WEST HAVEN, Conn. – A two-run single by Andrew Johnson (Branford, Conn./Branford / Wheaton) highlighted a four-run fourth inning that propelled the University of New Haven baseball team to a 5-4 victory over Southern Connecticut State on Tuesday afternoon at Frank Vieira Field. Nick Nunziato (Setauket, N.Y./Ward Melville) hit his third home run of the season in the win.

A Charger Athletics photo.

With the Northeast-10 Southwest Division triumph, the Chargers improve to 15-5 overall to match the best start by New Haven since 2010. The last team with a better 20-game start was the 2004 squad that went 16-4, while the program record is a 21-0 mark to open the 1970 season that ended with a trip to the NAIA College World Series.

New Haven is also 8-1 against NE-10 competition overall and 4-1 in divisional contests. The Owls drop to 12-7-1 with a 3-3 NE-10 mark and 1-3 divisional tally.

The Chargers’ offense also got an RBI double from Zach Collett (Westbrook, Maine/Westbrook), while Chris DeMorais (West Hartford, Conn./Conard) singled to extend his hitting streak to 10 games and scored a run.

On the mound, Taylor Candage (Portland, Maine/Deering) started and earned his fourth win of the spring. The right-hander ceded four earned runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out a pair in 7.1 innings of work. Jason Lewicki (Milford, Conn./Foran) got the final two outs of the eighth inning and Peter Jay (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) tossed a perfect ninth to record his 10th save in 10 opportunities.

After Candage and Rocco Cundari traded zeroes through three innings, both offenses broke through in the fourth frame. A suicide squeeze laid down by T.K. Kiernan put Southern Connecticut on top, 1-0, before the Chargers’ outburst in the home half of the stanza.

After Brendon Buckley (Monroe, Conn./Masuk) led off the inning with a double, Brendan O’Reilly dropped down a sacrifice bunt that yielded no outs when Cundari sailed a throw into right field. The error allowed Buckley to score the tying run and put O’Reilly in scoring position on second base. DeMorais then walked, and Joe Romanelli (Baldwin, N.Y./Holy Trinity) sacrificed both runners over. Johnson followed with a bloop single that stayed just fair and plated both runners to give New Haven a 3-1 advantage. The Chargers tacked on a fourth run when Collett doubled on a hit-and-run to score Johnson all the way from first base.

Nunziato added an apparent insurance run that proved to be the game-winner with a deep home run over the wall in left centerfield. The roundtripper was the team-leading third long ball for the freshman shortstop.

Eighth-inning RBI from Nick Baviello, A.J. Rouleau and Kiernan cut the margin to one run at 5-4, but Lewicki made a heads-up defensive play to cut down the tying run at the plate on a slow roller and then pitched around an error to leave two runners stranded. Jay slammed the door with a 1-2-3 ninth to close out the victory.

Cundari took the loss for the Owls, surrendering three earned runs on five hits and three walks in 4.2 innings. The SCSU right-hander struck out six batters.

New Haven, ranked in three major regional polls this week, travels to the Granite State this weekend to meet two perennial regional powers. The Chargers visit Southern New Hampshire for a noon doubleheader on Saturday and complete the swing with a Sunday twin bill at Franklin Pierce. A four-game home stand begins next Wednesday, April 10 against NE-10 divisional opponent Pace.

The University of New Haven’s men and women’s track and field team competed at the George Davis Invitational hosted by University of Massachusetts Lowell.

A Charger Athletics photo.

On the men’s side, graduate student David Thomas won two events along with nine other members of the UNH men’s track and field team, which turned in top-10 finishes at the Invitational.

Thomas won both the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.93 seconds and the long jump with distance of 6.80 meters. Thomas also finished second in the triple jump with a leap of 13.23 meters.

Right behind Thomas in the triple jump was freshman Ato Pinkrah with a personal best mark outdoors and a third-place mark of 13.00 meters.

Freshman Jamaal James ran the 400-meter dash for the first time in his career and placed 10th with a time of 49.60 seconds. Freshman Taylor DenBleyker competed in the 110-meter hurdles for the first time and came in fifth-place with a time of 16.15 seconds.

In the 4×400-meter relay, the team of James, Thomas, freshman Devin Rose and junior Christopher Dannenhoffer placed second with a time of 3:29.61 minutes. The UNH team who finished fourth with a time of 3:33.85 minutes consisted of freshman Chad Messam, senior Marvin Azor, sophomore Ryan Parris and freshman John Landi.

