WSOU

Recap: Pirates Take First Three-Game Series of Year vs. St. Joe's

Date: March 28, 2022

By: Spencer Gonzales

A Seton Hall batter stands in the batter's box during a game.

Seton Hall Athletics

This weekend, the Seton Hall softball team (3-18) took on the Saint Joseph’s Hawks (12-9) in a three-game series where the Hall bested SJU, 2-1. The series featured a doubleheader at Mike Sheppard Sr. Stadium on Saturday, and in the first of two matchups, the Pirates dropped a 10-inning nailbiter to the Hawks, 3-2.

The afternoon’s scoring started early off in the top of the second inning when Saint Joseph’s Andrew Cossetti and Brendan Hueth made it to home on a fielding error by Seton Hall. Down 2-0 at the bottom of the second, Seton Hall’s Pat D’Amico answered back, hitting an RBI single to drag the deficit down to one.

From there, it was six straight innings of scoreless baseball, until Seton Hall managed to drive in Mark McNelly late in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings. However, the Pirates didn’t have enough in the tank to close out the Hawks, giving up a run in the 11th inning and losing 3-2.

In their next matchup, the Pirates squad managed to even out the series with a 5-3 win over the Hawks. The Hall was in control for most of the afternoon thanks to a three-run fifth inning that kept them ahead for the rest of the matchup.

Saint Joseph’s attempted to mount a comeback in the eighth and ninth innings, but thanks to a clutch showing from Christopher Shine, Seton Hall was able to finish the game off with a win.

Zack Sylvester showed out the offense, hitting a single and a two-run homerun in the fifth. Leading the charge on the mound was Joe Cinnella (1-1) who threw out four batters and only gave up one run in seven solid innings.

The series then picked up and moved to SJU’s homefield in Philadelphia for the final matchup. At an even 1-1, the Pirates were determined to win their first series of the season, and in an impressive offensive showing, they were able to capture a victory against the Hawks, 9-4.

Using the momentum from the previous game, the Pirates batters put up a quick five runs in the first and third innings. From then on, the Hawks had no chance, only being able to put up four runs through the first six innings and being held scoreless the rest of the game. SHU totaled 14 hits on the afternoon, capping off a solid series for the offense.

Standouts for the Hall again included Sylvester, who hit 3/5 on the day. Along with Sylvester, Collin Sheehan played a key role in the offense, bringing in a runner in the third and the fifth thanks to a pair of well-timed doubles.

O’Neill (2-3) earned the win on the mound, pitching for six innings and striking out four while allowing seven hits and four runs. Michael Ciminiello (1) got the save after coming in for O’Neill in the seventh and pitched a hitless three innings to close out the Hawks.

So far this year, the leading hitter for the Pirates is Sylvester, who is averaging an impressive .302 average with five doubles and a homerun. Devin Hack leads the squad in hits, 23, and runs, 10, and is one of only two players along with Will Gale to have started every game this season (21).

The bullpen as a whole has struggled mightily through the first stretch of the season, posting a combined 8.74 ERA in 21 games. O’Neill had his fair share of rocky outings to start, but currently boasts the best pitching record on the team at 2-3 with wins over Florida and SJU.

Next up for the Pirates, two one-off matchups at home against Monmouth (9-12) and Wagner (3-18) on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a three-game series at home against Mercer (20-5) the first through third. Coverage for those games, as always, can be found on Seton Hall’s very own wsou.net through the broadcast streaming portal.

Spencer Gonzales can be reached at spencer.gonzales@student.shu.edu.

Posted in: Baseball, Sports, WSOU

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