Stony Brook baseball takes two of three from UMaine

Mar. 27—The University of Maine's baseball team won the opener of its three-game series with defending two-time America East regular season champion Stony Brook on Friday, but the Seawolves bounced back to win the series.

Maine won 10-9 on Friday and Stony Brook won 6-2 on Saturday and 8-2 on Sunday at Mahaney Diamond in Orono.

And UMaine baseball coach Nick Derba said his team was fortunate to win one.

"We got out-competed. We should have been swept," Derba said. "We played poorly. I am very disappointed."

The team didn't pitch well, have good at-bats or run bases well, he said.

Stony Brook improved to 9-13 overall and 5-1 in the conference, while UMaine fell to 7-13 and 4-2.

Stony Brook cannot compete in the conference tournament because it is leaving for the Colonial Athletic Association after this season and an America East bylaw forbids departing teams from playing in league championships.

On Sunday, Stony Brook's Quinlan Montgomery and Brendan Patterman combined on a five-hitter and Shane Paradine's solo homer in the sixth inning and Cole Durkan's run-scoring single snapped a 2-2 tie.

Paradine also doubled, singled twice and had a sacrifice fly for three RBIs in the contest. Stanton Leuthner hit a home run and singled and Evan Giordano singled twice for Stony Brook, which outhit UMaine 14-5.

Ryan Turenne singled twice for UMaine.

UM pitcher Brett Erwin absorbed the loss.

On Saturday, the Seawolves exploded for four runs in the eighth inning to break open a close game as Evan Fox's RBI double, Giordano's run-scoring single and Matt Brown Eiring's two-run homer off reliever Noah Lewis transformed a 2-1 lead into a five-run advantage.

Brown-Eiring and Fox each had three hits while Giordano and Matt Miceli had two apiece for the winners.

Jake Rainess' double and two singles, Jordan Schulefand's triple and single and Jeremiah Jenkins' solo homer paced UMaine.

On Friday, UMaine unleashed a 16-hit attack with seven hitters each registering a pair of hits.

Turenne's three-run homer capped a five-run fourth-inning rally that swelled UMaine's lead to 10-3.

Stony Brook closed to within one, but Matt Pushard hurled 2 2/3 innings of four-hit baseball to pick up the save, allowing just one unearned one. Leif Bigelow got the win.

"Matt came in and did his job," said Derba.

Turenne also had a triple while the other Black Bears with two hits were Jeff Mejia, Quinn McDaniel, Scout Knotts, Joe Bramanti, Rainess and Schulefand.

Leuthner, Paradine and David Alleva had two hits each for Stony Brook and Fox hit a two-run homer.

UMaine will visit the University of Maryland Baltimore County for three games next weekend.

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