STONY BROOK, N.Y. – Fueled by an early offensive explosion and back-to-back home runs in the third inning, the Stony Brook baseball team rolled to an 11-8 victory over Fairfield on Tuesday afternoon at Joe Nathan Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Left-hander Nicholas Rizzo got the start for the Seawolves, working around a leadoff walk in the top of the first with a flyout and back-to-back strikeouts to keep the game scoreless.
- Stony Brook wasted no time getting on the board, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first. Matthew Jackson led off with a walk, stole second, and came home on a single to left by Nico Azpilcueta. After Chanz Doughty ripped a double, Azpilcueta scored on a wild pitch to give the Seawolves an early 2-0 lead.
- Rizzo again pitched around a leadoff walk in the second before Chris Carson drew a one-out walk in the home half, but the Stags turned a 6-4-3 double play to end the threat.
- Right-hander Matthew Canizares took over on the mound in the third and tossed a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts to set the tone for the next offensive outburst.
- The Seawolves batted around in the bottom half, scoring six runs on six hits to extend their lead to 8-0. Jackson began the rally with an infield hit and later scored on a sacrifice fly from Azpilcueta. Doughty and Johnny Pilla followed with back-to-back home runs, Carson added a two-RBI triple, and Matt Miceli capped the inning with an RBI double.
- Fairfield answered with six runs of their own in the top of the fourth to cut the deficit to 8-6.
- Vincent Mariella quieted the momentum with a 1-2-3 fifth inning, recording a strikeout and inducing a double play to end the frame. Stony Brook went down in order in the bottom half.
- Mariella returned in the sixth and worked around a one-out walk, keeping the Seawolves ahead. In the bottom half, Jackson sparked a two-out rally with a double off the center field wall and scored on a soft RBI single to right by Erik Paulsen, making it 9-6.
- Matt Sgambati tossed a clean seventh inning with a strikeout, and the Seawolves kept rolling. After a two-out triple by Luke Szepek, Scott Gell crushed a two-run homer to right-center to extend the lead to 11-6.
- Alex Jankowski took over in the eighth, stranding two runners with a fielder's choice to maintain the five-run cushion.
- Jacob Pedersen entered to close things out in the ninth. The Stags scored two runs in the inning, but Pedersen shut the door to secure his third save of the season and the Seawolves' 11-8 win.
STATS AND NOTES
- Jackson went 2-for-4 with three runs scored, a double, and a hit-by-pitch. His three runs matched a career high, and he recorded his seventh multi-hit game of the year.
- Doughty went 2-for-4 with a homer and a double. His ninth long ball of the season is second on the team.
- Pilla smashed his fourth home run of the year during Stony Brook's six-run third inning.
- Gell added his third homer of the year and finished 1-for-3 with two RBI and a hit-by-pitch.
- Szepek had a double and a triple, notching his 11th multi-hit game and first career triple.
- Carson and Azpilcueta each added an RBI and a hit in the win.
- Paulsen exended his on-base streak to 13 games.
- N. Rizzo tossed two scoreless innings to open the game and struck out three. He's now gone 4.1 straight scoreless innings over his last two outings.
- Mariella improved to 2-0 by delivering 2.1 shutout innings of relief with two strikeouts.
- Canizares, Sgambati and Jankowski ech threw scoreless frames in relief.
- Every Stony Brook hitter recorded a hit in the game.
- The Seawolves went 9-for-15 (.600) with two outs and 5-for-10 (.500) with runners in scoring position.
- Stony Brook recorded two triples in a game for the first time this season (Carson, Szepek).
- The victory snapped a four-game losing streak.
- The Seawolves improved to 8-1 in midweek games and 12-9 all-time vs. Fairfield, snapping an eight-game losing streak to the Stags dating back to 2016.
NEXT UP
Stony Brook hits the road this weekend for a three-game CAA series against Towson. The opener is set for Friday at 3:00 p.m. and will be streamed live on FloCollege.
