The Stony Brook baseball team opened its 2015 season with a three-game road trip to Thibodeaux, L.A. to take on the Nicholls State Colonels.
After taking game one in shutout fashion, the Seawolves slipped in game two, committing three errors before getting trounced in the rubber match due to offensive troubles again.
In Friday afternoon’s matchup, the season-opener for both teams, it was all Tyler Honahan for the Seawolves, as he was able to dominate the Colonels lineup.
He retired the first 13 batters he faced before walking right fielder Alex Shermer on a full count. The no-hitter was gone two batters later, when second baseman Tanner Vandevere laced a single up the middle.
The Pitcher of the Year candidate started his campaign strong, going six innings while only allowing three NSU batters to reach base while striking out three and only walking two.
The Seawolves seized the lead in the second inning, courtesy of Jack Parenty. The junior drove a base hit to left, the first of the two he would have in the game, and that brought home Andruw Gazzola from third.
Bobby Honeyman tried to score from second, but was tagged out at the plate on a great throw by left fielder Gavin Wehby. Stony Brook scored again in the third, as Johnny Caputo was able to reach on an error by Vandevere, allowing Robert Chavarria to score from third and double the lead to 2-0.
The game was blown open in the fifth, and newly-transformed catcher Cole Peragine is responsible. He roped a two-run double down the right field line, bringing home Parenty and Chavarria to make it 4-0.
Peragine then scored two batters later on Caputo’s infield hit to make the score 5-0. Toby Handley crossed home plate on a wild pitch from Zach Thiac to give the Seawolves a 6-0 lead.
Matt Senk’s squad could not overcome three errors in Saturday’s game, as the defense robbed Nicholas DiEva and Edwin Corniel of three runs, all of which were unearned in a 4-1 loss to the Colonels.
It was a sloppy game all around, as the Colonels also committed three blunders. Parenty reached base because of an error and then scored because of another miscue by Nicholls State.
Starting pitcher Grant Borne committed the first fault, and then Parenty touched home after a misstep by shortstop Joey Morales. That was all the Seawolves wrote on the scoreboard, as NSU would score four unanswered runs.
Kyle Reese led off the bottom of the second with a triple to center, and scored one batter later as Shermer hit an infield single to tie the game at one. It was then the error-riddled seventh that cost Stony Brook the game, as the Seawolves committed two of their three errors in the inning. Justin Holt led off the inning with a single and would score off an error from Parenty in left field.
The error also advanced Knight, who would then score as well to make it 3-1. Wehby reached base and advanced to second on an error by Peragine, and would score two batters later.
Despite all of the defensive miscues behind him, DiEva fell victim and took the loss in the matchup, the first of his collegiate career.
Justin Sinibaldi shut down the Seawolves in the rubber match, only allowing four hits over six innings of work in a 10-0 victory for NSU.
Two early home runs off of Tim Knesnik gave the Colonels a 3-0 lead through three innings. A sixth-inning explosion put the game out of reach for Stony Brook.
The Seawolves will now move on to a three game set with Louisiana-Lafayette from Feb. 20-22.
