Box Score

ONEONTA, N.Y. – After being swept in a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) doubleheader on Saturday afternoon, the State University of New York at New Paltz baseball team (11-12, 3-5 SUNYAC) rebounded on Sunday afternoon in a single nine-inning game, dealing SUNY Oneonta (15-7, 8-1 SUNYAC) its first SUNYAC loss of the 2011 season. The Hawks won, 5-2, at Red Dragon Field.

New Paltz opened scoring in the second. Sophomore designated hitter Matt Prescia (Oakdale, N.Y.) got on board with a double to right and moved to third in the ensuing at-bat off of a groundout. Freshman left fielder Jimmy Briggs (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) then plated Prescia, singling through the left side. The Hawks then went up 2-0 in the third when sophomore right fielder Thomas Pinnola (North Babylon, N.Y.) pushed across sophomore center fielder Phil Riccio (Bristol, Conn.).

Jake Robinson helped Oneonta cut the Hawks' lead in half in the home portion of the third, as he led off the inning with a triple and scored on a groundout. Stellar defensive plays kept both teams from adding to their totals in the middle innings, and the Red Dragons leveled the tally at 2-all in the seventh when Cody Hitt scored from third off of a double play ball.

New Paltz took the lead in the eighth due to stellar base running by junior third baseman Mike Marash (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.), as he scored from second off an RBI single from sophomore catcher Matt Kaldon (Montgomery, N.Y.). With two outs in the top of the ninth, the Hawks tacked on another pair of runs, the second of which came across when the Oneonta pitcher was charged with two errors in one play. In the bottom of the ninth with one runner on and one out, junior shortstop Paul Merola (Cornwall-on-Hudson, N.Y.) made a diving stop on a hard-hit ball, retiring the lead runner at second. Jonathan Wolfanger popped up to the second baseman in the ensuing at-bat, giving New Paltz the victory.

Sophomore pitcher Michael Pinnola (North Babylon, N.Y.) went the distance on the mound for the Hawks, giving up two runs on five hits and three walks in the winning effort. He also struck out three batters. Jeffrey Carter was tagged with the loss for Oneonta, yielding three runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out seven. Thomas Hand gave up two runs on three hits in 1 2/3 innings of relief, and Zachary Levanduski tossed the final one-third inning for the Red Dragons.

Offensively, New Paltz received significant contributions from Marash, T. Pinnola and Briggs. Marash went 2-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI, while T. Pinnola and Briggs each batted 2-for-4 with one RBI. For Oneonta, five different batters recorded a hit.

The Hawks returns to the diamond on Wednesday, April 13, against Vassar College, taking on the Brewers at 4 p.m. in a non-league contest in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.