Pirates Fall Late Against Kansas, 7-4

Wednesday, March 13

Port Charlotte, Fla. / North Charlotte Regional Park No. 10

10:00 AM

Seton Hall University

2-10

Kansas

13-3

Seton Hall

Kansas

3/13/2019 1:32:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score HOME INFO BOX SCORE

PORT CHARLOTTE, FLA. – Senior Sebastiano Santorelli (Tuckahoe, N.Y.) had a team-best three hits, but the Seton Hall baseball team dropped a close contest with Kansas, 6-4, at the Snowbird Classic on Wednesday.

Seton Hall out-hit its opponent for the eighth time in 12 games this season, but it fell to 2-6 in those contests. Leading the Pirate's offense today was Santorelli who had three singles and two runs scored. Jerry Huntzinger (Staten Island, N.Y.) also reached base three times, while Connor Hood (Shrewsbury, Pa.) drove in a team-best two runs.

What Happened:
Kansas got on the scoreboard first with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning off Seton Hall starter Nick Payero (Monroe, N.J.). After getting two quick outs, Payero walked back-to-back batters and Kansas' Kaimana Souza-Palaluhi followed with a two-RBI triple to put the Pirates in an early 2-0 hole.

In the top of the fifth inning, the Pirates tied the score. Santorelli singled, and moved to second on a walk by Huntzinger. Senior Chris Villa (Staten Island, N.Y.) then put down a perfect sacrifice bunt top move both runners into scoring position with one out. Hood and Tyler Shedler-McAvoy followed with back-to-back run-scoring sacrifice flies to tie the score at two.

In the bottom of the fifth, Kansas reclaimed the lead on a two-out solo home run by Jaxx Groshans off Pirate reliever Tyler Burnham (East Brunswick, N.J.).

The Hall again battled back in the top of the seventh inning, taking advantage of some wild pitching. After Santorelli led off with a single, he advanced all the way to third on a sacrifice bunt by Huntzinger, which was thrown away. A wild pitch, reliever Kahi Bisho's second of the inning, enabled Santorelli to score the tying run. Hood followed with a single through the right side to plate Huntzinger and give The Hall its first lead of the day, 4-3.

The Pirates' lead however, was short-lived. In the bottom of the inning, Kansas tied the score off Pirate reliever Cole Patten (Manasquan, N.J.) on a hit-by-pitch, two stolen bases and a single up the middle. In the bottom of the eighth, the Jayhawks struck for three runs off Patten and Corey Sawyer (Kearny, N.J.).

Inside the Numbers:

Seton Hall out-hit Kansas, 9-to-7. The Pirates committed one error, while Kansas committed two.
Santorelli had a team-high three hits, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
Hunzinger reached base three times, going 1-for-2 with a walk, a sacrifice, and two runs scored. He also reached on an error.
Toke reached base twice, going 1-for-3 with a walk.
Hood was 1-for-3 with a sacrifice and two RBIs. He also reached on an error.
The Pirates left seven men on base, while Kansas left eight.
Patten took the loss for Seton Hall. He allowed three earned runs over 2.1 innings pitched. He struck out four with no walks.
Kansas reliever Gabriel Sotomayor picked up the win.
Kansas' Blake Goldsberry earned the save with a perfect ninth inning.

News & Notes:

The Pirates drop to 2-10 on the season, while Kansas improves to 13-3 with their ninth straight win.
Seton Hall out-hit its opponent for the eighth time in 12 games this season, but it fell to 2-6 in those contests.
Today's game was the ninth Seton Hall contest decided by three runs or less in 12 games this season.
Today was the sixth game this season that the Pirates have committed fewer errors than its opponent.
Junior Christian Del Castillo (Miami, Fla.) went 1-for-5 today, extending his hit streak to five games.

Next Up:
Seton Hall will return to action on Friday when it continues its play at the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla. The Pirates will face first face Saint Joseph's at 10:00 a.m. and then Harvard in the afternoon.