WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J., -- Chris Carson collected four hits and the Seawolves were a perfect 10-for-10 on the basepaths to take down the Monmouth Hawks 10-7 on Sunday.
John Rizzo (1-2) picked up the victory out of the bullpen for Stony Brook (4-16, 3-6). The right-hander went four innings, giving up two runs, both of them earned, on five hits, allowing no walks and striking out three. His brother Nicholas Rizzo got the start and allowed four runs over 3.2 innings on the bump.
In addition to his four hits, Carson had a walk and an RBI to lead the Seawolves. Mike Villani furnished a noteworthy performance at the plate as well, going 2-for-4 with a home run, two walks and three RBIs. Nick Zampieron also contributed for Stony Brook, putting together three hits in five trips to the plate while adding a double, a walk and an RBI. All nine starters reached base, including eight of the nine players in the lineup recording a hit.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Seawolves got on the scoreboard first after Rizzo stranded two runners in the bottom half of the first. The Seawolves started the scoring the scoring in the second inning by scoring twice, with one run coming across on a Luke Szepek and Carson single.
The Hawks then gained ground, narrowing the lead to 2-1 until the Seawolves expanded their advantage in the fourth. Stony Brook scored three runs in the frame, buoyed by a two-run homer from Villani, which brought the score to 5-1 in favor of the Seawolves.
Monmouth fired back to even the ballgame at five before Stony Brook reclaimed a 9-5 advantage in the sixth inning. The Seawolves bats heated up in the inning, scoring four runs, including a one-run double off the bat of Matthew Jackson and an RBI single from Villani.
The Hawks fought back, closing the gap to 9-6 until Stony Brook added some insurance in the ninth. The Seawolves notched a run on Chanz Doughty's one-out RBI double, bringing the score to 10-6 in favor of Stony Brook. Monmouth put one run on the scoreboard before the game was over, but the Seawolves still held on for the 10-7 win. John Rizzo finished the final 4.0 innings by allowing just two runs and stranding two runners on base to close the victory.
STATS AND NOTES
- Every Stony Brook starter reached base safely in the win.
- Stony Brook's highest scoring inning was the sixth, when it pushed four runs across.
- The Seawolves had control of the rest of the game after moving ahead of the Hawks 2-1 in the top of the second.
- Four Stony Brook players had multiple hits in the ballgame (Carson, Zampieron, Villani, and Jackson).
- The Seawolves out-hit the Hawks at a 15-10 clip.
- Stony Brook had four players steal multiple bases in Sunday's game (Carson, Zampieron, Villani, and Jackson).
- The Seawolves were 10-10 on the bases as a team. It marked the most stolen bases in program history without being caught and the second most in program history (12 vs Iona in 2023). It was also tied for the fifth most stolen bases in a game this season.
- Stony Brook went 7-for-20 (.350) with runners in scoring position.
- The Seawolves drew eight walks from Monmouth pitching.
- Villani hit his second homer of the season which is tied for second on the team.
- Stony Brook moves to 9-5 all-time against Monmouth.
UP NEXT
The Seawolves are in action on Tuesday as they head to Siena to revenge a loss from earlier in the season to the Bulldogs. First pitch is slated for 3:00 pm on Siena Sports Network.
