SBU Sports: Baseball falls short in comeback against FGCU
After falling behind 4-0 in the first three innings, Stony Brook stormed back to tie the game in the fourth but ultimately fell to Florida Gulf Coast, 8-5, on Feb. 22 in Fort Myers.
Johnny Pilla started a Seawolves two-out rally in the first by drawing a walk and stealing second base, but he was left stranded as the Eagles ended the inning with a strikeout.FGCU struck first in their opening frame, scoring two runs on back-to-back RBI singles off Nicholas Rizzo.
The Seawolves stranded two runners in both the second and third innings, despite hits from Nico Azpilcueta, Erik Paulsen, and Pilla. Rizzo stranded a runner at second base in the second, but the Eagles added two more runs in the third to extend their lead to 4-0.
Stony Brook responded in the fourth with a four-run rally to tie the game. Azpilcueta reached on an error, followed by a walk from Kincaid Bergthold and a single from Chris Carson to load the bases with no outs. Matt Miceli reached on a fielder’s choice, scoring Azpilcueta, and Evan Goforth drove in Carson and Miceli with an RBI double, cutting the deficit to 4-3. Chanz Doughty capped off the inning by tying the game with an RBI single.
Paulsen took over for Rizzo in the fourth, but FGCU regained the lead with a home run and an RBI double, making it 6-4.
In the fifth, Bergthold drew a one-out walk, stole second, and scored on a Miceli single, trimming the deficit to 6-5.
Ryan Dieguez entered the game in the fifth for the Seawolves and struck out the first batter he faced. However, FGCU added a run on a triple and a sacrifice fly to extend their lead to 7-5.
The Eagles tacked on another run in the sixth, making it 8-5.
Carson doubled and Miceli walked in the seventh, bringing the tying run to the plate, but FGCU held their lead.
The Eagles retired the final six Seawolves to secure the 8-5 victory.
The final game of the three-game series is set for 1 p.m. on Feb. 23 in Fort Myers. The game can be watched live on ESPN+.