Freshman Sean Grady led the distance runners with a time of 1:56.97 minutes in the 800-meter run, breaking the two-minute mark for the first time in his career.

On the women’s side, sophomore Briana Conyers won the triple jump as one of the 20 top-eight finishes for UNH.

Conyers won the triple jump with a leap of 11.67 meters. She was followed by fourth-place finisher, sophomore Tiara Mitchell, with a distance of 11.22 meters. In the long jump, Conyers placed seventh at 5.02 meters and Senior Alissa Howell finished in eighth with a mark of 5.02 meters.

Also in the field, freshman Victoria Rozumek placed fourth in the high jump, clearing 1.50 meters. Senior Shraya Manick placed third in both the discus and the hammer. She hurled the discus 39.41 meters and threw 46.97 meters. Freshman Amy Park placed eighth in the javelin with a throw of 33.09 meters.

On the track, sophomore Ivy Watts led the Chargers with a second-place time of 58.69 seconds in the 400-meter dash. Freshman Jazmin Belcher placed eighth at 1:01.92.

Sophomore Monica Yanez finished second in the 100-meter high hurdles, running a time of 15.58 seconds; senior Meredith O’Connor finished behind Yanez in sixth place with a time of 15.98 seconds. Yanez also finished fifth in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:05.07 minutes.

Freshman Marsha’e Holt finished fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.57 seconds and placed sixth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.97 seconds.

The 4×400-meter relay team of Watts, Belcher, Holt and sophomore Samantha Mathewson finished fourth with a time of 4:10.67. The foursome of Conyers, Holt, Belcher and Howell placed sixth with a time of 51.34 seconds in the 4×100-meter relay.

In distance events, Mathewson finished sixth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at 12:17.18 minutes, and sophomore Danielle Sorrentino placed eighth in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 19:33.45 minutes.

The Chargers return to competition on Saturday, April 20, at the Larry Ellis Invitational hosted by Princeton University.

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The University of New Haven softball team split a doubleheader at Merrimack College on Saturday afternoon. The Chargers held on for a 6-5 win in game one, while the Warriors rebounded with a 6-1 victory in game two.

A Charger Athletics photo

New Haven moved to 16-7 on the season with the split. The Warriors are now 7-13 overall.

Game One

In the first three innings, both teams were held scoreless. The Chargers retired the side in the second and pitcher Micah Stonesifer (Archer City, Texas/Archer City / Vernon College) recorded a trio of strikeouts in the third.

After leaving runners on base in each of the first three innings, New Haven finally crossed the plate in the top of the fourth inning. On the first pitch of the inning, Keri Tricinelli (Brick, N.J./Monsignor Donovan) hit a homerun over the fence in right center to put UNH ahead 1-0. Stonesifer and the UNH defense held the Warriors scoreless in the bottom of the fourth, including a picked off runner at second base by Courtney Reed (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell).

In the top of the fifth, the Chargers loaded the bases after three batters were hit by pitches. Lucy Francisco (Lawrence, Mass./Lawrence ) then hit a three-RBI triple to left field to put UNH ahead 4-0. Reed drove in another run with a single to right field in the top of the fifth as well. The bottom of the fifth was scoreless for Merrimack once again.

Brandy Dianno (Philadelphia, Pa./Nazareth Academy) led off the sixth inning with a solo shot to right center to give the Chargers a 6-0 lead. After three straight outs and another scoreless bottom half of the inning, New Haven held a six run advantage heading into the seventh.

The Chargers were scoreless in the top of the seventh, but the Warriors loaded the bases and scored five runs with one out. Merrimack put the winning run on base before Stonesifer completed her sixth complete game victory of the season.

Francisco led the Chargers with her three RBI and one run scored. Tricinelli and Diano also ended with one RBI and one run after hitting homeruns.

Stonesifer improved to 7-3 with the win and a season-high 11 strikouts.

Game Two

In the first three innings, both teams were scoreless yet again. After allowing two early hits, Nicole King (Front Royal, Va./Warren County) struck out six in the first three innings. She struck out the side in the bottom of the second to hold the game at 0-0.

