Flemington, NJ — With its home opening trip to Virginia wiped due to inclement weather, the State University of New York New Paltz threw its first pitch of 2025 Sunday instead in a doubleheader against DeSales University at Diamond Nation in Flemington, NJ.
 
The Hawks had some good moments in their season opener, totaling 20 hits and 10 extra base hits in the two games combined, but their bullpen struggled to sustain a lead in both outings and in turn, they suffered their first two losses of the year, 7-6 and 17-10, respectively.
 
SUNY New Paltz rallied in game one, as their offense started picking up as the game waned but couldn't get timely pitching in the back half of their bullpen and suffered the one-run loss.
 
Michael Weed was on the bump to start and overcame some early jitters. He hit the lead-off batter in the foot before allowing a double down the third base side, just out of the reach of Fabian Apicella's glove. A sacrifice bunt and another double allowed DeSales to get in front, 2-0, but Weed earned the next out on a pop out.
 
Coach Thomas Seay needed an early mound visit with the College of Saint Rose transfer following another hit-by-pitch, which put two on and two out, but Weed settled in and forced a fly-out in the next at-bat to keep the damage at a minimum.
 
Weed again made the inning interesting, as he let up two hard-hit liners back at him after earning two straight outs to begin the second. He walked the next on four-straight pitches, but again, showed his resiliency as he anchored in to leave the bases loaded after fanning the Bulldogs with his second strikeout of the inning.
 
 
Apicella helped cut into the lead with his team's first hit of the afternoon, smashing a ball over the fence on a 2-0 count to get SUNY New Paltz on the board. The 2-1 score remained until the sixth, as Ryan Knieriemen allowed a two-out, two-run home run to allow the Bulldogs to extend their lead to 4-1. They'd tack on one more by inning's end off the Hawks' Xavier Zykoff to take their largest lead of the game, 5-1.
 
The Hawks continued to fight, and their offense finally came alive in the seventh, taking advantage of DeSales' bullpen with their starter coming out following six innings of work, allowing just three hits, one walk and a run in the stretch.
 
Wallace Kirkpatrick got the seventh started with a one-out single through the left side. Dillon Ristano then belted a two-run shot over the left field wall to get his team within two. Apicella earned a walk on the following at-bat, before Anthony Pericolosi ripped a liner into the gap in centerfield for a double and advanced Apicella to third. Matt Sarni scored Apicella with a sacrifice before Michael Ascanio platted the game-tying run two batters later with a bases-loaded walk.
 
DeSales answered in the bottom half and earned the one-run lead, taking advantage of back-to-back hit-by-pitches by Zykoff. Ultimately, a sacrifice fly got the go-ahead run across. Ristano knotted the score in the eighth on a solo shot, but again pitching was inconsistent in the late innings for SUNY New Paltz. Jeff Lundstedt came into relieve Zykoff and allowed three runners aboard on two walks and two balks with one scoring on the error, which turned as the game-winning run as neither team scored in the ninth.
 
Ristano was the catalyst offensively in game one, going 2-for-4 with two runs and three RBI. Pericolosi followed with two hits and a run, while Apicella went 1-for-3 with two runs, an RBI and a walk.
 
Sarni took the mound in game two and pitched well, while being backed by early run support to start the outing. Sarni faced just seven batters in the first two innings to keep the score at zeros entering the bottom of the second. Pericolosi led off with a single before Ryan Mukopf earned a walk. Ryan Mackle then platted them both a batter later to give the Hawks an early 2-0 lead. Apicella followed with a single, allowing Mackle to advantage to third with Garrett Grathwohl getting him across to build a 3-0 cushion.
 
Sarni allowed two hits, and two runs scored in the third, which trimmed SUNY New Paltz's lead to one. The Bulldogs led off the fourth with a single and then tripled to tie the game at 3-all, but Sarni secured three-straight outs to keep the game at a stalemate. Mackle re-took the advantage for the Hawks, hitting his first home run of the season to push his team up by one. Danny DiEdwards took the mound in the fifth and struggled with his control, giving up four walks and a hit-by-pitch in the inning that allowed DeSales to get out in front, 5-4.
 
The Bulldogs extended to 7-4 in the sixth before going up big, 13-4 with a six-run seventh inning. However, SUNY New Paltz continued competing and kept the game alive in the bottom half. Mackle again was clutch, leading off with a single before Grathwohl notched a base-hit a batter later. Alex Ouellette loaded the bases with a single with Tommy Kreider scoring Mackle and Michael Ascanio plating Grathwohl on consecutive at-bats with a sac fly and single, respectively. Pericolosi kept the inning going with an RBI double before Robert Gregory stepped into the batter's box for the first time in more than a year and on the first pitch, blasted a ball well over the right field fence to cut the score, 13-10.
 
The Hawks rally ended there, however, as they were blanked in the eighth with the Bulldogs adding four insurance runs in the ninth off three extra-base hits, including two homers to solidify the 17-10 win.
 
Mackle highlighted game two, going 3-for-4 with three runs and three RBI. Ascanio and Pericolosi each ahd two hits, combining for three runs and two RBI. Sarni finished his day, giving up four hits, three earned runs with one walk and four strikeouts in four innings pitched in the no-decision.
 
SUNY New Paltz is back in action next weekend, going on the road for a single game against FDU-Florham Friday before visiting SUNY Maritime Saturday for a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m.


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