Seton Hall
Pirates were swept by St. John's on Saturday in the final game of the series
Date: May 18, 2019By: Michael Daly
Seton Hall fell to St. John’s 6-2, on Saturday afternoon at Jack Kaiser Stadium in Queens, New York. The Pirates were swept in their three-game series against the Red Storm.
The Pirates took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, following Christian Del Castillo’s RBI double to left-center field that scored Jerry Huntzinger. The Red Storm responded in the bottom half of the first when St. John’s posted three-runs during their offensive stand. Ryan Markey ignited the scoring in the half-inning by doubling to left field, and his outfield hit scored Peter Abinanti and Mike Antico. Brandon Miller singled up the middle with two outs that brought Wyatt Mascarella home. The Red Storm led 3-1 at the end of the first inning.
Mascarella added on to the Red Storm’s lead in the bottom of the second, 4-1 when he flew out to right field and Abinanti tagged up from third base and scored. Seton Hall’s starter David Festa was relieved of his duties in the second inning by Tyler Burnham after Festa gave up four earned runs in 1.2 innings pitched on the mound.
Tyler Shedler-Mcavoy cut into the Pirates’ deficit, 4-2, with a two-out RBI single into left field that scored Chris Villa in the top half of the fifth. St. John’s distanced themselves from Seton Hall in the bottom of the fifth inning, thanks to a one-out two-RBI single off the bat of Ryan Hogan that made it a 6-2 ballgame.
The Pirates put pressure on St. John’s’ defense in the top of the eighth inning, as they had two runners in scoring position when Gavin Hollowell came in to relieve Ian Murphy with two outs. Hollowell escaped the jam by striking out Sebastiano Santorelli and he preserved the Red Storm’s four-run, 6-2 lead.
Seton Hall had one last opportunity to make a comeback in the ninth when the bottom of the lineup was due up. Connor Hood led the inning off and struck out, while Steve Grober grounded out to second base on the first pitch, he saw from Hollowell. Villa earned a two-out walk, but Huntzinger went down swinging and the game ended for Seton Hall.
Hollowell recorded his eighth save of the season. St. John’s starting pitcher Nick Mondak picked up the victory against Seton Hall and improved his season record to 2-2. Festa received the loss and his record dropped to 3-4 on the season. St. John’s secured the third seed in next week’s Big East Tournament with their sweep of the Pirates. Seton Hall will be the fourth seed and their opponent in the opening round of the tournament will be the first seed, Creighton.
Seton Hall’s season record currently stands at 25-26 and their Big East conference record is 9-9. The Hall will play the first game of the Big East Tournament on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. against Creighton at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio.
Michael Daly is the Web Editor for WSOU Sports, and can be reached at michael.daly@student.shu.edu.
