Seton Hall Takes Down Hawaii in Series Opener

(Photo: SHU Athletics)

By: Jose Feliciano

The Seton Hall Baseball team (9-8-1) outlasted the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors in an extra-innings showdown in the Aloha State, getting the 9-8 victory.

The game originally began at 6:35 p.m. HST on Friday but had to be suspended in the seventh inning due to heavy rain. The game resumed the next day at 5:00 p.m. HT and Seton Hall went on to win in the eleventh inning on a go-ahead run-scoring double play.

The Pirates were swinging right out of the gates as they started the game off with three straight singles to immediately load the bases. Mike Alescio brought in the first run of the ballgame with a run-scoring double play. Sebastiano Santorelli followed that up with a double down the left field that drove home the second run of the game.

Senior Shane McCarthy started the game for Seton Hall and had a two-run cushion to start. Hawaii started their first inning the same way the Pirates started theirs, with three straight singles. The third single, hit by Hawaii right fielder Adam Fogal, drove in a run as the Rainbow Warriors cut the deficit in half 2-1. Hawaii then struck for four more runs in the inning, which was capped off with a two-run single from Dustin Demeter.

The Pirates got a run back in the fifth inning on an Alescio RBI single up the middle. Meanwhile, Shane McCarthy settled down following the first but ended up giving up a run in the fifth as Adam Fogal hit an RBI double for his second RBI hit of the day.

The Pirate offense came alive in the sixth inning and it began with a Casey Dana solo home run to start the inning. Seton Hall kept it going with back-to-back singles from Tyler Shedler-McAvoy and Connor Hood. Shedler-McAvoy came around to score on a sacrifice bunt from Rob Dadona. The Pirates went on to score four more runs in the inning and took an 8-6 lead going into the bottom of the sixth.

With Shane McCarthy still on the mound, Dustin Demeter drove home his third run of the game on a double to center field but was thrown out to end the inning. He was the last batter McCarthy, who ended up with a no-decision. McCarthy for the day surrendered 10 hits, seven runs, all earned, walked one and struck out two.

The bottom of the seventh came around and the Pirates were in trouble as the Rainbow Warriors had the tying run on base. The rain became too much as the game was suspended and was to be played the next day.

The Rainbow Warriors failed to get home the tying run in the bottom of the seventh but succeeded in the next inning on an RBI single by catcher Tyler Murray off Pirate reliever Ryan McLinskey. The game remained tied at eight at the end of regulation, which led to extra innings.

The Pirates led off the top of the eleventh with a double and a single as Santorelli came up with runners at the corners and no outs. He grounded into a double play as Hawaii allowed the go-ahead run to score. Matt Leon, who came on to pitch in the ninth, finished off the game for the Pirates, earning his first win of the season in three scoreless innings of relief. Dylan Thomas of Hawaii was the losing pitcher in the game.

Jose Feliciano is an Assistant Sports Director at 89.5 FM WSOU. He can be reached at jose.feliciano@student.shu.edu.