DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (July 3, 2024) – For the ninth year, Mercy University Athletics will recap the year by counting down the Top-10 most memorable moments of the 2023-24 season, with all 10 sports represented.
Mercy University Athletics will release a Top-10 moment, as chosen by the athletics staff, with a recap every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, culminating with the top moment from the 2023-24 athletic year being unveiled on Monday, July 22nd.
No. 9 – Baseball Wins 20 Games for Fourth Time Since 2018
Coming in at No. 9 in our 2023-24 Top-10 Moments is baseball who recorded 20 wins in a season for the fourth time since 2018 and just missed out on qualifying for the ECC Championship.
Head Coach Chris Schoen and the Mavericks entered the 2024 season picked fifth in the ECC Preseason Poll after winning their first ECC Tournament game since 2010 in 2023. The Mavericks opened their 2024 season down in Cary, North Carolina where they faced 2024 NCAA Tournament participant Goldey-Beacom and Saint Rose.
Mercy kicked off the season on February 16th with a doubleheader against the Lightning. The Mavericks exploded for 18 runs in their season-opening win over Goldey-Beacom, earning their first season-opening win since 2021 with a convincing 18-2 win. Graduate student Justin Glennerster went 5-for-6 with four runs and five RBI and recorded his 100th career hit, and junior Joseph Gonzalez went 2-for-4 with four RBI. Graduate student John Gillespie tossed five shutout innings with three hits allowed and three strikeouts to earn his first collegiate win. Mercy dropped a 9-2 decision in game two to Goldey-Beacom with sophomore John Nisco going 1-for-4 with his first career home run.
The Mavericks faced Saint Rose on February 17th, falling 8-7 in 10 innings to drop to 1-2 on the season. Junior Jaden Caballero led the Mavericks going 2-for-5 with three RBI. Freshman Peyton Jemison recorded his first career home run on February 18th, but Mercy fell to 1-3 on the year after a 15-8 loss to Saint Rose.
Following the opening weekend of play, Jemison was named ECC Rookie of the Week and Gillespie and Glennerster were tabbed to the Honor Roll. Mercy faced one of their stiffest tests of the season when they played at No. 9 UNC Pembroke on February 20th. After defeating the Braves last season, Mercy jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the third inning before UNC Pembroke battled back and earned a 12-7 win. Graduate student Brandon Nolasco led the Mavericks with a grand slam.
Schoen and the Mavericks entered their Myrtle Beach trip at 1-5 and opened the trip with a contest against Felician on February 23rd. Glennerster, Gonzalez, and Ashline all homered but it was not enough and Felician earned the 9-6 win.
Mercy snapped their five-game losing streak the next day when they earned a 5-3 game one win over Adelphi. The game was tied at 3-3 heading to the seventh inning when Ashline hit a two-run home run to give Mercy a 5-3 lead. Junior Jack Sullivan pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings and sophomore Riley Williams pitched a scoreless ninth inning to give Mercy the win. Game two saw Adelphi earn a 12-5 win with Nolasco hitting his second home run of the season and freshman Nevin Scaperotti recording his first two collegiate hits.
The Mavericks concluded their southern trip with an 18-2 loss to Bentley on February 25th. Sophomore Sean McAdams and Nolasco each had an RBI as Mercy headed back home with a 2-7 record. After the week's action, Glennerster and Sullivan were named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy began the month of March with their home opener on March 3rd against Southern Connecticut State. The Owls entered the games at 6-2 and were ranked third in the NCBWA East Region poll and were receiving votes nationally in the NCBWA Top 25 poll. The Mavericks had lost 13 straight meetings to Southern Connecticut State and had not beaten the Owls since 2013. That would change in game one with Mercy earning a 6-5 win over the Owls. Southern Connecticut State held a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning before graduate student Janiel Ramirez brought home Gonzalez on a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning to tie the game at 5-5. Jemison then singled home junior Gabe Sanders to give Mercy a 6-5 lead. Williams pitched three scoreless innings to give Mercy the 6-5 game one win. Ashline went 1-for-4 with his third home run of the season and McAdams went 4-for-4 with two runs. Scaperotti made his first collegiate start and tossed five innings with three runs allowed to take a no-decision. Williams earned his first win of the season.
