FARMINGDALE, NY – Trailing 6-1 after five innings, the Maritime College baseball team rallied for two runs in the sixth and four in the seventh to post a come-from-behind 7-6 win over Old Westbury in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers (8-10, 3-3 Skyline) then topped the Privateers (14-9, 2-2 Skyline) by a 12-5 count in game two at the Farmingdale State College Baseball Stadium.
Maritime took a 1-0 lead on
Anthony Madigan's (Greenlawn, NY) third inning RBI single in game one, but Old Westbury capitalized on a Privateers error to score six times in the bottom of the fifth. The big blow in the inning was Oscar Fajardo's grand slam.
With two down in the top of the sixth,
Rob Copozzi (Center Moriches, NY) walked and
Jaden Shea (Severn, MD) singled. Copozzi scored on an error, then
Matt Milone (Farmingville, NY) knocked in Shea with a single to make it 6-3. In the top of the seventh, Madigan ripped a one-out single before scoring on
Nick Pinggera's (Kings Park, NY) double. After
Freddy Forgione (Ronkonkoma, NY) drew a walk, Copozzi crushed a three-run homer to right that gave the Privateers a 7-6 lead.
Matthew Demme (Carmel, NY) then retired the Panthers in order in the bottom of the seventh to preserve the win.
Copozzi finished 1-for-3 with a homer, two walks, two runs scored and three RBIs. Madigan was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, while Milone went 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI.
Shane Sullivan (Stewart Manor, NY) started on the mound and lasted 4.2 innings. He allowed six runs, only one of which was earned, on three hits, struck out four and walked four.
Jack Kellner (Seaford, NY) (1-1) was credited with his first collegiate win after surrendering just one hit in 1.1 scoreless innings. He recorded one strikeout. Demme, meanwhile, picked up the save.
For the Panthers, Jamal Ritter was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Old Westbury had just two other hits, a double by Jaime Barrios and Fajardo's grand slam. Starting pitcher Justin Aviles went six innings, yielding three runs on five hits with six strikeouts and four walks. Justin Aramini (1-1) took the loss after giving up four runs on three hits and a walk in 0.1 innings. Michael Pokorny pitched the final 0.2 innings, walking two and striking out one.
In game two, Maritime again jumped out to an early lead with two runs in the top of the second. Shea led off the inning with a single and
Michael Frazzetta (Howard Beach, NY) followed with a walk before
Vasilios Vafakos (Astoria, NY) delivered an RBI double to left. Madigan then drove in Frazzetta with a sacrifice fly to right.
However, the Panthers tied it with two runs of their own in the third. Old Westbury then scored two in the fourth and one in the fifth before putting up a five-spot in the bottom of the sixth. The Privateers cut their deficit to 10-5 on Forgione's three-run homer in the top of the seventh, but Old Westbury added two runs in the bottom of the eighth to make it 12-5.
The Privateers were held to five hits in game two, with Pinggera notching a double and a single. Vafakos finished 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI, while Forgione's home run was his second of the year.
Brandon Stanley (Swedesboro, NY) (5-2) started on the mound and took the loss. He surrendered five runs on 10 hits, struck out four and walked three in 4.1 innings.
Jacob Taormina hit for the cycle for Old Westbury, going 4-for-5 with two runs scored and four RBIs. John Dell'Olio also finished 4-for-5 with two runs scored, while Charlie Eisele had three hits and two RBIs. As a team, the Panthers pounded out 18 hits in the contest. Frank Whitenack (2-1) earned the win after giving up five runs (four earned) on five hits over six innings. He struck out five and walked five. Greg Vivenzio recorded his first save after holding the Privateers hitless over the final three innings. He tallied three strikeouts and issued one walk.
After playing six straight on the road, Maritime returns home for a pair of doubleheaders next weekend. The Privateers welcome Mount St. Mary (6-16, 2-4 Skyline) to Reinhart Baseball Field next Saturday at 12 p.m. before taking on Manhattanville (9-12, 3-3 Skyline) in a 12 p.m. twinbill on Sunday, April 16.
