Pirates Split Pair of Opening Games in Wild Weekend at Puerto Rico Challenge

Published: Sunday, February 15, 2026

by Ryder Nuesell

PONCE, PUERTO RICO -- The Seton Hall baseball team (1-1) split the first two games of their season in opening weekend at the Puerto Rico Challenge.

The Pirates fell 6-4 in a back and forth battle with the Boston College Eagles (1-1) on Friday’s opening night and rebounded in the second game with a 7-2 victory over the Manhattan Jaspers (0-2) on Saturday. The originally scheduled matchup against the NC State Wolfpack on Sunday (2-0) was cancelled due to rain.

Preseason BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year Steven Svenson got the opening day start for the Pirates, working his way around a single and stolen base for a clean first inning.

It did not take long for Seton Hall to provide Svenson with run support, as leadoff hitter Gabe Cavazzoni’s single followed by Aidan Dill’s walk put a runner in scoring position with no outs.

Following a Justin Ford strikeout, Richmond transfer Joey Wilga dribbled a ball in front of home plate, which was thrown into right field and allowed Cavazzoni to score the first run of the Pirates’ season. One batter later, Rutgers transfer Nick Tomasetto made it 2-0 on a sacrifice fly to center field.

Svenson went the first four innings without allowing a run, but it was the fifth where the Eagles tagged the sophomore for a pair. James Madison transfer Jayden Barroqueiro entered in relief, but immediately allowed a double, stolen base, and subsequently the go-ahead run on a wild pitch to give Boston College a 3-2 lead.

The Pirates had an answer right away, however, as Dill’s two out walk set up a go-ahead two-run home run from Justin Ford to make it 4-3 in favor of Seton Hall.

While rounding first, Ford leapt in celebration and landed awkwardly on his left ankle. He was forced to leave the contest, as Scranton transfer Jake Lopez was inserted to finish running the bases to allow the run to officially score.

The Eagles’ two-run seventh inning would allow them to regain the lead, which proved to be the winning runs. A sacrifice fly in the eighth capped off the 6-4 win for Boston College.

Senior Ryan Reich got the nod for the Pirates in game two against the Jaspers, tossing the first two innings for Seton Hall.

Manhattan opened the scoring on an RBI double in the first inning. However, the Pirates answered in the third when Jake Lopez secured his first of a three-hit day, plating Ryan Frontera and tying the game at 1-1.

It was the third inning where Mason Christopher entered in relief and shut down the Manhattan offense. The sophomore set a new career-high with ten strikeouts across five innings of work.

In the fourth, Stonehill transfer Aidan Sengenberger’s first RBI as a Pirate gave Seton Hall a 2-1 lead, and in the fifth inning they began to pull away. Cavazzoni, Tomasetto and Wilga collected the 3 RBI’s of the inning making it 5-1 Seton Hall.

Cavazzoni was able to score the Pirates’ sixth run on a Dill groundout in the seventh, but the Hall was unable to seal the game before a near 90-minute rain delay. When play resumed, each team tacked on a run, making the final score 7-2 and giving the Pirates their first win of the season.

With the cancellation of the third game of the Puerto Rico Challenge, Seton Hall will move on to Shipyard, South Carolina for the Swig & Swine Classic. There, the Pirates will face off against George Mason, Merrimack, Ball State, and then George Mason once more.

Catch the first game against George Mason on Friday, February 20 at 4:00 P.M.

Ryder Nuesell is an Assistant Sports Director at WSOU and can be reached at ryder.nuesell@student.shu.edu 

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