by Andy Smith
It was day 2 of the college baseball season, and although the local Division-I programs have gotten off to slow starts, it was the reigning ECC Champs that provided the bright spots for Long Island baseball.
Here’s how it went down…
Division-I:
STONY BROOK
It was another rough day for Stony Brook as they dropped the second game of the series against California State Northridge by a score of 14-4. The Seawolves could not keep up with the potent Matadors offense who jumped out to a five run lead in the first inning. The Matadors registered 17 total hits and two home runs. Despite the loss, first baseman Brett Paulsen was productive at the plate once again, this time with an RBI double. Senior Brandon Lashley was dominant in relief, throwing a scoreless 3.1 innings while striking out four. The Seawolves look to take the final game of the three game set on Sunday at 4:00 P.M. EST.
HOFSTRA
The Hofstra Pride continued their slow start to the season dropping both games of a doubleheader on Saturday against Florida Gulf Coast by the scores of 7-2 and 10-7. In Game 1, Hofstra fell behind 5-0 early and was fighting uphill the whole game. Cade Henry started and was tagged with the loss, going 3.1 innings, allowing 5 runs (3 ER). The Pride had six hits in the game with two coming off the bat of Santino Rosso. They scored on a Zach Bailey solo shot and RBI single by Ryan Morash. Game 2 was more competitive, as the Pride jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the second inning on a wild pitch and a sac fly by Santino Rosso. Will Kennedy crushed a solo shot in the fourth inning to give the Pride a 3-1 lead. That lead would not last, though, as the FGCU offense was relentless, scoring six runs in the fifth inning and twice in the sixth to break the game open at 9-3. Hofstra fought back in the eighth inning on a two-run single by Zach Bailey and an error made it a 9-7 game, but that’s as close as they would get. John Mikolaicyk was tagged with the loss – he allowed 7 ER over five innings. Sean Hamilton made his collegiate debut, allowing 2 ER over 1.2 innings, walking four and striking out two (3 wild pitches). The Pride had 9 hits, two apiece by Will Kennedy and Jake Liberatore. They will look to salvage the trip with a victory today at noon before coming home and opening up against Albany on Friday.
FORDHAM
The Fordham Rams were unable to tame the Dallas Baptist offense and dropped the second game of the three game series. Dallas put up a 13-spot against the Rams by the fourth inning. Fordham pitchers could not contain the Patriots who hit four homeruns and tallied 17 hits. Despite the loss, third baseman/right fielder Daniel Bucciero registered two hits, one being an RBI single. The Rams look to take the final game in the series on Sunday at 2:00PM EST.
Long Island University
LIU dropped the second game of the series against Winthrop. LIU was down by six runs at one point but continued to fight back throughout the afternoon. The Sharks closed the gap by two runs in the 9th inning courtesy of a two-run homerun by Jake Mastillo. However, LIU was unable to complete the comeback and lost by a score of 9-7. Tatsuya Uemoto, a sophomore from Japan made his first appearance of the season and did not disappoint. In relief, Uemoto pitched three innings only giving up one run (unearned) and struck out two. The Sharks look to take the final game of the opening series at 1:00 PM.
St John’s
The Red Storm pulled off an impressive win in extra innings to open their season but came up just short in the middle game of the three game set. In a back and forth game, Old Dominion defeated St. John’s by a score of 7-5. This game was very competitive and remained close all the way through. First baseman Aaron Mann led the charge for the Red Storm on Saturday going 3-4 at the plate and scoring one run. Designated hitter Tate Ballestero brought in two runs (one via a single and one via a walk). Old Dominion reliever Robert Cook was credited for an impressive three inning save. During his appearance, the southpaw retired nine batters, five via the strikeout. The rubber match will take place Sunday at noon.
Division-II:
MOLLOY
Molloy had their 2023 debut delayed due to rainout. However, the Lions did not disappoint and won both games of their doubleheader. Molloy defeated Millersville University by scores of 5-0 and 2-1. In the first game, starting pitcher Charlie Cucchiara led the way. The senior threw six shutout innings which set up Richard Gennaro to secure the win in the seventh inning. First baseman Jake McCarthy hit a three-run homerun in the fifth inning which extended the Lions lead to five. The second game went to extra innings after both teams held a 1-1 stalemate after 7. The Lions won in a walk-off thanks to alert base running by Center fielder Garrett Scavelli who scored the game winning run on a passed ball. Molloy looks to keep their momentum against Assumption on Sunday at 10:00AM.
