action this week in a home-and-home series against Rutgers-Newark on Thursday and Friday, and then will travel to Rutgers-Camden on Saturday.

rmorik@ramapo.edu