New Haven was first to strike when Jess Spivey (Holland, Pa./Council Rock) hit a homerun to right center in the top of the fifth inning. The Chargers 1-0 lead didn’t last long as Merrimack answered in the bottom of the fifth with five runs off six hits.

The Chargers put runners on base in the top of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, but were unable to drive in another run. The Warriors added a solo homerun in the bottom of the sixth inning to seal a 6-1 victory.

Merrimack’s Alexis Perry earned the win in the circle for Merrimack with the complete game. King suffered the loss for UNH in three 2/3 innings pitched. Brittany Scott (Buena, N.J./Buena Regional) appeared in relief and posted two strikeouts and gave up one run.

Spivey went 2-for-2 at the plate with the solo homerun. Christina Gelardi (Derby, Conn./Derby) went 2-for-3 at the dish, while Francisco was the only other Charger with a hit.

MANCHESTER, N.H. – Left-hander Pat Simone (Branford, Conn./Branford) and righty Peter Jay (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) combined on a five-hit shutout in game one to guide the University of New Haven baseball team to a doubleheader split at No. 13/17 Southern New Hampshire. The Chargers took game one, 5-0, and dropped the nightcap by a score of 6-1.

Following the split, New Haven stands at 16-6 overall. The Penmen, ranked nationally in both major national polls and slotted at No. 1 in the East Region on all three major regional ledgers, move to 20-8. Northeast-10 cross-divisional games do not count in the conference standings.

Simone scattered three hits, two walks and hit batsman in eight shutout innings of work. The southpaw racked up 11 strikeouts en route to improving his record to 4-0 and shrinking his season earned run average to 1.69. Jay posted a zero in the ninth to run his streak to 14.1 scoreless frames to begin the season.

Offensively, Andrew Johnson (Branford, Conn./Branford / Wheaton) went 2-for-4 with two runs batted in in the opener, while Zach Collett (Westbrook, Maine/Westbrook) and Kyle Cullen (Dumont, N.J./Dumont) each had a base-hit and an RBI. Brendan O’Reilly scored two runs and stole a base, while Chris DeMorais (West Hartford, Conn./Conard) extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a single and also stole two bases.

In Game 2, Stephen Clout (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern) and O’Reilly had New Haven’s two hits while Brendon Buckley (Monroe, Conn./Masuk) scored the Chargers’ lone run. Clout and Buckley each swiped a base as well.

Game 1

The Chargers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Clout was hit by a pitch to leadoff the game and moved to second on a Buckley sacrifice. O’Reilly walked and Joe Romanelli (Baldwin, N.Y./Holy Trinity) was hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs for Johnson, who ripped a two-run single to left field to pick up his 10th and 11th runs batted in of the spring.

In the top of the third frame, New Haven once again pushed a run across with one only base-hit. O’Reilly worked his second walk of the game with one out and DeMorais singled to put runners on the corners. After Romanelli was again hit by a pitch, Collett drew a two-out bases loaded walk to plate a run and chase Gibson from the game after just 2.2 innings.

With Simone continuing the post zeroes, the Chargers extended their margin to 4-0 in the top of the sixth inning as Collett started the frame with a double, moved to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Nunziato and came around the final 90 feet on a Cullen RBI single.

The Chargers added an unearned run in the top of the eighth inning, as Johnson singled with one out and later crossed the plate on a fielding error in the SNHU infield to run the score to its final of 5-0.

David Gibson took the loss, surrendering three earned runs on two hits and three walks while striking out six.

Game 2

New Haven opened the scoring in the nightcap as well. After two quick outs, Buckley worked a walk and moved into scoring position on an O’Reilly base knock. A Penmen defensive miscue allowed the run to score as a fielding error at the hot corner brought Buckley around from second base to give the Chargers a 1-0 lead.

Southern New Hampshire got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with an unearned tally of its own. Jon Minucci was hit by a pitch with one out, took second on a wild pitch, moved to third on a groundout and came home via a passed ball as the Penmen tied the score at 1-1 without the benefit of a base-hit in the inning.

The home team took its first lead of the twin bill on a Brendan O’Brien RBI double and extended the margin to 3-1 on a run-scoring wild pitch in the fifth. SNHU tacked on three more runs in the bottom of seventh to round out the final score of 6-1.

