The Stony Brook University baseball team won three out of four games against Maine this weekend to grab sole possession of first place in the America East conference. They are now 24-16 overall and 11-5 in the conference, two games ahead of Binghamton in the standings. Coach Matt Senk was particularly pleased because of the circumstances surrounding his team’s performance. ‘Anytime we play a series, if we can win the series, we are obviously extremely pleased. But to win back to back series, especially on the road, that’s satisfying.’
On Friday Stony Brook lost the opening game of the series 10-8, despite controlling the game through six innings. They were leading 8-1 going in the bottom of the seventh inning when they allowed 13 Black Bear hitters to bat. For his part, Senk said that his team does not focus on losses. ‘We don’t really dwell on it much. Some losses are worse than others. We were in a position to win that game and to allow an inning like that is extremely disappointing. But we talked about it and got it out there. We remain resilient and move on.
Apparently the Seawolves had no trouble moving on, sweeping their doubleheader the next day. Stony Brook won the first game 5-4 as sophomore Jeremy Nowak continued to show off his versatility, hitting a two-run home run and saving the game. Stony Brook was aided in the second game by a strong performance from freshman Stephen Marino. Marino went three for four with three RBI, as he continues to outpace expectations. Earlier in the season, Senk said that his players don’t surprise him because he expects them to do well. But when asked about his freshman dynamos Stephen Marino and Nick Thode, he admitted that he has been impressed.
‘It’s a process that begins in the fall. There’s some element of surprise to Steve Marino in that he’s come the longest way of any of our freshmen. Obviously he’s been a pleasant surprise.’ Marino who went six for 16 in the series, has provided excellent defense, according to Senk, while Thode has been a power presence in the lineup while playing multiple positions around the diamond.
The Seawolves won the last game of the series 13-6 off of a season high 17 hits. Nowak wore the hat of starter, as he delivered seven innings of four run ball to go along with four strikeouts. Senk knows what he has in a player who started and won a game, saved a game and delivered big hits in a conference series. ‘Jeremy has been great. He has continued to do lots of different things for us. He’s been asked to come in and close. Offensively he switch hits. He’s helped from both sides of the plate, whether it’s a big hit or an extra base hit or most importantly, RBI’s.’
Asked about his number one wish for the rest of the conference season, Senk said that he wants more of what his team has already showed. ‘More than anything I want our team to continue to play with the consistency that we have right now as far as pitching, playing defense and getting timely hitting.’
Over the next ten days the Seawolves will face two out of conference opponents in Fairfield and Lafayette. But Senk has cautioned his team that they must continue to play as they have, no matter who their opponent is. ‘We don’t want to fall into that trap of having a bye week and losing our edge and we’ve addressed that several times,’ he said. ‘It’s why we make sure that we schedule a strong team like Lafayette. We’re very conscious of a letdown and want to do everything we can to make sure it doesn’t happen.’
Notes
The Seawolves dominated in a 16-3 win over Fairfield Wednesday, for their most lopsided win of the season. Evan Stecko-Haley picked up his second win of the season, allowing only two runs through four innings. Michael Tansey and Rob Dyer both went 4-5 and combining for 8 RBI. Stony Brook faces LaFayette on Saturday in a doubleheader, beginning at 1:00 PM.
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