Game two saw the Owls take a 3-0 lead in the top of the third. Mercy rallied with four runs in the bottom of the seventh to earn the 4-3 walk-off win. Junior Frankie Asaro led off the inning with a single, Ashline walked, and Gonzalez singled to load the bases. Nisco then delivered a bases-clearing double, tying the game at 3-3. Sanders then singled to center field, scoring Nisco to give Mercy the 4-3 walk-off win and doubleheader sweep. Nisco went 1-for-3 with three RBI and Sullivan tossed two scoreless innings of relief to earn his second win of the season. After the sweep, Jemison and Williams were named to the ECC Honor Roll on March 4th.
Mercy resumed action on March 8th when they played a doubleheader at Pace. Scaperotti tossed a gem in game one, tossing 7.2 shutout innings to help lead Mercy to a 7-0 win over the Setters. Ashline aided the offense with a game-high two RBI and junior Matthew Manzoeillo recorded the final four outs to preserve the shutout. The win was Scaperotti's first collegiate win. Game two saw Pace earn a 9-3 win to salvage the split.
The next day Mercy played at Pace again and dropped a 7-5 decision to fall to 5-9 on the year. Ashline produced his fourth home run of the season and Sanders, and junior Alfred Hoti recorded an RBI in the loss. The Mavericks concluded the season series with Pace on March 10th at Mercy Field with an 8-4 loss. Ashline continued his hot hitting going 2-for-5 with his fifth home run of the season. Following the series against Pace, Scaperotti was named ECC Pitcher of the Week and Ashline was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Mercy sat at 5-10 heading into their four-game series with Bridgeport on March 15th. The Mavericks got back in the win column with a 6-3 win over the Purple Knights. Gonzalez had a game-high three RBI and went 4-for-4 and Scaperotti earned his second win of the season with just one run allowed in six innings.
The Mavericks hosted Bridgeport for a doubleheader on March 16th, earning an 8-6 win in game one before falling 13-1 in game two. Ashline recorded his sixth home run of the season and had a game-high four RBI in game one. Graduate student Nolan Giblin went 3-for-3 with two runs and an RBI and Gonzalez went 3-for-4 with three runs.
Mercy capped off the four game series with a 10-5 win at Bridgeport on March 17th. Ashline, Giblin and Scaperotti combined for eight RBI in the win and Ashline smacked his seventh home run of the year. Manzoeillo pitched 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to earn his first win of the season.
The Mavericks moved to 8-11 on the year after winning the series against Bridgeport and Ashline, Gonzalez, and Scaperotti were named to the ECC Honor Roll on March 18th. Mercy resumed action on March 19th, earning an impressive 16-3 win over Dominican to move to 9-11. Eight different Mavericks recorded an RBI in the win, with Giblin going 3-for-5 with three RBI and Nolasco going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Schoen and the Mavericks opened ECC play on March 22nd at Staten Island with a doubleheader. Freshman Kyle Engmann had a team-high five RBI on the day and Ashline had a game-high two home runs and four RBI in game two as Mercy earned 8-4 and 11-0 wins over the Dolphins. Scaperotti pitched five innings with one run allowed and five strikeouts to earn his third win in game one and senior Ryan Rozinski tossed five shutout innings with eight strikeouts to earn his second win of the year. Mercy improved to .500 (11-11) following the sweep and started 2-0 in ECC play for the first time since 2022.
The two teams met up the next day for a doubleheader at Mercy Field. Staten Island earned an 8-3 win in game one before Mercy battled back and won game two, 11-7. In game two, the Mavericks trailed 7-4 heading to the bottom of the eighth. Mercy scored seven runs in the bottom of the eighth to give the Mavericks an 11-7 lead. Hoti had an RBI single in the inning, Gonzalez had a two-run single, and Sanders drew a bases-loaded walk to bring home the go-ahead run. Scaperotti plated the final two runs of the inning with a single to left center. Scaperotti went 3-for-5 with two RBI and Giblin went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Williams pitched seven innings of relief with no earned runs allowed to earn the win.
