Stony Brook baseball has rolled through the America East Conference this season, taking two of three games from two of its opponents and sweeping its last two series. That dominance continued in Albany this weekend, as the Seawolves convincingly took all three games from the Great Danes to increase their lead in the conference to an astounding four games.
After running away late with game one by a score of 15-3, the Seawolves took a pitchers’ duel to the wire en route to a 2-1 victory.
The bats then came alive again in game three, as Stony Brook rolled by a 12-2 score.
Having Tyler Honahan on the mound usually spells success for Stony Brook, and that did not change in game one.
The junior allowed three runs on seven hits in six innings of work and exited the game with a 5-3 advantage that was in the hands of the bullpen.
After holding a 3-0 going into that fifth inning, Albany scored three runs to tie the game up. Shawn Blake roped a double to left-center to cut the lead to 3-2 and Alex Lushkevich scored from third on an RBI groundout to then tie the game.
Whatever hope the Great Danes had after that inning was quickly eradicated, as the Seawolves rattled off 12 unanswered runs, scoring two in the sixth, three in both the seventh and ninth and four in the eighth.
In the sixth, a Malcolm Nachmanoff RBI double plated Andruw Gazzola. Nachmanoff then scored from third on a Casey Baker sacrifice fly.
Toby Handley tripled to left-center to get the barrage started in the seventh inning, plating a pair of runs. He then scored on a Jack Parenty single up the middle to put the Seawolves lead at 8-3 as Nick Brass took the hill.
After the Great Danes went down in order, Stony Brook went back to work.
Cole Peragine and Parenty both drew bases-loaded walks to bring in two runs, Handley drove in another run with a single to right, and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Robert Chavarria gave the Seawolves four in the eighth.
But the offense was not done, and they poured it on in the ninth.
Parenty was a big part of it. He laced a bases-loaded triple down the right field line, bringing everybody home.
When it was all said and done, Parenty finished with five RBI on the game, Handley had three of his own and Peragine reached base four times and came around to score every time.
From high-explosive offense to great defense and pitching, Matt Senk’s squad proved it can win any type of game on a sunny Saturday afternoon, taking the nightcap of the doubleheader in a defensive slugfest after winning the first game in a run-filled affair.
Baker finished the second game with two of the three hits the Seawolves would record on the day, but that was enough for starter Daniel Zamora and closer Cameron Stone, who recorded their fourth win and third save, respectively.
Baker also scored both of the runs for Stony Brook.
He touched home on a wild pitch in the second to give the Seawolves a 1-0 and then doubled that lead with one swing, a home run to right, to make it 2-0.
The third hit was recorded by Parenty, a bunt single in the first inning.
Zamora struck out seven batters in his five innings of work, only allowing one run on four hits. Said run came in the Albany fifth inning, when Alex Lushkevich hit a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Eric Mueller from third to cut the Seawolves’ lead in half. The Great Danes would leave the tying run at third in the inning and not get close to scoring again.
Stone, the sophomore reliever, would shut down the Great Danes, only allowing one baserunner in the final two innings of play and clinching the series for Stony Brook.
If there were any negatives taken out of this game, it is that three hitting streaks came to an end in game two. Gazzola and Jeremy Giles had raised theirs to 10 before losing it in game two, and Handley’s came to a halt at eight games in the nightcap.
On Sunday, the Seawolves went for the sweep, and convincingly got it.
Ryley MacEachern started the game on the mound and already had a lead before throwing a pitch, as the Seawolves threw a three-spot on the board in the top of the first on Albany starter Matt Gallup.
Chavarria singled down the left field line, Baker grounded out to the pitcher and Gazzola singled to first base and before the fans could get settled in at Varsity Field, it was 3-0 Stony Brook.
The Seawolves were consistent in their scoring, tallying a run in each of the first five innings, plating three in the first and the third innings.
Three Seawolves recorded multiple RBI in the game, with Baker driving in three runs and Handley and Gazzola each bringing in two.
Baker, along with the RBI groundout in the first, reached on an error in the fourth to bring in Parenty and doubled to left-center in the eighth to plate Handley.
Handley utilized two RBI singles to bring in runs in the second and fifth, while Gazzola singled to first base and center field to plate a pair of Seawolves runs.
The game was never in doubt, as Stony Brook led 9-2 after five and coasted to the finish, as four pitchers combined to hold the Great Danes to six hits and only two runs.
MacEachern only went 3.1 innings, striking out five Great Danes batters and only allowing two runs on four hits.
Chad Lee relieved him and was given his fourth win of the season, pitching 3.2 innings and striking out a pair of batters while only allowing two hits. Nicholas DiEva and Teddy Rodliff pitched the eighth and ninth, holding Albany hitless with DiEva recording a pair of batters.
Stony Brook is now 12-2 in the America East, with the second-place UMass Lowell River Hawks far behind at 8-6.