After consecutive losses in the previous two games of the Tony Gwynn Classic in San Diego, Cal., the Seton Hall Pirates baseball team was able to leave on a positive note as it cruised to a 10-5 win Saturday over the Aztecs of San Diego State.
The Hall opened the game to very efficient hitting as three different players had at least one RBI. Senior right-hander Joe Poduslenko started the scoring off as he doubled to center field to bat in a run for junior Al Molino. Senior Mikael-Ali Mogues rewarded Poduslenko for his earlier efforts as Mogues’ home run allowed Poduslenko to score. Freshman Connor Hood also drove in two runs in the first inning to bring the first inning total to a score of five for the pirates, as many runs as San Diego State had for the duration of nine innings.
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Photo via SHU Athletics[/caption]
The Pirates capitalized off the strong first inning as they scored three more times in the second inning. The only blemish was a San Diego State run in the bottom of the second, scored by Aztec sophomore infielder Jordan Verdon. Junior center Mike Alescio joined the scoring as he registered two RBIs in the inning.
From the third to fifth inning, the Pirates seemed to cool off a bit as they went three straight innings without scoring. San Diego State tallied two runs in that same span to bring the game to a score of 8-3 before the top of the sixth inning.
It did not take long for the scoring to start again as Seton Hall pushed the lead to seven with two runs in the sixth inning. Poduslenko appeared on the scoreboard again as he had a home run and two RBIs in the inning.
The Pirates displayed its defense and pitching as they held San Diego State to three straight scoreless innings.
The Aztecs scored in the last inning to make the final score of the game 10-5.
Senior right-handed pitcher Zach Prendergast was also able to notch his first victory of the season in the process.
Up next for the Seton Hall baseball team is the Cox Diamond Invitational, as it takes on Southeastern Louisiana in the opening game of three. There they will also face Troy and South Alabama, all games in Pensacola, Fla. starting Friday, March 3, at 2 p.m.
Evando Thompson can be reached evando.thompson@student.shu.edu or on Twitter @Thompsev.
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