Henry Hirsch (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale) started on the mound for New Haven and took the loss. He ceded two earned runs on four hits and three walks with two hit batsmen. The right-hander struck out four batters while dropping to 2-2. Derek Drag (South Meriden, Conn./O.H. Platt / Manchester C.C.) and TJ Margiotta (New City, N.Y./Clarkstown North) finished the game for the Chargers.

Joe McCarthy notched the win for SNHU, allowing just one unearned run on two hits. Alex Powers picked up the save with three innings of hitless relief.

The Chargers return to the diamond tomorrow with another round of Northeast-10 cross-divisional action at No. 30 Franklin Pierce. The doubleheader from Rindge is set for noon. The Ravens swept Southern Connecticut State this afternoon to improve to 20-9.

MANCHESTER, N.H. – Senior Natalie Lieberman (Manorville, N.Y./Eastport South Manor) scored a game-high five goals to lead the nationally ranked No. 13 University of New Haven women’s lacrosse team to a 12-11 victory at Saint Anselm College Saturday evening. The Manorville, N.Y. native scored her fifth goal of the game and the eventual game-winner with 1:31 left in regulation to lift the Chargers to their fifth win of the season.

Charger Athletics photo.

The Chargers improved to 5-5 overall and 3-2 in the Northeast-10 Conference with the win. The Hawks dropped to 7-2 overall and 4-1 in the NE-10 with the loss.

The first half saw very little action with both teams scoring just four goals. The Hawks struck first just over one minute into the contest. Freshman Courtney Ackland (Perth, Western Australia/Churchlands) tied the game at 1-1 with a goal at the 19:23 mark. Just over one minute later, Saint Anselm took the lead back with its second of the game. The Hawks lead grew to two points with 15:45 left in the first half with a free position goal from Kaitlyn Stazinski. Saint Anselm scored its four goal of the game with 12:44 and the Hawks took a 4-1 lead.

At the 11:40 mark, Kathryn Campbell (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield) scored New Haven’s second goal, off a free position shot, and brought the lead back within two. Five minutes later, New Haven got back within one when Natalie Lieberman (Manorville, N.Y./Eastport South Manor) scored an unassisted goal with 6:36 left in the half. Campbell would even the game once again with her second goal of the half at the 2:09 mark. Marissa McDermott (Longmeadow, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) stopped the Hawks final attempt as time expired in the first half and the game went into halftime tied at 4-4.

In the second half, the lead changed three times and the score was tied another five times. The Hawks scored the first of the second half to take a 5-4 lead. The Chargers then went on a 3-0 run to take a 7-5 lead with 25:09 on the clock. #Kristina Curry scored the first of the streak, while Nicole McKee (Wantagh, N.Y./MacArthur) and Lieberman finished the stretch. UNH maintained the lead until the 13:35 mark when the Hawks evened the score at 8-8. Saint Anselm continued on a 3-0 run to take its second lead of the half with 12:51 on the clock.

Lieberman scored her third of the game with 11:35 left to even the score at 9-9. Courtney Ackland (Perth, Western Australia/Churchlands) and Lieberman would each score another in the next three 1/2 minutes to give the Chargers a comfortable 11-9 lead. Saint Anselm would score two more to tie the game at 11-11 once again in the final four minutes. Lieberman’s game-winner was the game’s final point and the Chargers sealed the victory.

McDermott finished the game with seven saves between the pipes for UNH and earned her third win this season.

Lieberman added two assists in the game for a total of seven points. Campbell finished the game with two goals and one assist for three total points. The sophomore also grabbed a team-high four draw controls and two ground balls. McKee scored two goals and also grabbed four draw controls in the win.

New Haven will next face nationally ranked Adelphi University on Tuesday, April 9. Game time in Garden City, N.Y. is set for 7 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Four pitchers scattered eight hits and Zach Collett (Westbrook, Maine/Westbrook) and Nick Nunziato (Setauket, N.Y./Ward Melville) each homered to lead the University of New Haven baseball team past host American International, 9-0, on Friday afternoon at AIC Park. The win was the sixth-straight triumph for the Chargers.

A Charger Athletics Photo

With its third shutout win of the season, New Haven moves to 12-4 overall, 6-0 in Northeast-10 play and 2-0 against NE-10 Southwest Division competition.

