PANTHER BASEBALL SPLITS TWINBILL WITH 7-1 VICTORY AGAINST FROSTBURG STATE IN SEASON OPENER

FEBRUARY 28, 2009

Old Westbury at Frostburg State Boxscore (Game one)

Old Westbury at Frostburg State Boxscore (Game two)

STAFFORD, VA. -The SUNY College at Old Westbury baseball team dropped its season opener 14-6 to Frostburg State and closed out the twinbill with a 7-1 victory on Saturday in Stafford, Virginia.  Old Westbury starts at 1-1 and Frostburg State (1-5) picks up their first victory of 2009. 

Panthers at the plate (Game one): Old Westbury took an early lead in game one, scoring a run in its half of the first on a double off the bat of sophomore Emmanuel Mateo (Brooklyn, N.Y.), scoring junior Albert Bevacqua (Staten Island, N.Y.) who had singled.  The lead was short-lived as Old Westbury went into the fifth inning trailing 14-1, when junior Dan Fordyce (Brentwood, N.Y.) drove in sophomore Anthony Fernandez (Bethpage, N.Y.) from third.  Fernandez swatted a single in the sixth inning to bring home freshman Ronnie Petito (Cape Coral, Fl.) and junior Joseph Manzella (North Babylon, N.Y.).  Sophomore Steve Sciame (Farmingdale, N.Y.) crossed the plate when junior Bill Campbell (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) drew a bases loaded walk.  Junior John Pensa (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) reached on an error that allowed Fernandez to come around and score the final run for Old Westbury.  Bevacqua led the way at the plate with a 2-for-4 day, with Fernandez (2 runs, 2 RBI), freshman Nestor Bussi (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Mateo and Sciame accounting for the other hits.         

Bobcats at the plate (Game one): Frostburg State plated six runs in the second and tacked on seven in the third before adding their final run in the fourth, to take a 14-1 advantage.  Timothy Sucliffe belted a three-run homerun in the second and added a two-run single in the third.  Sucliffe went 2-for-3 with five RBI and was one of four Bobcats to have a multi-hit game, with hits coming from Andrew Derr, Ben Oberman (2-for-3, 2 runs) and Jeff Kroboth (2-for-4).

Panthers on the mound (Game one):  Senior David Collado (Copiague, N.Y.) took the loss in his two-inning stint with two earned run and three strikeouts.  Junior Robert Hugli (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) and freshman Biondis Vasquez (Elmont, N.Y.) teamed up to pitch a scoreless sixth and seventh, respectively. 

Bobcats on the mound (Game one): Freddy Foshay picked up the win for Frostburg State, striking out four in 5.1 innings of work.  He allowed three hits and two earned runs. 

Game Notes (Game one): Old Westbury was out hit, 12-6 including 3-1 in the extra base hit department.  On the base path, Old Westbury stranded eight Panthers and stole three bases as Frostburg State left six Bobcats on base.  In the field, Old Westbury committed four errors while Frostburg State had two.  On the mound, Old Westbury struck out six Bobcats and walked seven as Frostburg State struck out six Panthers and walked five.    

Panthers at the plate (Game two): Old Westbury responded to a 1-0 deficit in the third inning when Emmanuel Mateo (1-for-3) belted a three-run homerun to score sophomore Fernando Lopez (Bronx, N.Y.) and Albert Bevacqua (1-for-4, SB).  Old Westbury tacked on four runs in the fourth, courtesy of Bevacqua's two-run single with a drive to center, sending home Anthony Fernandez and sophomore Steve Henriquez (North Babylon, N.Y.).  Lopez singled and advanced on a throw that scored Bevacqua from second.  Junior Robert Moschetto (Massapequa, N.Y.) followed with an RBI single to right that scored Lopez from second to cap off the scoring for Old Westbury.  Lopez (2-for-3, 2 runs), Moschetto (2-for-4, SB), Fernandez (2-for-3) and Henriquez (2-for-2) sparked the Old Westbury offense. 

Bobcats at the plate (Game two): Frostburg State got on the board first, as Andrew Derr scored on a passed ball after singling.  Andrew Sacks (2-for-3) stroked two doubles to pace the Bobcat offense and Joe Garrity (2-for-3) chipped a pair of singles.  Old Westbury handcuffed Teon Richburg at the plate, finishing 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.  

Panthers on the mound (Game two):  Junior Robert Whitenack (North Massapequa, N.Y.), the reigning Skyline Conference Pitcher of the Year in 2008, started on the mound and kept the Bobcats in check to earn the victory.  In his six innings of work, he allowed six hits and one run with six strikeouts.  Sophomore Jorge Hiraldo (Brooklyn, N.Y.) tossed a scoreless seventh inning to close out the game.    

Bobcats on the mound (Game two): Frostburg State starter Zach O'Dell was charged with the loss after surrendering six runs in 3.2 innings.

Game Notes (Game two): Old Westbury held the advantage in hits, holding a 10-7 margin.  On the base path, Old Westbury stole three bases and stranded three while Frostburg State left seven on base.  On the defensive front, Old Westbury doubled up the Bobcats twice on the base path and Albert Bevacqua committed the lone Panther error compared to a pair of Bobcat miscues.  On the mound, Old Westbury fanned six Bobcats and walked one while Frostburg State whiffed seven Panthers and handed out two free passes.

The two teams will wrap up their three-game series on Sunday, with the first pitch scheduled for 11:00 a.m. at Stafford High School in Stafford.  Please visit www.oldwestburypanthers.com for more information on baseball or any of the other Panther athletic teams.