SBU Sports: Baseball surges past Iona with victory at Joe Nathan Field
After falling behind 1-0 in the top of the first inning, Stony Brook baseball responded with five unanswered runs over the next two innings on their way to a dominant 10-3 victory over Iona on March 25 at Joe Nathan Field.
Matt Sgambati got the start for Stony Brook, allowing a run in the first inning after a two-out double to right field that put Iona ahead 1-0.
Ty Panariello entered in the top of the second inning and, after issuing a leadoff walk, retired the next three batters to keep the deficit at 1-0.
Stony Brook struck back in the second inning, scoring three runs to take a 3-1 lead. Chanz Doughtyled off with a walk, followed by Scott Gell getting hit by a pitch to put two runners on with one out. Chris Carson delivered an RBI single, bringing home Doughty. Carson later scored on a passed ball, and Evan Goforth added a sacrifice fly to extend the lead.
After Panariello tossed a 1-2-3 top of the third, the Seawolves added two more runs to make it 5-1. Nico Azpilcueta launched a home run over the left-field fence, and Matt Miceli followed with a single through the left side to extend the lead.
Iona cut into the deficit with a run in the top of the fourth, making it 5-2, but Stony Brook answered right back. Doughty knocked an RBI single to restore the four-run advantage.
Ryan Dieguez took the mound in the fifth inning, allowing a one-out hit-by-pitch before inducing a 6-4-3 double play to end the frame.
The Seawolves tacked on another run in the fifth to push their lead to 7-2. Carson led off with a walk, followed by back-to-back singles from Miceli and Goforth to load the bases. Miceli would later score on an Iona error, giving Stony Brook a five-run cushion.
Vincent Mariella pitched the top of the sixth, retiring the first two batters before issuing a walk, then securing the final out with a lineout to third base.
Iona led off the seventh inning with a home run to left field, trimming the deficit to 7-3. Stony Brook quickly responded with a bases-loaded walk drawn by Azpilcueta, pushing the lead back to five runs.
George Adams entered in the eighth and stranded a runner on second to keep the Seawolves in control. In the bottom half, Stony Brook added two more insurance runs. Doughty led off with a homer to left field, and Miceli brought in Nick Zampieron on a sacrifice fly, extending the lead to 10-3.
Erik Paulsen took the mound to close out the game in the ninth, retiring three of the four batters he faced and sealing the 10-3 victory with a groundout back to the mound.