Collett and Nunziato were two of five Chargers with two hits in the game, as UNH totaled 13 knocks against Yellow Jacket pitching. Stephen Clout (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern), #Brendan O’Reilly and Andrew Johnson# also had a pair of hits apiece. Collett’s roundtripper was a two-run shot, Nunziato’s drove in three runs and Chris DeMorais (West Hartford, Conn./Conard) added an RBI as well. New Haven also scored on a steal of home by O’Reilly and benefitted from seven AIC errors.

Southpaw Joey Royer (Westbrook, Maine/Cheverus) started the game on the mound and worked two scoreless frames before being relieved by Henry Hirsch (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale). The right-hander struck out nine batters and ceded just three hits in five frames out of the bullpen to earn the win and move to 2-1. Right-handers #John Melville and Derek Drag# each tossed an inning to complete the shutout.

New Haven pitching has now worked 29 innings since last issuing a walk and 32.2 frames since its last non-intentional free pass.

The Chargers started the scoring with a pair of two-out runs in the top of the first inning. Clout led off the game with a single and, two batters later, O’Reilly followed with a base knock. An AIC throwing error extended the inning and allowed Clout to score, and another defensive miscue loaded the bases. During the next at-bat, O’Reilly took off for home and beat the throw to steal a second UNH run in the frame.

Joe Romanelli (Baldwin, N.Y./Holy Trinity) singled with one out in the third frame to keep his recent hot streak alive, and stole second base. The senior catcher was then able to trot the rest of the way home as Collett’s second home run of the spring extended the New Haven lead to 4-0.

As Charger pitching continued to post zeroes, the visitors extended their lead in the top of the fifth. O’Reilly legged out a bunt single to open the stanza and moved into scoring position on a passed ball. DeMorais, who is now riding a six-game hitting streak, followed with a ground-rule double to run the margin to 5-0.

Yellow Jackets’ right-hander Spencer Prusack was greeted rudely in relief in the top of the eighth inning. Johnson and Collett roped back-to-back singles to begin the frame and Nunziato brought everybody home with a three-run shot to right field – the freshman shortstop’s second of the season.

An unearned run in the top of the ninth inning capped the scoring. Pinch hitter Tim Geer (Derby, Conn./Derby) worked a one-out walk and hustled around to third base on a throwing error with two outs in the inning. Another AIC fielding error on a groundball hit by Johnson allowed Geer to score and push the margin to its final of 9-0.

Daniel Guerrero took the loss for AIC to drop to 1-2. The righty ceded five runs (three earned) on 10 hits in seven innings. He struck out six batters and did not issue a walk.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The University of New Haven baseball team completed one comeback while a second rally fell short en route to a doubleheader split at American International on Saturday in Springfield. The Chargers took game one, 4-2, and lost by an 8-4 count in the nightcap against their Northeast-10 Southwest Division foes.

A Charger Athletics Photo

New Haven, which also claimed yesterday’s encounter to win the season series with the Yellow Jackets, extended their winning streak to seven games before dropping the second game today. The Chargers now stand at 13-5 overall, 7-1 against Northeast-10 competition overall and 3-1 in the NE-10 Southwest Division.

Designated hitter Chris DeMorais (West Hartford, Conn./Conard) went 4-for-8 in the doubleheader with two RBI and a run scored to extend his hitting streak to eight games. Left fielder Kyle Cullen (Dumont, N.J./Dumont) hit a pair of triples in game one as a part of his three hits. Cullen added an RBI and scored twice. Third baseman Brendon Buckley also had three hits, including a triple, with a pair of runs scored and a stolen base. New Haven also got two hits apiece from first baseman Zach Collett (Westbrook, Maine/Westbrook), catcher Joe Romanelli (Baldwin, N.Y./Holy Trinity) and right fielder Stephen Clout (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern). Clout also drove in two runs. Romanelli stole a pair of bags, with Collett and centerfielder Brendan O’Reilly each recording a successful theft on the basepaths as well.

Second baseman Andrew Johnson (Branford, Conn./Branford / Wheaton) went just 1-for-4 at the dish but worked three walks to bolster his on-base percentage to .571 in the twin bill. He also laid down a successful sacrifice bunt and drove in a run. O’Reilly was hitless but picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly.

Frank Vilacha (Dartmouth, Mass./Dartmouth) moved to 3-0 with the win in game one. Vilacha worked the first seven innings, ceding just three hits and two earned runs. The right-hander struck out four batters and did not issue a walk. Peter Jay (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) posted two zeroes to convert his eighth save of the spring in eight opportunities.

