Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 The State University of New York at New Paltz baseball team bounced back after two straight losses with a 10-5 win over Washington and Jefferson University, but they were unable to come away with the second game of the doubleheader, falling 6-5.

GAME 1
A common theme for the Hawks offense this season has been to strike first and they did just that in the opening inning after Nick DePietro led off with a double and then some smart small ball scored him two batters later off a sacrifice bunt by Zach Warenius. However, the Presidents answered in the bottom of the first, scoring two runs of their own to take the lead. 

After not being able to get anything going on offense for a few innings, SUNY New Paltz was able to tie up the game at three in the top of the fifth inning. The Hawks loaded up the bases with their first three batters, then Danny Campbell drove in the first run of the inning with a ground ball to third base that forced an error and scored Anthony Pantano. Warenius stepped up next and bunted for a single while scoring Julian Francisco. 

Once again, Washington and Jefferson was able to come right back with a rally of their own and scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. The Hawks came to swing today though, and in the top of the sixth inning they scored seven runs to take a commanding 10-5 lead.

"We did a great job of playing our game by playing aggressive and smart," said head coach Arlan Freeman. "We executed extremely well with hit and runs, steals, and bunts. We really put the pressure on them and every time we got punched in the mouth today, we punched back, and that's what I want out of our guys."

Junior right-handed pitcher Ryan Votypka got the start for the Hawks and ended up throwing the complete game and not only got the win, but allowed the bullpen much needed rest with more games in Florida ahead of them and their conference opener this weekend. 

"We got great starting pitching today," said Freeman. "Our team is built around pitching and defense and Votypka set the tone."

On the offensive end, Campbell led the charge going 3-for-5 with two RBIs. Chris Moran also chipped in two RBIs while going 2-for-4 on the day, while junior shortstop Ryan Frost continued his hot streak in Florida going 3-for-3. Warenius also had two RBIs for the game.

GAME 2
SUNY New Paltz got off to a slower start in the second game, but came on strong in the late innings. Trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth, Moran got the rally going with a single down the line. Pantano took care of the rest with a triple to right center, scoring Moran and putting himself in position to score off a bunt from Francisco.

After allowing the Presidents to take the lead back in the top of the fifth, the Hawks answered the call again in the bottom of the inning after Jake Williams drew a walk and stole second to put himself in position to score off a single from Dwayne Page. 

Starting pitcher Luke Christy kept the relentless Washington and Jefferson offense at bay in the top of the sixth, which allowed SUNY New Paltz to take their first lead of the game after Pantano found a way to score from second off a wild pitch. However, the Hawks were unable to hold the lead and gave up three runs in the top of the seventh to make their 6-4 heading into the bottom of the final inning.

SUNY New Paltz wasn't done yet as Moran knocked a double to the warning track, which scored Williams from first. Unfortunately, the Hawks were unable to bring home Moran and tie the game.

Christy threw 6.2 innigs and allowed five earned runs on eight hits.

Pantano and Moran led the way on offense going 3-for-4 and 2-for-3, respectively, each chipping in one RBI.

"We ran out of gas in the second game," said Freeman. "Moran hit that ball to the warning track and a couple more feet it goes over the fence. But, they executed better than we did in the second game. I'm still proud of what I saw today because we showed a lot of grit."

The Hawks close out their Florida trip with a game at 9:30 a.m. tomorrow against Babson College and 9 a.m. on Tuesday against Western New England University. Be sure to follow @nphawks on Twitter and @newpaltzhawks on Instagram and Facebook for updates, highlights, videos, photos and more.