HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 20, 2008) – Junior second baseman Matt Girnys went 3-for-5 with a run scored on the day as the Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team dropped both games of the doubleheader against St. Joseph's College in Hoboken, N.J. on Saturday. With both losses, the Ducks fall to 6-22 on the season as the Golden Eagles improve to 21-9-1 on the year.
The Golden Eagles posted seven runs through the first five innings of Game One. In the top of the second, sophomore first baseman Jon Welsh (Bethpage, N.Y.) recorded his first homer of the season with a solo shot to right field. St. Joseph's added two more runs as sophomore second baseman Mike Gerdes (Wantagh, N.Y.) drove in junior shortstop Matt Timmons (Miller Place, N.Y.) and senior leftfielder Fred Morales (Islandia, N.Y.) off a single to center. Gerdes doubled to left centerfield and plated Morales in the top of the fourth as the Golden Eagles took a 5-0 lead.
Timmons and Morales added RBI both off singles in the top half of the fifth to increase the gap to 7-0. The Ducks posted their first run of the game as sophomore infielder Eddie Daniele scored from second off a throwing error by Timmons. After St. Joseph's recorded a run in the top of the eighth (8-1), Stevens responded in the bottom of the ninth. With men on the corners and no outs, senior catcher David Katusa singled up the middle to bring in Girnys from third. Freshman outfielder Matt Glassman singled through the right side to load the bases. Following a pitching change, freshman catcher Denis Ackermann walked to bring in Daniele. Senior first baseman John Frustaci reached on a single and drove in the Ducks third run of the inning (8-4). After a strikeout for the first out of the inning, sophomore outfielder Mark Rasulo walked to plate Glassman. Sophomore outfielder Anthony Andrews came in to pitch hit and singled through the left side of the infield as Ackerman came in to score the fifth run of the inning, cutting the deficit to two runs. However, the rally was ended as a pop fly to the second baseman and a strikeout closed out the game by an 8-6 count in favor of St. Joseph's.
The Golden Eagles were led by Gerdes, who went 5-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and three RBI. Welsh batted 3-for-3 with a run scored and drove in a run. Morales finished the game 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. Freshman pitcher Dave Sommo (Kings Park, N.Y.) earned his fourth win of the season (4-0) as he threw for eight innings having allowed seven hits with no earned runs.
For Stevens, Katusa and Frustaci both batted 2-for-5 with an RBI each as Katusa added a run scored. Daniele went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored in the defeat. Sophomore pitcher Joe Finora was tagged with the loss (1-5) for his five innings of work. He gave up seven earned runs on 11 hits.
St. Joseph's jumped ahead early in Game Two as it recorded five runs during the first two innings. In the top of the first, sophomore infielder Jeff Coyle (Mastic, N.Y.) registered his first homerun of the season, a two-run blast to right centerfield. Sophomore centerfielder Ryan Carroll (Centereach, N.Y.) had an RBI in the top of the second when he singled through the left side. Freshman third baseman Frank Dipresso (Medford, N.Y.) added a pair of RBI in the second off a double to right centerfield. Coming off the bench, freshman first baseman Chris Wright (Hicksville, N.Y.) stepped to the plate and posted his first collegiate homer as the ball sailed over the right field fence in the top of the fifth.
The Ducks were held scoreless as they tallied just three hits. Freshman pitcher Dan Anunziatta received the loss (2-3) for his four innings of work. He allowed five earned runs on seven hits.
The Golden Eagles were led by Wright, who went 2-for-2, while Carroll batted 1-for-2 with a pair of runs scored and an RBI. Sophomore pitcher Ron Eichhorn (Sayville, N.Y.) earned the win (2-2) as he pitched a seven-inning complete game. He rendered just three hits on 25 batters faced.
Stevens will return to action on Tuesday when it faces seventh-ranked College of New Jersey in Ewing, N.J. at 3:30 p.m.
