Ciulla-Hall launched his second homerun of the season in the third inning. (Photo Credit Ryan Adams).

MARION, Mass. (March 24, 2024) – The Stonehill College baseball team dropped its series finale to Northeast Conference foe Sacred Heart University, 6-4, Sunday afternoon at Tabor Academy in Marion, Massachusetts. With the loss, the Skyhawks fall to 4-12 overall and 0-6 in conference play, while the Pioneers improve to 10-11 overall and 8-1 against conference opponents.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Senior Trey Ciulla-Hall and redshirt junior Jack Thorbahn launched their second and fourth homeruns of the season, respectively.
• Redshirt sophomore Sam Parks and junior Taylor Gaspar tallied stolen bases on the afternoon.
• Despite taking the loss on the mound, redshirt sophomore Peter Haas (1-5) matched his season-high of five strikeouts in 3.0 innings.
• Senior relievers Joe Castrichini and Jordan Marot were stellar on the mound, allowing just one hit over and striking out a combined seven batters over the final six innings.
• Freshman Peter Link and junior Alex Ungar each finished the day tied for the game-high two hits at the plate.
• Five Pioneers registered stolen bases, including Link, Ungar, sophomore Michael Simonelli, graduate student Joey Skarad, and freshman Charlie Tillman.
• Freshman Elijah Foster (1-1) picked up his first career win on the hill after getting the start and striking out eight batters over 5.0 innings of work.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Following Haas's quick first two innings, setting down his first six batters in a row, three on strikes, the Pioneers would strike the scoreboard in the top of the third inning to get the scoring started. 

Ungar started the frame with a leadoff bloop single into right field before advancing into scoring position with his third stolen base of the season. The junior right fielder for the Pioneers would come home to score two batters later when Tallman laced an RBI single past a diving junior Dylan Zemotel at second base. 

After Tallman advanced into scoring position with a stolen base, a single into left field by Simonelli and freshman Gavin Donohue's free pass would load the bases for Sacred Heart with just one out in the inning. A dribbler off the bat of junior Zack Kovalchik plated Tallman and doubled the Pioneers lead to 2-0. Three straight RBI singles by Link, Skarad, and Ungar would cap off the scoring in the top of the third and give Sacred Heart a 6-0 lead.  

The Skyhawks responded right away in the bottom half of the third with two runs of their own off one swing of the bat by Ciulla-Hall, who sent a rocket over the left field wall, bringing the Stonehill deficit to 6-2. After the six-run top of the third inning, Castrichini came on in relief for the Skyhawks and silenced the Pioneers' bats, allowing just two baserunners and giving up no runs over 4.0 innings of work on the mound. 

With the score still locked at 6-2 in favor of Sacred Heart, Marot would enter the game in the top of the eighth inning and continue the flow of Castrichini's stellar pitching performance. In two innings of relief, the senior out of Johnston, Rhode Island, would set down three of his six batters faced on strikes, allowing his offense to take their final at-bats in the bottom of the ninth, trailing by just four runs. 

Thorbahn sent his team-leading fourth homerun of the year over the left field fence in the ninth. (Photo Credit Ryan Adams).

After Ciulla-Hall was able to reach base on an error by the first baseman, Thorbahn stepped into the box and launched an opposite-field two-run shot, bringing the score to 6-4 with no one out. However, after senior catcher Blaine Lidsky reached base on an infield single to third, junior reliever Charlie Costello would slam the door shut to seal the narrow 6-4 victory for the Sacred Heart. 

INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• As a pitching staff, the Skyhawks struck out a season-high 12 batters on the day.
• Castrichini and Marot each matched previous career-high single game strikeout totals.
• Marot's three strikeout matched his career-high total set a season ago on May 18, 2023, against Central Connecticut State University.
• Castrichini punched out four batters against Sacred Heart in 3.1 innings of work back on March 17, 2023.
• On his old high school diamond, Parks went 1-for-3 with a run scored, a walk, and a stolen base.
• Parks now leads the team with three stolen bases on the season.

UP NEXT

Stonehill (4-12, 0-6 NEC) returns to action on Tuesday, March 26, for a midweek non-conference matchup against Brown University. First pitch between the Skyhawks and Bears from the Attanasio Family Field at Murray Stadium in Providence, R.I., is set for 3 p.m. 

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