DINWIDDIE, VA. –The East Stroudsburg University baseball team completed the weekend a perfect 4-0 after sweeping Saint Rose in the twin bill on Sunday at the Dinwiddie Sports Complex. The Warriors pitched their way to 4-1 win in the opener before using an eight-run fourth inning in the 9-1 game two victory.
The Warriors improved to 5-2 after outscoring their opponents 36-6 over the four games and striking out 60 opposing hitters.
Redshirt sophomore Brent Francisco was dealing in the opener, firing 6.0 innings, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out a career-high 14 batters. Jeremy Piatkiewicz supplied the timely hitting with a three-run blast in the bottom of the fourth inning.
In a scoreless fourth inning of game two, the Warriors offense exploded for eight runs on eight hits, which included three home runs to ultimately put the game out of reach for the Golden Knights.
Notables
- Ben Piripavel went 4-for-4 with a home run, a double and two singles in game two. The Bethlehem, Pa. native finished the weekend hitting .692, with a 1.077 slugging percentage and a .750 on-base percentage after recording nine hits to go along with seven RBI
- Piatkiewicz recorded his first career home run in the opener
- Anthony Torreullas, Tim Haverstick and Piripavel each smashed a long ball in game two
- Brent Francisco (1-1) picked up his first win of the season and becomes just the third pitcher since 2003 to punch out at least 14 batters in start
- Scott Shamany closed the door in game one for his first career save after striking out a pair
- Jack Nielsen (2-0) was credited with the victory in game two after pitching 4.0 innings, allowing one run on three hits and striking out a pair
- Over the final three innings, JP Nolan, Nate Fiala and Leon Finney combined to allow just one hit while punching out six
How it Happened – Game One
After a scoreless first three innings, the Warriors were finally able to break through in the fourth on a three-run blast from Piatkiewicz. The sophomore was setup to give ESU a 3-0 lead after Privipavel delivered a one-out single followed by a four pitch walk to Drew Hefner.
Fransico was cruising right along until a one-out double by Nathan Toms in the top of the sixth inning gave the Golden Knights their first runner in scoring position. After the second out was recorded, James Ward delivered an RBI double to make the score 4-1.
ESU got the run right back in the home half of the inning as Haverstick worked a one-out walk before coming around to score on an RBI single from Piripavel to make the game 4-1 in favor of the Warriors.
How it Happened – Game Two
Similar to the opener, the game was tied at 0-0 until the Warriors exploded for eight runs on eight hits in the top of fourth inning. Piripavel got the scoring started on a solo blast and after a Kauffman double, Torreullas blasted a two-run homer to make the score 3-0. Haverstick followed with back-to-back blasts to put the Warriors in front 4-0.
Still with no outs in the inning, ESU loaded the bases on a walk from Hefner and singles from Jack Rothenhausler and Copper Gehring. Piatkiewicz would then add to the lead on a sacrifice fly and Brainy Rojas delivered a base knock for ESU's seventh run. Batting for the second time in the inning, Pirpavel singled home Rojas to make the score 8-0.
In the home half of the fourth, Saint Rose used a two-out rally to scratch across a run to make the score 8-1 in favor of the Warriors. Derek Haughey got the scoring chance started with a walk before coming around the bases after singles from Ward and Tyler Osborne.
ESU added to their advantage in the top of the sixth inning as Rojas scored following a leadoff single. The redshirt senior got in scoring position after stealing second and was brought home on an RBI base knock from Piripavel.
Up Next
The Warriors stay north for the first time season as they host Clarion on Wednesday for a doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m. ESU will no longer play the Golden Eagles on Saturday, February 26 as part of their Early Bird Classic.
