BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 BOX SCORE (Game 1)
BOX SCORE (Game 2)

STONY BROOK, N.Y. - The University of New Haven baseball team swept Molloy College in a doubleheader Sunday afternoon hosted at Stony Brook. The Chargers took the opening game 7-0 before completing the sweep with a 4-3 come-from-behind victory in the nightcap. The Chargers improved to 3-0 on the season, while the Lions dropped to 5-5 overall.

Game 1
Led by a five-inning outing by starting pitcher Taylor Candage (Portland, Maine/Deering), New Haven shutout the Lions in the opener. The junior threw five scoreless innings allowing six hits and striking out three. Frank Vilacha (Dartmouth, Mass./Dartmouth) entered in the sixth inning and Derek Drag (Meriden, Conn./O.H. Platt / Central Conn. St.) in the eighth inning to complete the shutout for UNH.

At the plate, New Haven's first run came in the third inning when Joe Romanelli (Baldwin, N.Y./Holy Trinity) ignited the UNH bats with a two-out triple to left center. Stephen Clout (Bristol, Conn./Bristol Eastern) drove in Romanelli with a shot to center field and gave the Chargers a 1-0 lead. The Chargers then took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning off a David Wirkus (Orange, Conn./Fairfield Prep / St. Anselm College) RBI single to center field. In the bottom of the fourth, the UNH defense stranded two Molloy runners on base to maintain a 2-0 lead.

In the top of the fifth, New Haven exploded with four runs off four hits and one Molloy error. Clout hit another RBI single to center field, while Jack Heary (Portland, Maine/Deering) drove in the Chargers fourth run. Wirkus also tallied his second RBI hit of the game and Brendon Buckley (Monroe, Conn./Masuk) hit a sacrifice fly to give the Chargers a 6-0 lead. Molloy stranded runners on base in the bottom of the fifth and sixth and the Chargers added one run off a Ryan Brockett (Guilford, Conn./Guilford ) sacrifice to left field. In the bottom of the seventh, Molloy managed two base runners off a walk and hit batter, but the UNH defense sealed the shutout with a groundout to Brockett for the final out.

Wirkus and Clout both went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI at the plate, while Clout added one run. Romanelli went 2-for-3 at the dish with two runs. Brockett added one RBI and two runs as well.

Game 2
In the top of the first inning of game two, the Chargers scored a pair of runs to take an early lead. In the game's second at-bat, Andrew Johnson (Branford, Conn./Branford / Wheaton) earned a base after he was hit at the plate. The sophomore advanced to second on a wild pitch with Ryan Brockett (Guilford, Conn./Guilford ) at the plate. Brockett's single to right field drove in Johnson to give New Haven a 1-0 lead. He earned second with a steal and advanced to third off a Wirkus ground out. Jack Heary (Portland, Maine/Deering) drove in the Chargers' second run of the first inning with a single up the middle in the next at-bat.

Molloy left runners on base in the second and third innings, but neither team managed a run until the bottom of the fifth inning. The Lions came alive with three runs off three hits and one UNH error. A single to left center drove in Molloy's go-ahead third run with two outs in the fifth.

In the top of the sixth inning, Clout opened the inning with an infield single, but three-straight outs stranded the game-tying run at third base. Eric Peck (East Hampton, Conn./East Hampton) helped retire the side in the bottom of the sixth to give the Chargers a shot at the seventh inning comeback. Heary and Carr opened the sventh with back-to-back singles, while and error on the pitcher two plays later evened the score at 3-3 with one out in the seventh. Clout then hit a two-out double down the left field line, scoring Carr from third base and give UNH a 4-3 lead. Three-straight outs in the bottom of the seventh sealed the win for UNH.

Brockett and Heary both went 2-for-3 in the game with one RBI and one run. Clout went 2-for-4 with one RBI and Carr 1-for-3 with one run.

On the mound, Pat Simone (Branford, Conn./Branford) started for the Chargers and threw 4 2/3 innings while totaling three strikeouts and no earned runs. Eric Peck (East Hampton, Conn./East Hampton) came into the game in the fifth inning and threw the final 2 1/3 innings. He struck out two and allowed one hit.

New Haven returns to action at Palm Beach Atlantic University on Saturday, March 10. Game time in West Palm Beach, Fla. is set for 1 p.m. For complete coverage, stay posted to www.NewHavenChargers.com.