Jaila Williamson broke the 50 meter freestyle school record twice, with her times in both the preliminary and final races dropping below the previous record. GOJASPERS.COM / COURTESY
Andrew Mannion, Sports Editor
Men’s Basketball
The Jaspers men’s Basketball team had a game against Merrimack in Draddy on Friday night. With Merrimack leading the MAAC with an 11-2 record coming in, they looked the part as they put up an impressive 42 points in the first half of gameplay. The Warriors shot 50% from the field for the half, and held a nine point lead over the Jaspers.
Merrimack held on to the lead for the first portion of the second half, but Manhattan went on quite the run to close out the game. Being down 11, they managed to tie the game and go on an 11-0 run unanswered. After a free throw from Merrimack put them back up one, Masiah Gilyard hit a big three-pointer to put the Jaspers up by the same amount.
GOJASPERS.COM / COURTESY
The Jaspers closed out the next four minutes of the game, and took down the MAAC’s number one seed with a score of 79-75. This win puts the Jaspers in a three-way tie for fifth place in the conference, and Merrimack in a tie for first place with Quinnipiac.
The Jaspers’ next game will be against Iona, which will be broadcasted nationally on ESPNU.
Swim & Dive
Both men’s and women’s swim teams competed in the MAAC Championships last week. Hosted in Geneva, Ohio, the four day event lasted from Wednesday to Saturday, and included some big milestones for the Jaspers.
Jaila Williamson broke the Jasper record for the 50 meter freestyle. Her time of 23.85 seconds was good enough to win her heat in the B final and place ninth overall in the MAAC.
Joe Brennan also made the A final for the 100 meter breaststroke, as well as joining the men’s 400 medley team. The 400 medley team included John Carsen, Abelardo Cartagena and Gavin Harding as well.
The women’s team also found themselves in the finals, with their 400 meter medley team consisting of Jaila Williamson, Sophia Leber, Ella Feneide and Leticia Fontes.
Baseball
The Jaspers’ baseball team started their season in Mississippi against the #18 ranked Mississippi State Diamond Dawgs. They dropped both games of the first doubleheader 17-3 and 13-1, respectively.
In the first game, the Jaspers started scoring in the later minutes. In the seventh inning, Tyler Galetti was able to drive home two runs with a double down the right field line. In the next at bat, Dylan Mayer got a base knock to drive in the third and final run of the game.
For game two, the Jaspers had Brad Grasser on the mound. He was able to go 4.2 innings, and strike out four batters. This gained the kudos of Interim Head Coach Steve Rosen.
“I thought Brad Grasser really competed and showed what he is about,” Rosen said in an interview with GoJaspers. “Some really competitive at-bats throughout the day.”
Men’s Lacrosse
Men’s Lacrosse fell to Vermont on Saturday afternoon by a score of 12-6. The offense saw most of its production in the second half, with contributions coming from all around. The six goals scored came from five different players. Connor Engel netted ten for Jaspers, with an assist as well.
Defensively, the Jaspers had good stats, despite the 13 goals. Jaspers’ goalie, Connor Hapward, was able to tally an impressive 15 saves. The defense also combined for eight caused turnovers, Damien Blando leading the way with two of his own.
The Jaspers will take a trip to Fairfield next week, as they take on the Stags next Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m.
Women’s Lacrosse
The women’s lacrosse team fell at home to Hofstra, 18-5. Emily Fiola and Olivia Cruthers led the way for the offense, netting two goals each. Their goals kept the Jaspers in the game early on, with the first quarter ending 2-1. Hofstra would take over from there, going on a 14-2 run from the second quarter till the final buzzer.
The Jaspers will begin a road stretch next week, as their first of three straight road games will be against FDU on Wednesday afternoon.