In the nightcap, southpaw Pat Simone (Branford, Conn./Branford) racked up 10 strikeouts in seven innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits and no walks in a no-decision.

As a staff, the Chargers saw their streak of consecutive innings without issuing a walk end at 45.1 frames. The string of 49.2 consecutive innings without allowing a non-intentional free pass remains intact.

Game 1

After Vilacha and AIC starter Matt Lee traded zeroes for three innings, both teams broke through in the fourth stanza. The Chargers started the scoring in the top of the inning as O’Reilly worked a leadoff walk, stole second and moved to third on an errant throw by the catcher. DeMorais followed with a solid single into centerfield to plate the game’s first run.

The Yellow Jackets answered in their half of the inning, take a 2-1 advantage after plating runs on a Dave Clark triple and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Lucas Vallas.

UNH stormed into the lead in the top of the seventh inning. Collett led off with a walk and moved into scoring position on a Johnson sacrifice. Cullen cashed in on the RBI opportunity with a game-tying triple – his second three-bagger of the day – and scored the go-ahead tally on a single up the middle by Clout.

The Chargers ran the margin to its eventual final of 4-2 in the eighth inning as Romanelli singled, stole second base and scored on a Johnson base-hit.

Lee (1-2) surrendered four runs (two earned) on eight hits and four walks in 7.2 innings for the Yellow Jackets. He struck out four batters.

Game 2

New Haven opened the scoring in the nightcap as well. Buckley singled with one out in the first inning and, after swiping second base, came home an RBI single from DeMorais.

After three perfect innings by Simone, the home team touched up the southpaw on his second trip through the lineup. Clark scored a run on a balk in the bottom of the fourth and Mike Coyne stroked a two-run homer to put AIC on top, 3-1.

The Chargers cut the deficit in half in the fifth frame on a Clout double and surged into the lead in the top of the eighth. Buckley led off the frame with a triple and scored on an O’Reilly sacrifice fly. DeMorais then singled to reset the table and, following a pitching change, moved to second base on a failed pickoff attempt. After a passed ball, Collett lofted a sacrifice fly to push the go-ahead across.

The 4-3 advantage did not last long, however, as AIC regained the lead with five runs in the bottom of the eighth stanza. Clark knocked in the game-tying run with a double and Coyne’s two-run single put the Yellow Jackets on top for good at 6-4. Zach Kane followed with a two-RBI single to round out the scoring at 8-4.

Geoff McCowat (2-0) got the win in relief, recording the final five outs for AIC. Taylor Candage (Portland, Maine/Deering) allowed one earned run on two hits in 0.1 innings to take the loss out of the Chargers’ bullpen.

The University of New Haven’s men’s track and field team competed at the UConn Spring Invite in Storrs on Saturday, March 30, where they achieved nine personal records.

A Charger Athletics Photo

The Chargers competed against Division I programs Connecticut and Rhode Island in addition to several unattached athletes.

Freshman Jamaal James set a personal record in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.55 seconds. James also ran the 200-meter dash in a time of 23.48 seconds, finishing behind graduate student David Thomas, who ran the dash in 21.84 seconds.

Sophomore Nazim Roberts-Smith also ran the 200-meter dash in 24.59 seconds, along with finishing the 400-meter dash with a time of 51.36 seconds.

Freshman Taylor DenBleyker competed in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles for the first outdoor meet of his collegiate career. He ran a time of 58.28 seconds. Freshman Kymm Gordon finished after DenBleyker with a time of 1:04.03 minutes for his first collegiate competition.

James, Thomas, freshman Ato Pinkrah, and senior Kendrick Butler clocked in at 43.85 seconds in the 4×100-meter relay. In the 4×400-meter relay, Roberts-Smith, James, sophomore Joseph Kingston, and DenBleyker finished with a time of 3:29.48 minutes and were followed by the foursome of freshman Chad Messam, seniors Marvin Azor and Arnold Lane and freshman Sean Grady with a time of 3:35.67.

For distance events, Messam also ran the 800-meter run, where he led the Chargers and improved his time from last weekend in Virginia with a personal record of 2:03.62 minutes. Sophomore Ryan Parris and Azor also ran the 800-meter and finished the event in 2:06.13 and 2:07.81 minutes, respectively.