After the series win against the Dolphins, Scaperotti was named ECC Rookie of the Week and Ashline and Rozinski were named to the Honor Roll. The Mavericks sat at 12-12 on the year and received votes in the NCBWA East Region Top 10 poll for the first time this season on March 25th.
The Mavericks were back in action on March 29th when they played a doubleheader against Queens at Mercy Field. Mercy earned a 10-8 win in game one before falling 17-15 in game two. Nolasco went 2-for-3 with three RBI in game one and Hoti went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Game two saw Sanders go 3-for-5 with two home runs and six RBI and Hoti go 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI.
The two teams played the next day at Queens for a doubleheader with the Knights earning 16-15 and 10-4 wins over Mercy. Ashline had two home runs on the day, bringing his season total to 11. The 11 home runs tied the single-season school record for home runs previously set by Jim Schult in 1981 and Mike Ewald in 2001. Giblin and Sanders were named to the ECC Honor Roll after the Queens series.
Schoen and the Mavericks stepped out of conference play to begin the month of April, playing four games at No. 6 Millersville. Mercy opened the series with 8-2 and 8-1 losses on April 6th with Nisco homering in game two. The Mavericks concluded the series with 10-1 and 3-2 losses on April 7th with three different Mavericks recording an RBI. After the Millersville series, Rozinski was named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy sat at 13-19 and were on a seven-game losing streak heading into their midweek matchup against Saint Rose on April 9th. The Mavericks had previously lost to Saint Rose twice earlier this season, but Mercy came away with an 11-6 win on their home field this time around. Scaperotti went 2-for-6 with a game-high four RBI. Caballero went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI, recording his 100th career run scored. Sophomore Ryan Ehret pitched two scoreless innings of relief to earn his first collegiate win.
The Mavericks resumed ECC play on April 12th when they played at No. 16 Molloy. Caballero homered but the Mavericks dropped a 9-3 decision to the Lions. On April 13th, the two teams met again at Mercy Field and Molloy earned 10-6 and 14-5 wins over Mercy, despite home runs from Hoti and Nisco. Giblin recorded his 100th career RBI in game one, becoming the fourth Maverick in program history to record 100 career RBI. Mercy concluded the season series with Molloy on April 14th with a 4-3 loss in Uniondale. Three Mavericks recorded an RBI and Giblin became the second Maverick in program history to record 200 career hits. After the Molloy series, Caballero and Williams were named to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy entered their Lincoln series at 14-23 overall and 4-8 in ECC play, having lost 11 of their last 12 games. The Mavericks bounced back and earned a 4-2 win over Lincoln in the series opener on April 19th. Scaperotti tossed his first career complete game to earn his fourth win of the season and Caballero had a team-high two RBI. On April 20th, the two teams played a doubleheader with Mercy earning 11-6 and 6-4 wins over the Lions. In game one, Mercy was led by Hoti who went 3-for-4 with four RBI and by Nisco who went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Rozinski allowed no earned runs in six innings to earn the win. Game two saw Caballero go 3-for-5 with two RBI and Engmann go 3-for-4 with an RBI. Junior Scott Scheppy allowed two runs in six innings to earn his first win of the season. Mercy capped off the four-game series sweep with a 16-4 win on April 21st. Manzoeillo allowed two earned runs in five innings to earn the win and Nisco went 2-for-5 with three RBI and a home run.
Following the sweep of Lincoln, Hoti was named ECC Player of the Week, Scaperotti was tabbed Pitcher of the Week and Caballero was tabbed to the Honor Roll.
Schoen and the Mavericks were 18-23 overall and 8-8 in ECC play heading into the St. Thomas Aquinas series. On April 26th, Mercy opened the series at STAC with a 9-8 win. With the win, Schoen became the program's all-time winningest coach with his 129th career win. He surpassed the previous record of 128 wins set by current Deputy Athletic Director Bill Sullivan in 2009. Giblin went 4-for-5 with two RBI and sophomore Kolongi Goins went 2-for-5 with two RBI. Scaperotti allowed two earned runs in six innings to earn his fifth win of the season. Senior Gabriel Soto recorded the final three outs to earn the save. On April 27th, the two teams met again for a doubleheader at Mercy Field. The Spartans earned 9-5 and 6-4 wins over Mercy. Giblin went 1-for-3 in game two, recording his school record 211th career hit. He surpassed the previous record of 210 hits set by Chris Walpole in 1990. Mercy dropped the series finale, 13-4, on April 28th, falling to 19-26 overall and 9-11 in ECC play. Scaperotti was named ECC Rookie of the Week and Giblin was named to the Honor Roll after the STAC series.
