Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 New Paltz, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz baseball team split its doubleheader with SUNY Oneonta Wednesday, beating the Red Dragons 11-7 in game-one while losing 14-8 in game two.
 
"This is a huge [series] for both teams. It's kind of do or die for the both of us," said Hawks senior first baseman Justin Ganca. "Getting game-one is a huge momentum boost for us and I think we're pretty confident that if we can step on the pedal from the first inning, we'll have them down in the dumps." 
 With SUNY Oneonta getting on the board first with an RBI single in the top of the first inning in game-one, SUNY New Paltz's offense exploded in the bottom half of the inning, putting up five runs to take a 5-1 lead. Sophomore infielder Dean Stalzer got the scoring started with an RBI single, with junior catcher and outfielder Matt McGee scoring on a passed ball. An RBI double by junior outfielder Julian Francisco and a two-RBI single by sophomore infielder John McCarrick finished the rally for the Hawks.
 
The Red Dragons came back in the top of the second inning with a run on a ground out, but SUNY New Paltz's offense was not done either, grabbing the run back in the bottom of the inning off another RBI single by Stalzer. The same swing happened in the third inning, with SUNY Oneonta scoring on an RBI double to come behind 6-3 and the Hawks answering in the bottom half with a run on a wild pitch to go back up, 7-3.
 
An RBI double by the Red Dragons in the top of the fourth inning put them behind, 7-4, but SUNY New Paltz did not have an answer that inning, allowing SUNY Oneonta to stay in the game. The Red Dragons took advantage in the sixth inning, scoring on two RBI singles to come behind one at 7-6. A 1-2-3 inning by the Hawks in the bottom of the sixth allowed SUNY Oneonta to pounce again, tying the game at seven in the top of the seventh with an RBI single.
 
SUNY New Paltz's offense finally woke up from its drought in the seventh inning after giving up the advantage, scoring four runs to take back a commanding 11-7 lead. Francisco got the go-ahead run in off a sacrifice fly, freshman infielder Mike Boccarossa hit an RBI single and Campbell broke the game open with a two-RBI double.
 
Junior pitcher J.T. Carroll sealed the victory for the Hawks, not allowing a run within two innings of work to give SUNY New Paltz all the momentum heading into game-two.
 
Unfortunately, the Hawks could not bring the same energy they had earlier in the day into their second outing, giving up three runs to the Red Dragons in the top of the first inning after multiple errors. An RBI single by Francisco in the bottom of the second inning, however, kept SUNY New Paltz within the game down ,3-1.
 
Things went wrong for the Hawks in the top of the fourth, with multiple wild pitches and errors bringing SUNY New Paltz down 6-1. As SUNY Oneonta loaded the bases, a grand slam to go ahead 10-1 was the dagger it needed to split the series.
 
The Red Dragons scored two more in the top of the fifth, but junior outfielder Matt Warshaw would not go down without a fight, hitting an RBI single in the bottom half to move the score to 13-2. SUNY Oneonta scored once more again in the top of the sixth, making the five runs the Hawks scored in the bottom of the inning meaningless. SUNY New Paltz answered one last time with an RBI double by junior catcher Zachary Warenius, but it was not enough to mount a comeback, dropping the matchup, 14-8.
 
"We're all going to come out ready to play [Thursday]," Stalzer said. "Hits are contagious, so we're all going to keep feeding off each other and get the job done."
 
SUNY New Paltz will conclude the series Thursday with one single nine-inning game against the Red Dragons. To stay up to date with everything #NPHawks be sure to follow us on Twitter at @nphawks,Instagram and Facebook at @newpaltzhawks, and subscribe to our Youtube channel, New Paltz Hawks.