Clearwater, FL - After five games in the 2018 Stetson Invitational this past weekend in DeLand, FL, the Manhattan Jaspers look to the second leg of their Florida trip, with an upcoming doubleheader against Army in Clearwater, and a return to DeLand for single games against Stetson and George Mason.
Manhattan will take on Army (3-12) Wednesday, March 14 starting at 11 a.m. The Black Knights are coming off a 10-3 loss to Bethune-Cookman on March 11 at the USF Under Armour Showcase. In that game, Army's Courney Springman pitched 4.2 innings, striking out two and allowing no earned runs. It was her fourth straight start in which she allowed no more than two earned runs. Army's Ally Snelling earned three multi-hit games in the USF tournament, extending her hitting streak to seven games.
On March 15, the Jaspers will take on both George Mason (8-8) at 1 p.m. and Stetson (16-9) at 6:30 p.m. George Mason junior Marina Vitalich recently became the program's all-time leader in career punch outs, with 396. The team also includes two players leading the Atlantic 10 in batting average: Jess Curbeira is tied at the top of the conference at .458, while Brooke Sullivan is fifth, at .409.
Manhattan has already faced Stetson this season, playing the Hatters this past weekend in their home tournament. The Jaspers won 9-2, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, including a grand slam from freshman catcher
Daniela Chiorazzi (Stony Point, NY / North Rockland). Manhattan will play the Hatters a third time on March 16 at 4 p.m.
At 7-5, the Jaspers currently hold the best record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). Senior
Briana Matazinsky (Valley Falls, NY / Tamarac) leads the league in hits at 15, while
Christine Gebhardt (Middletown, NJ / Middletown North) leads the MAAC in runs scored at 13. PItcher
Nicole Williams (Asonia, CT / St. Joseph's) sits at second in wins, with three in six games, and third in the conference in strikeouts (27).
