PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – The University of New Haven baseball team dropped a divisional match-up on the road on Tuesday afternoon, falling to the Pace Setters by a 6-3 margin. With the loss, New Haven falls to 13-13 on the season and 5-5 in the Northeast-10.
As a team, four Chargers combined for five total hits with the Setters finishing with eight. Leading the Blue and Gold at the plate was third baseman Jack Zagaja (Merrick, N.Y./St. Dominic) who finished with two of the five hits, the only player with a multi-hit outing. He also drove in one run and scored once, both of which came on his team-leading third home run of the season.
Centerfielder Joe Caico (Hopedale, Mass./Worcester (MA)) led New Haven with a pair of RBI as he finished with one hit, a single through the right side that accounted for one of his two RBI. Rounding out the leaders at the plate was left fielder Robert Petrillo (Branford, Conn./Branford) and first baseman Andrew Garcia (Medford, N.Y./Patchogue Medford) who each finished 1-of-3 on the day. Petrillo also scored two runs, while Garcia extended his current hit streak to seven straight games with a double in the fifth inning.
Suffering the loss on the hill for the Blue and Gold was sophomore Will Aldam (Danbury, Conn./Berkshire School) (0-3) who gave up four earned runs on two hits in two-thirds of an inning of work. Junior lefty Vincent Aprea (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y./Comsewogue) pitched six innings in a no-decision start, allowing one earned run on three hits and a walk. He also struck out a game-high five batters. Also seeing time in relief for the Chargers was Brian Caselli (Stratford, Conn./Stratford) and Tim Kennedy (Ridge, N.Y./Longwood), with the latter pitching a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.
New Haven struck first in the game, scoring a single run in the second on a leadoff home run from Zagaja. The long ball was the first hit of the game for either team. The Chargers would build that lead to 2-0 with another single run, this time in the fourth inning as Caico recorded his first RBI of the day on a single through the right side. That hit allowed Petrillo to score from second after originally reaching base when he was issued a walk.
Pace cut the New Haven lead in half with a single run in the sixth before taking the lead for good with a five-run seventh inning. The Blue and Gold added one more tally in the ninth, with their comeback bid falling short. Caico would again drive in Petrillo for the ninth inning run, this time on a groundout to second. Petrillo originally led off the frame with a ground-rule double to right center.
The Chargers will return to work with a three-game weekend series on the road at Adelphi. The divisional set is scheduled for a doubleheader on Saturday (12:00 p.m. and single game on Sunday (1:00 p.m.).
