SBU Sports: Baseball falls to Seton Hall in high-scoring battle

After a strikeout by left-hander Nicholas Rizzo to start the game, Seton Hall launched a home run to left in the next at-bat to take an early 1-0 advantage.
Stony Brook answered with two runs in the bottom of the first on a two-run shot from Johnny Pilla, bringing in Erik Paulsen, who started the rally with a single.
Seton Hall tacked on another run in the second to tie the game at 2-2. However, Stony Brook responded with two runs of their own in the bottom half to retake a 4-2 lead. Paulsen brought in Goforth and Miceli with a two-out double down the right-field line.
Rizzo escaped a bases-loaded jam by inducing a groundout to second, keeping Stony Brook’s two-run lead intact.
Nico Azpilcueta led off the third with a double to right-center and later scored on an RBI single by Chris Carson to extend the lead to 5-2.
The Pirates erupted for five runs in the top of the fourth, taking a 7-5 lead.
Stony Brook responded with three runs in the bottom half, reclaiming an 8-7 lead. Miceli led off with a homer to left, Matt Jackson doubled down the right-field line to bring in Paulsen, and Doughty added an RBI single to score Azpilcueta.
Vincent Mariella stranded a runner on third to end the fifth inning.
Paulsen tallied his fourth hit of the day in the fifth, an RBI double to left-center that brought home Goforth, making it 9-7.
After the first two Pirates reached base in the sixth, Mariella recorded a strikeout and induced an inning-ending double play to maintain the two-run advantage.
Both teams went scoreless in the seventh before Seton Hall exploded for five runs in the eighth, taking a 12-9 lead.
Stony Brook responded with a run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Azpilcueta that plated Paulsen, cutting the deficit to 12-10.
The Pirates added another run in the ninth to seal the 13-10 victory and the series win.
The team returns to the diamond on Wednesday as they head to New Jersey to battle Rider for the fifth time in program history. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. in Lawrenceville.