In the 1,500-meter run, Grady also set a new personal record with a time of 4:05.97 minutes, while Lane finished in 4:22.15 minutes.

Thomas bettered his NCAA provisional mark and won the long jump with a personal outdoor-best jump of 7.30 meters. Sophomore Tyler Valalik also competed in the long jump and finished with a distance of 6.49 meters, while freshman Jason Bielesz leapt 5.38 meters in his first career outdoor meet.

For the throwing events, freshman Jordan Rippe improved his mark from last weekend in two events. He hurled the shot put 12.53 meters and recorded a throw of 36.56 meters in the hammer throw.

Both the men and women’s track and field team return to action next Saturday at the George Davis Invitational hosted by Massachusetts Lowell.

WEST HAVEN, Conn. – With eight runs off five hits in the bottom of the third inning, the University of New Haven softball team swing its way to a 10-2, five inning victory over American International College Friday afternoon. Christina Gelardi (Derby, Conn./Derby) led the team with two hits, two RBI and a run scored, while Courtney Reed (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell) went 1-for-1 with two walks at the plate with two RBI and two runs in the win.

New Haven improved to 11-5 overall and 1-1 in the Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division. The Yellow Jackets dropped to 3-9 overall and 1-3 in NE-10 divisional play.

AIC took an early lead at the UNH Softball Field. UNH walked a run in midway through the top of the first and then a solo homerun to left field in the top of the third inning gave the Yellow Jackets and early 2-0 lead.

The New Haven bats took a few innings to get started, but in the bottom of the third with two outs the Chargers found their first hit. UNH strung together five hits along with one AIC error to score eight runs in the bottom of the inning. New Haven hit completely through the order with a two-RBI homerun down the left field line from Reed highlighting the string.

The Yellow Jackets put one runner on base in the top of the fourth, while Gelardi singled up the middle in the bottom of the inning. Both runners were left on base and the game went into the fifth.

A six-pitch top of the fifth inning retired the side for AIC. In the bottom half, two hits and a walk loaded the bases for Lucy Francisco (Lawrence, Mass./Lawrence ). The senior tapped a single up the middle and drove in the Chargers’ ninth run of the afternoon. After a force out at home, Gelardi drew a bases loaded walk and the Chargers went ahead by eight, 10-2, to earned the mercy rule victory.

Nicole King (Front Royal, Va./Warren County) started the game for New Haven and threw two 1/3 innings. Brittany Scott (Buena, N.J./Buena Regional) pitched the final two 2/3 innings and earned the win, allowing two hits and striking out one. The rookie improved to 3-1 on the season.

Along with Gelardi and Reed, the UNH bats were led by Meghan Chamoff (Roslyn Heights, N.Y./Herricks) with two hits and one run in three at-bats. Jess Spivey (Holland, Pa./Council Rock) went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one run as well.

WOODBRIDGE, Conn. – Eva Rybka (Berlin, Conn./Berlin) won her No. 1 singles and teams with Lindsey Conley (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury ) in No. 1 doubles for a pair of victories to lead the University of New Haven women’s tennis team to a 5-4 victory over Le Moyne College Saturday afternoon at Amity High School. The match’s deciding win came from Angelica Pecci (Watertown, Conn./Holy Cross) in No. 5 singles, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4. The freshman’s match took three hours and three sets.

A Charger Athletics Photo

The Chargers improved to 4-5 overall and 4-4 in Northeast-10 Conference play with the win. Le Moyne dropped to 5-7 overall and 4-5 in conference action.

Alexandra Sharshakov (Reisterstown, Md./Garrison Forest) also won her No. 4 singles match in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0. New Haven’s final point came in No. 3 doubles where Sharshakov and Jess MacPhee (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) defeated Kristine Kenny and Jessica Heary 8-4.

Rybka and Pecci both won their first matches of the season in singles, while Sharshakov improved to 2-0. Rybka and Conley improved to 4-4 in doubles competition with their win. Sharshakov and MacPhee now stand at 1-1 in doubles on the season.

After the match, first year head coach Jeff Bricker commended the team for their victory. “The team’s been working very hard on consistency and focus during their singles matches and today it really paid off,” he said. “Today’s victory was a complete team effort earning five points. I’m very proud of the team’s heart and determination today,” he added.