Coming off a second-straight difficult weekend in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play, the Stony Brook baseball team’s struggles continued as it fell in a midweek contest.
The Seawolves (22-24, 8-13 CAA) were in Queens, N.Y. on Tuesday afternoon for a non-conference tilt with the St. John’s Red Storm (25-20, 9-6 Big East). After beating the Red Storm 5-3 on Tuesday, March 11, Stony Brook committed four errors to gift St. John’s three runs during an 8-4 defeat.
The bottom of the first was fairly smooth for relief pitcher Matt Sgambati — who made just his second start of the season — but the second inning was a different story. After the Red Storm loaded the bases with just one out, left fielder Jon LeGrande banged a two-run single through the left side. Now with two runners in scoring position, center fielder Jackson Tucker drove in a run via a groundout to extend the lead to 3-0.
That would spell the end of Sgambati’s outing after he allowed three runs on four hits while walking two batters and striking out none over 1 ⅔ innings. Alex Jankowski then entered the game in relief, escaping a two-out, bases-loaded jam.
It was also a short outing for Jankowski, who recorded only two outs and walked three Johnnies. Relief pitcher Aidan Colagrande came into the game in the bottom of the third inning with bases loaded and one out, and forced LeGrande to ground into a double play to end the threat.
Tucker led off the bottom of the fourth frame by reaching first base on an error by second baseman Johnny Pilla. Upon reaching first, Tucker stole second to give him sole possession of St. John’s stolen base record with the 95th of his collegiate career before swiping third for good measure.
Designated hitter Shaun McMillan came up to bat with runners on the corners and just one out and tripled to the right-center field gap, driving in two runs. Right fielder Will Cowan capped the inning by hitting a sacrifice fly, stretching the Red Storm’s lead to 6-0.
Prior to the bottom of the fifth inning, Stony Brook made wholesale changes in the field, along with relief pitcher Vincent Mariella coming into the game after Colagrande gave up three runs (two earned) on one hit and two walks in 1 ⅔ innings.
In the bottom of the sixth, Stony Brook’s defense came back to bite it once again. Starting with a fielding error by third baseman Brett Davino to lead off the frame, St. John’s eventually loaded the bases with two outs. As Mariella looked to escape the jam, catcher Sean Britt sent a chopper back to him. Mariella’s throw to first went awry, allowing the Red Storm to tack on two more runs to extend their lead to 8-0 before Cowan was tagged out at home trying to make it three.
Across two innings, Mariella surrendered two unearned runs due to his own error on a hit and two walks while punching out two batters.
With one out in the top of the eighth inning, Stony Brook loaded the bases with one out and finally got on the board. First baseman Erik Paulsen stepped up to the dish against St. John’s reliever A.J. Lausten and broke the shutout by knocking a run-scoring single into right field. During the ensuing at-bat, designated hitter Nico Azpilcueta drove in two more runs with a single up the middle to cut the deficit to 8-3.
The Seawolves looked to mount a comeback in the top of the ninth, as catcher Nicholas Solorzano singled to lead off the inning. With one out, center fielder Nick Zampieron doubled and Solorzano came around to score on a passed ball to make it 8-4. Nonetheless, Stony Brook was unable to overcome the sizable deficit, as St. John’s reliever Dylan Johnson induced a popup from left fielder Cam Santerre to end the game.
After a sloppy weekend that saw Stony Brook commit nine errors in three games, the defense continued to struggle from the get-go. The Seawolves’ four errors were a difference maker, as only five of the Red Storm’s eight runs were earned.
Relief pitcher Ryan Dieguez was the Seawolves’ most effective pitcher. He struck out four batters and worked two scoreless frames despite allowing a hit, issuing three walks and hitting a batter.
On a day when Stony Brook mustered up just eight hits, Paulsen went 3-for-4 with a run batted in (RBI). Azpilcueta went 1-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.
Zampieron went 1-for-2 with a double for the Seawolves’ lone extra-base hit in the game.Looking to break its four-game losing streak, Stony Brook will be back in action on Friday evening, as it continues its seven-game road trip with a three-game set against the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) Seawhawks. The Seahawks are 26-21 this season and their 13-8 record in conference play has them tied for second in the CAA. UNCW is coming off a 14-4, midweek loss against No. 16 North Carolina State. First pitch for the series opener is set for 6 p.m.
