Baseball to Play Final Home Games of 2018 on Sunday

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Coming off of their highest scoring output all season, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) baseball team heads to Maritime on Saturday (Apr. 14) and hosts Old Westbury on Sunday in hopes of improving upon their 1-7 record in Skyline play. Additionally, Sunday's doubleheader against Old Westbury is SJC's final home date of the year in their first-ever season playing at Calvert Vaux Park.

Saturday, Apr. 14 at 12:30 & 3:30 p.m.
at Maritime

Opponent's Info: Roster | Schedule | Stats
Coverage: Live Stats

Previously

• The Bears most recent outing was one of their most impressive of the season as they downed New Rochelle at Calvert Vaux by a final score of 10-1. Freshman right-hander C.J. Bunnicelli (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell) had a career day, fanning eight over six strong innings while allowing just four hits and one run (unearned). On the other hand, Justus Acosta (Little Neck, N.Y./Holy Cross), Anthony Palermo (Patchogue, N.Y./Sachem North), Michael Gonzalez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Midwood), Michael Ryan (Franklin Square, N.Y./Holy Trinity), and Joseph Langan (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) all picked up an RBI in the victory.
• Saturday's doubleheader wraps up a 13-game homestand for Maritime (15-9, 4-4 Skyline) and they come in as winners of four of their last six. Last time out they dropped Manhattanville, 4-3, on a walk-off wild pitch in the bottom of the 10th inning. The Privateers were led by leadoff hitter Travis Zurita (4-for-4, R, 2 RBI) and starting pitcher Matthew Paghidas (4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 K) in the victory.

Keys to the Contest

• Junior Adam Schwartz (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan Wagner) (.349 BA) and Acosta (.339 BA) have been quite the one-two punch at the top of SJC's lineup, as they rank first and second on the team in batting average. Schwartz has done his job as catalyst very well, leading the squad not only in hitting but runs (17), stolen bases (10), and triples (1) as well. Palermo is the only other Bear hitting above .300 (.304), while he is also the team's top run producer (14 RBI).
• Maritime enters the weekend as the best hitting team in the Skyline, leading the league in batting average (.316), doubles (52), home runs (9), slugging (.425), and OBP (.418). This will make Saturday a real challenge for a St. Joseph's pitching staff that has the second-highest ERA in the conference (8.09). The Privateers have six .300 or better hitters, highlighted by Zurita, the Skyline's batting leader (.453). The Bears are likely to see Maritime ace Anthony D'Ancona (3-1, 0.98 ERA) in one of the two games, as he hasn't thrown since April 8.

History

• The Privateers lead the all-time series 15-10 and downed the Bears 21-6 in last year's final regular season game.

Sunday, Apr. 15 at 12 & 3 p.m.
vs. Old Westbury

Opponent's Info: Roster | Schedule | Stats
Coverage: Video | Live Stats: Game 1, Game 2

Previously

• The Panthers have played to a 10-12-1 (3-5 Skyline) mark thus far and are set to take on SJC Long Island on Saturday (Apr. 14) before heading to Calvert Vaux the next day. Old Westbury is 1-1 over their last two games, both non-conference, having defeated Stevens on Wednesday (Apr. 11). OW was led by big days from Liam Slattery (3-for-4, 3 RBI) and Michael Borsch (3-for-3, 4 RBI), as well as 1.1 scoreless innings of relief from Matt Bohenek. Before that, the Panthers dropped a 12-5 decision to Lehman in the Bronx (Apr. 10).

Keys to the Contest

• Slattery (.400 BA) leads an Old Westbury lineup that includes a whopping seven .300+ hitters. Additionally, junior outfielder John Fogarty sits tied for first in the league with 23 RBI. As a team the Panthers are hitting .314 (t-second in Skyline), making the entire weekend tough on the Bears' arms as they have to battle the conference's top two offenses. OW's bullpen has been much stronger than their starting rotation thus far, paced by rookie Joshua Cruz (0.90 ERA in 10 IP).

History

• The Bears are 2-10 all-time against OW with their last win in the series coming in the 2016 Skyline playoffs.