To start the weekend series, the Chargers sent their ace, Thomas Eletto (Locust Valley, N.Y./Locust Valley), out to the mound to get things started. The senior righty made quick work of the first batter, catching the leadoff man looking, but a pair of singles threatened New Haven early. With two outs and two on, Eletto retired the final batter on a swinging strikeout to end the inning.

Leading off the bottom of the first, Cole Maucere (West Babylon, N.Y./West Babylon) drew a five pitch walk, his 16th of the season. After a sacrifice bunt from Noah Buzdik advanced the runner to second, Tyler Wells (Danville, Vt./St. Johnsbury Academy) delivered the opening run on an RBI single through the right side.

Eletto started the second with another leadoff strikeout but the Penmen would put a man on base after a one-out single to right field. Eletto held it down, once again, forcing two flyouts to strand the runner.

After retiring the Charger's offense in order, the Penmen tallied another one-out single, this time back up the middle. A fielder's choice would advance the runner into scoring position but a strikeout, Eletto's third of the game, would end the inning.

With one away, Maucere drew another walk before reaching third on a single to right center by Budzik. The run would not come to pass, however, as a double play prevented the Chargers from taking advantage of runners on the corners.

Despite a one out single to left field, Southern New Hampshire was still kept off the board as Eletto struck out another batter, winning a long eight pitch at-bat.

Andrew Cain (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) was the first Charger to reach base in the bottom of the fourth, via a walk, but was caught stealing second soon after. With two outs, Andrew Bianco (Kings Park, N.Y./Kings Park) drew a walk, himself, before Lester drove him home on double to deep center field.

Southern New Hampshire started the fifth inning off hot, racking up three singles through the first four batters, the lone out coming on a foul out to Hunter Boag (Colts Neck, N.J./Colts Neck). With the bases loaded and one out, only one run would cross in the effort after a sac fly to center field. After a walk loaded the bases again, the senior righty caught the batter swinging to escape the jam with minimal damage.

Maucere kicked things off in the bottom of the fifth by drawing his third walk of the game. The freshman left fielder then successfully stole second before advancing to third on a groundout. Robert Taylor (Wolcott, Conn./The Gunnery) laced one to center field to plate the run, giving the Chargers a 3-1 lead. Following the hit from Taylor, Wells drew a walk to put runners on first and second. One run would score on a double down the left field line by Cain while Wells would reach home on a wild pitch.

Although Eletto allowed a leadoff walk to start the inning, a double play and a nifty play at first base would retire the side.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Chargers juiced the bases after a pair of walks from Boag and Maucere and a single from Budzik but Boag was tagged out at the plate before a groundout to quell the effort.

After Eletto held the Penmen to another scoreless inning, Cain kicked things off in the seventh with a one-out double down the right field line. The first baseman would advance to third and eventually score on a pair of wild pitches. Bianco, who drew a walk on the second wild pitch, scored the second run of the inning on an RBI single to center field by Kenneth Franquiz (Bellmore. N.Y./Mepham).

Gary Costello (Cheshire, Conn./Cheshire) relieved Eletto, heading into the eighth as he allowed the Penmen's second run of the game on a sac fly to left field after the leadoff man singled to right center.

Looking to add to the insurance, Taylor roped a single to left field before successfully stealing second. After advancing to third on a groundout, Taylor scored on a wild pitch. Boag drove in New Haven's ninth run of the contest on an RBI single to left field that plated Bianco, who reached base on balls.

The Penmen would not go down quietly as they tacked on two late game homeruns off of reliever Tyler Silverman. The junior escaped the inning to secure the win with a little help from Boag, who caught the liner at third before making the double play.

Taylor and Cain led the offense with a pair of hits and an RBI, each, while Maucere and Bianco made for tough outs, combining for nine walks. Eletto allowed eight hits and and two walks through seven innings while striking out six. The senior righty picked up his fourth win of the season as the Chargers head into the second game with a 13-6 record.
 

Game 2 - Southern New Hampshire 9, New Haven 6 (7 Innings)

With a series sweep on the line, the Chargers called on Bryan Pazulski (Media, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) to start the seven-inning second game. Although he allowed a double down the left line, the junior struck out three batters in the first inning.

Maucere, who walked five times in game one, drove one to deep right field for his first homerun as a Charger. With two outs, Wells drew a walk before advancing to third on a single from Cain. The two-out threat would be extinguished on a foul out to the catcher.

After a pair of walks and a single loaded the bases with two outs for the Penmen, disaster struck as the bases would be cleared, along with the batter, on a little league home run which featured a pair of errors. All four runs that came across in the inning were credited as unearned.

The Chargers did not take long to answer as they loaded the bases quickly after Boag and Maucere were hit by pitches and Franquiz singled through the left side. One run would come home on an RBI groundout by Budzik before Taylor drove in another two with a double down the left line. New Haven would regain the lead after Taylor scored on a throwing error during a double steal.

Pazulski worked a 1-2-3 to keep the lead in tact as the junior righty struck out two batters, as well.

Although he lead off the inning with a double to left center, Bianco was caught stealing third. The bottom half of the inning folded quickly for the Chargers as a groundout and a fly out sent them back on defense.

A two-out bloop single to center field would plate one runner, who reached on a double, as a second run reached home on the throw. The Penmen's lead wouldn't last long as Franquiz was plunked to reach base in the leadoff spot. Maucere singled down the right line to advance Franquiz to third but the runner scored during a double play by Budzik.

Both sides would go down in order in both the fifth and the sixth inning as they remained tied, heading into the seventh.

Kyle Allen (Middle Island, N.Y./Longwood) took over the mound in relief for Pazulski but faced immediate adversity as he allowed a pair of singled to lead off the inning. A third single would be enough to bring in the go-ahead run but an insurance run was added after a throwing error on a steal attempt. With two outs and a runner on third, the Penmen took a 9-6 lead after a single through the left side.

Maucere started the comeback effort with a single to right field but a double play would clear the bases before a strikeout would end the game.

Pazulski allowed five hits and four walks across six innings while striking out seven. The junior was only tacked for three earned runs out of the seven that came across but was a no-decision in the game. Maucere led the offense in the second contest after batting 3-3 with a solo homerun while Taylor drove in another two runs on the day. Following the loss, the Chargers are now 13-8 on the season.

NEXT UP
The University of New Haven baseball team will potentially play one more game against the SHNU Penmen, dependent on the weather. As of now, the game is scheduled for noon at Frank Vieira Field.