The baseball team went 5-3 over spring break as they competed in a series against Virginia Commonwealth University and Northeast Conference opponent Quinnipiac University.
Virginia hosted the first of the two series. Danny Avella said the team wasn’t intimidated by playing teams from the south. “There isn’t an intimidation factor,” Avella said. He finds support for his statement in a game from earlier this season. “We played Vanderbilt, number two in the nation; we played a good game the first time and were able to keep up with them.”
Avella’s creed must lie true in junior southpaw Andrew McGee’s mind as he opened the VCU series with a 3-1 win on Friday, March 15. McGee hurled his second complete game of the season and fanned five batters. Senior left fielder Joe Bamford and junior second baseman Jake Gronsky contributed three hits a piece in the victory. Sophomore designated hitter Craig Sweeney touched home twice and went two for four while senior infielder Owen Stewart also notched two hits and one RBI. Bamford scored the final run in the sixth as freshman Robbie Alessandrine squeezed him home.
Senior lefty Dan Smith was handed the ball in game two, but could not find his niche as the Hawks fell 8-3. Even though Smith was credited the loss, MU’s downfall was not his to claim. An error in the third cost the team five unearned runs, and the Hawks could not recover. The bullpen came in strong pitching 4.2 scoreless innings of relief.
Sophomore outfielder Steve Wilgus led the offense in the game as he connected three times and provided one RBI. Senior designated hitter Chris Perret and junior shortstop Jon Guida each had one hit and one RBI for the day.
The loss was not unexpected to Head Coach Dean Ehehalt who believes in home field advantage. “Statistically, I think the home team wins over 65% of the time prior to March 15 in college baseball. It could be a little bit higher just with the warm weather issues and cold weather issues. Statistically, it’s a big deal.”
With the series tied 1-1, sophomore righty Adam Yunginger took the mound for the final game on Sunday, March 17. Yunginger pitched 4.2 innings allowing one earned run off four hits and five walks. With his diligent effort, the Hawks trounced the VCU Rams, 7-1. Relieving Yunginger and pitching for the remainder of the game was sophomore right-hander TJ Hunt. Stewart once again led the offense as he hit 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs.
On the way back to New Jersey, the Hawks made a pit stop in Maryland where they beat Maryland Eastern Shore 8-2 on Tuesday, March 19. Taking the mound for the one game stint was freshman southpaw Anthony Ciavarella. Ciavarella tossed 3.2 innings allowing only one earned run off three hits. Relieving him in the fourth was Paglione who threw three innings and picked up his first win of the season. Gronsky, Sweeney, Bamford, and Stewart had three hits apiece and contributed for six RBIs.
The men received a three day vacation before appearing in their next series. Originally scheduled to be played in Hamden, the game against the Quinnipiac Bobcats had to be moved to West Long Branch due to weather conditions. MU still played as the away team throughout the series. On both Saturday and Sunday, the teams competed in double headers.
Throwing for the Hawks in their very first conference game this season was junior sensation McGee who hurled his third complete game. McGee struck out seven batters and allowed no Bobcats to cross home plate in the Hawks 1-0 victory. Scoring MU’s only run was Perret in the second inning.
With Hunt opening the second game of the day, the Hawks saw no fortune as they were edged by the Bobcats, 3-2. Hunt was tagged with two runs, neither were earned, as he stayed on for a full five innings. Paglione was handed the ball in the sixth with the bases loaded. He was able to force a double play, getting the lead runner in the process. Junior left-handed pitcher Stephen Frey was then called on by Coach Ehehalt to get the final out of the sixth, but things did not go so smoothly. A throwing error cost MU a run tying the game at 2-2.
Frey went back in for the seventh but was replaced by senior righty Neil Harm in the eighth. Harm walked the leadoff Bobcat and tried to pick him off at first, but the attempt backfired as the runner advanced to second on a throwing error. The second batter of the inning singled advancing the runner on second to third base. With the corners occupied, Harm loaded the bases trying to have a force out at any bag. Regrettably, the next batter singled bringing home the winning run from third. The game concluded after eight innings, a shorter game due to the double header.
Shaking off the defeat, MU prepared for another double header the following day, March 24.
Playing seven innings, Yunginger took the mound for the first game of the doubleheader. Yunginger was the only MU pitcher featured in the game as he lasted all seven innings and showed his best control all season. Allowing only one earned run off of four hits and one walk, Yunginger led MU to a 5-1 triumph over Quinnipiac. The Hawks had a crucial sixth inning as they scored four runs, two of which were off sophomore catcher Kyle Perry’s bat.
The second game mirrored the same 5-2 score but not in MU’s favor. Picking up his fourth loss was Smith who pitched 5.1 innings in the decision. Smith once again had more runs than earned runs to his name due to two errors in the first. Even with Wilgus, Sweeney, and Stewart with two hits each, MU was unable to tighten the score gap.
The Hawks currently have an 8-10 record (2-2 NEC). MU will next verse NEC rival Central Connecticut State this weekend at home. The first game will begin Thursday at 3:00 pm.
