STROUDSBURG – The East Stroudsburg University baseball team hit four home runs on Monday, including a grand slam from junior Brock Kauffman as the Warriors defeated U Sciences 11-1 and 13-2 at Creekview Park.
 
ESU (14-1-2) scored 10 or more runs in a contest for the eighth time this season and the Warriors pitching staff did its part on the mound in limiting offensive production from the opposing team. The Warriors also hit their third grand slam of the season, the first time since 2016 that they've accomplished that feat.
 
Freshman Brent Francisco would get the start in game one for the Warriors and held the Devils without a hit through three innings of work on the mound. The Warriors would give Francisco a lead to work with after scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning. Freshman Ben Stokes opened the scoring with a run-scoring double that plate senior Anthony Torreullas.
 
Leading 1-0 in the frame, junior Derek Stento added to the lead with a single into shallow right field that allowed Stokes to score and make it 2-0. The score would hold until the Devils tallied their first run of the contest against the ESU bullpen in the top of the fourth inning. AJ Pena notched an RBI single off of sophomore reliever Justin Guidos to trim the deficit to 2-1.
 
ESU opened up the scoring in the bottom of the fifth inning as freshman Ben Piripavel delivered a single that would score junior Brainy Rojas to make it 3-1. Following a run-scoring double from Kauffman, Torreullas followed with a two-run single that increased the advantage to 6-1. Senior CJ Lopez closed the scoring in the frame with a two-run double that made it 8-1.
 
Torreullas closed the scoring in game one with a three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning as his team-leading fifth blast of the season made it 11-1. The ESU bullpen kept the Devils off the scoreboard over the final three innings of play as senior CJ Gonzales and redshirt junior Nick Kiener each tossed one inning.
 
Francisco improved to 2-0 on the season after fanning six batters and allowing four walks. Torreullas finished the contest 3-for-4 at the plate with five runs batted in and three runs scored, while Piripavel and Stento each added two hits.
 
Sophomore JP Nolan got the start on the mound for ESU in game two as he tossed four innings of shutout baseball for the Warriors. He allowed just one hit and fanned a pair of batters while keeping the Devils' offense at bay.
 
The Warriors scored early and often in the contest as Kauffman singled to plate Rojas while junior Tommy Dunleavy followed with a single to score a pair of runs and make it 3-0. Sophomore Jake Packer would increase the lead to 5-0 as he launched his first career home run for the Warriors.
 
ESU would also score five runs in the bottom of the third inning as Kauffman highlighted the frame with a grand slam that stretched the Warriors' lead to 11-0. The Devils scored a run in both the fifth and sixth innings to show some offensive life against the ESU bullpen. Freshman Hunter Simpson closed the scoring for ESU as he tallied his first career home run with a solo shot in the bottom of the seventh inning to make it 13-2.
 
Nolan improved to 1-0 on the season for ESU after holding the Devils scoreless. Graduate student Brett Lubreski allowed a pair of runs in his two innings of relief, while sophomore Mike Yates and redshirt junior Tyler Stafursky each worked clean innings out of the bullpen.
 
The Warriors, who remained second in the Atlantic Region in the latest NCBWA Poll, open PSAC East action on Friday with a single game against Mansfield beginning at 2 p.m. ESU hosts the Mounties for a pair of games at Creekview Park to close out the series on Saturday at 12 and 2 p.m.