Mercy opened their final series of the season on May 3rd against D'Youville. Scaperotti pitched 8.1 strong innings in game one and Ramirez had a team-high two RBI in game two as the Mavericks fell 3-1 and 8-5. In game two, Rozinski recorded his 100th career strikeout. The following day, Mercy hosted the Saints for Senior Day. In a ceremony prior to the game, the Mavericks honored Giblin, Glennerster, Ryan Dieguez, Nolasco, Joshua Alvarado, Rozinski, Ramirez, Lucas Prokosch, Gaetano Pennisi, Gabriel Soto and Nelson Perez Jr. for their contributions to the program. Despite a home run and game-high four RBI from Caballero, the Mavericks dropped a 7-4 decision to fall to 19-29 overall and 9-14 in ECC play.
With the team eliminated from postseason contention, the Mavericks looked to reach the 20-win benchmark for the fourth time since 2018. Mercy jumped out to a 10-0 lead and held on for the 12-11 win to snap D'Youville's 11-game winning streak and give the Mavericks their 20th win of the season. Glennerster went 3-for-4 with three RBI and Giblin went 1-for-2 with two RBI in their final collegiate game. Nisco went 3-for-5 with three RBI and Nolasco went 2-for-5 with two RBI. Following the final series of the season, Caballero, Nisco and Scaperotti were tabbed to the ECC Honor Roll.
Mercy ended the season 20-29 overall and 10-14 in ECC play, just missing out on qualifying for the ECC Tournament. Mercy has now won 20 or more games in four of seven full seasons under Schoen. Prior to Schoen's arrival as head coach in 2017, the last time Mercy won 20 games in a season was 1990. The Mavericks had three 20-win seasons from 1977-2016 prior to Schoen's arrival.
The All-Conference teams came out on May 8th and Scaperotti was named Rookie of the Year and Second Team All-ECC after being named ECC Pitcher of the Week twice and ECC Rookie of the Week twice. The freshman went 5-3 with a 4.52 ERA in a team-high 67.2 innings with a team-high 52 strikeouts. Scaperotti also hit a team-high .382 with 10 runs, 13 RBI, 26 hits and two doubles. Hoti was named Second Team All-ECC for the first time after starting 33 games with a .241 average, 28 RBI, two home runs, 21 runs and 27 hits. Caballero was named All-Conference for the third straight season and Second Team All-ECC for the second time. He hit .326 with 31 RBI, 57 hits, 39 runs, 11 doubles, three triples, two home runs and 14 stolen bases. Glennerster was tabbed Second Team All-ECC for the first time in his career after starting 35 games, hitting .350 with 43 hits, seven doubles, 19 RBI, one home run, one triple and 19 runs scored.
Giblin and Caballero also excelled in the classroom having been named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. Giblin ends his impressive five-year career with a school-record 214 hits. He is also second in program history in runs (143), third in RBI (107) and first in walks (90).
The 2024 season proved to be a successful one for the Mavericks. They will look to build upon that success and qualify for the ECC Tournament again in 2025.
Schedule for the Top-10 Moments of the 2023-24 Season
Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks, the Mercy University Athletic Department will release the Top-10 moments one at a time beginning with the No. 10 moment on Monday, July 1st. The No. 1 moment will be unveiled on Monday, July 22nd.
No. 1 – July 22nd
No. 2 – July 19th
No. 3 – July 17th
No. 4 – July 15th
No. 5 – July 12th
No. 6 – July 10th
No. 7 – July 8th
No. 8 - July 5th
No. 9 – July 3rd
No. 10 – Garrett Kirkland Sets School Record for Career Three-Pointers and Games Played
