April 22, 2008

Box Score

Hempstead, N.Y. - Sophomore Mike Stephan (Patchogue, N.Y.) hit two home runs and junior Steven Mazzurco (Selden, N.Y.) went 3-for-5 with three RBI as the Stony Brook University baseball team scored eight runs in the first inning and then held on for an 18-16 victory over the Hofstra Pride on Tuesday afternoon at University Field. Stony Brook improves to 21-15 with the victory while Hofstra falls to 14-29.

The Seawolves looked to put the game away early, taking advantage of four Hofstra errors to score eight times in the top of the first. Junior Brian Witkowski (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) led off the game with a double and then quickly came home on a RBI double from freshman Chad Marshall (Paris, Ontario). Marshall would advance to third on a failed pickoff throw and then come home on a RBI groundout from Stephan.

Sophomore Jeremy Nowak (Cheektowaga, N.Y.) followed with a walk, the first of nine straight Seawolves to reach the base. By the time Scott A'Hara retired Stephan for the second out of the inning the Seawolves had scored eight times highlighted by run-scoring hits from Mazzurco and Marshall.

Hofstra got single runs in the first and second inning on a Matt Kougasian RBI triple and a David Cole home run but the Seawolves responded with another big inning in the fourth, scoring three times on a Stephan solo home run and a two-run shot from Mazzurco.

A Felix Adamkiewicz home run started a four-run Hofstra fourth inning which was highlighted by a Anthony Sarno two-run double that cut the Stony Brook lead to 11-6. The teams went scoreless over the next two innings but the Seawolves returned to the scoring column in the seventh as Witkowski smashed a two-run homer which was followed by another Stephan solo home run that made it 14-6.

The Pride would not go away though, scoring five times in the bottom of the inning. Cole drove in the first run with a RBI single which was followed by a two-run double from John Kenny. The Pride would add two more runs in the inning with Matt Prokopowicz making it 14-11 with a run-scoring single.

SBU finally put the game away in the eighth with four more runs on a two-run single from sophomore Chris Maier (Farmingdale, N.Y.) and a two-run double from freshman Nick Thode (Huntington Station, N.Y.).

Hofstra would get the tying run to the plate with two outs in the ninth but sophomore Jordan Purington (Westbrook, Maine) struck out Kenny to end the game and pick up his third save. Junior Michael Barbot (Bronx, N.Y.) picked up his first career victory for the Seawolves, going 2.2 innings in relief.

The Seawolves return to action on Friday, traveling to take on Maine. Game time is set for 4 p.m.