HOLBROOK, NY - On a record setting Saturday in Holbrook, N.Y., the Apprentice School baseball team won a U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheader defeating St. Joseph's College-Brooklyn 16-8 and Briarcliffe College 9-1.
The wins put the Builders record to 24-13 with a single-game left in the regular-season schedule on Monday at 3 pm in Fredericksburg, Va. against the University of Mary Washington.
Apprentice School 16, St. Joseph's College-Brooklyn 8
In the opener of the day against the Bears, Apprentice School scored in all but one inning as they defeated the Bears.
Apprentice School started with four runs in the first inning as Ryan Wagner singled and scored on a wild pitch, Jonathan Dehoux singled and scored on a sacrifice fly from Andrew Yonta and Chris Kennedy hit his first home run on the year to drive in Dory Fields who reached on an error.
In the second, Chris Scarola doubled and advanced to third on an error before scoring on a sacrifice fly from Wagner to lead 5-1. Dehoux started the third inning with his record-tying 12th home run on the year for a 6-1 lead.
After giving up a run in the bottom of the third, the Builders put up another four-spot in the fourth as Dehoux broke the single-season home run record with a grand slam putting the Builders up 10-2. Tony Brown held the record with 12 home runs in 2001.
St. Joseph's-Brooklyn (8-21) scored three runs in the bottom of the fourth with two coming on a Kevin Diaz single before the Builders answered with three more in the top of the fifth. Josh Tuck drove in a pair with and Dehoux drove in his sixth run of the game.
Fields started the sixth with his fourth home run on the year to lead 14-5. A run-scoring single from Yonta drove in Tuck who had doubled and stole third for a 15-5 advantage. The Bears scored twice in the seventh and one in the eighth and the Builders scored one more in the ninth as Tuck singled, stole second and third before scoring on a balk.
Dehoux was 4-for-6 with six RBIs to lead a 15-hit attack. Tuck was 3-for-5 with three runs scored and three stolen bases. Tabb Griffey went seven innings to earn his sixth win on the year for the Builders.
Apprentice School 9, Briarcliffe 1
In the nightcap of the split doubleheader, the Builders followed suit from Thursday as they had one big inning and used that to defeat the top-ranked Seahawks 9-1. On Thursday it was a six-run second inning in its 10-4 win.
That win turned the table from the first weekend in April when the Seahawks came to Newport News and took a three-game series from the then ranked number one Builders. Briarcliffe entered this weekend ranked number one in the latest USCAA coaches poll, while the Builders were third.
In a five-run third inning, Dehoux drove in the first run with a groundout to score Scarola who started with a single. After Yonta was hit by a pitch, Fields drove in a pair with a double. One batter later, Will Johnson singled in a pair to take a 5-0 lead.
Briarcliffe scored its run in the bottom of the third as Tom Locrotondo singled and eventually scored on a passed ball.
The Builders scored a run in the sixth as Johnson started the inning with the first home run of his career. In the ninth, the Builders scored three more as two came on RBI singles from Yonta and Kennedy and a fielders choice from Johnson.
Junior Mike Opauski earned his first win on the season throwing five innings allowing four hits and one run. Coire Barnitz pitched the final four innings allowing two hits in the process. The Builders defense was huge throughout the game as they turned a school-record six double plays in the nine-inning game.
Johnson was 2-for-5 with four RBIs and a home run, while Fields was 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs in the victory.