A little bit of this and a little bit of that added up to Seton Hall’s 5-1 baseball victory over Hawaii.
The Pirates played small ball (two bunt singles), long ball (Connor Hood’s two-run triple to the right-center gap) and tough-to-hit ball (the UH run was unearned) in claiming what was essentially a doubleheader sweep Saturday at Les Murakami Stadium.
Earlier Saturday, the Pirates completed a 9-8 victory in an 11-inning game that was suspended in the seventh inning Friday night because of heavy rain.
The clouds had cleared at twilight Saturday, but the ’Bows could not weather the Pirates’ rat-a-tat lineup and purposeful pitching in the nightcap.
“They played better,” UH coach Mike Trapasso said of the Pirates. “We didn’t pitch well. Our pitching was pretty ordinary at best, and their hitting was extraordinary. They were outstanding.”
The Pirates amassed 12 hits, including 10 through the first five innings. Four of their hits came on two-strike pitches. After forcing the ’Bows to burn four relievers in the opening game — closer Dylan Thomas pitched 2 2/3 innings — the Pirates chased UH starter Dominic DeMiero with no outs in the fifth in Saturday’s evening game.
DeMiero forced the Pirates to strand three runners in the first two innings, but he exhausted his escape options after that. The Pirates loaded the bases on three singles to open the third. DeMiero struck out the next two Pirates, but Nick Dabrio singled home Rob Dadona for the game’s first run.
In the fourth, the Pirates broke a 1-all tie when Hood belted a two-run triple into right-center. It was Hood’s third hit of the season and second of the series. He homered on Friday night.
In the fifth, DeMiero allowed a single to Casey Dana and a walk to Ryan Ramiz. That ended DeMiero’s evening at 79 pitches. He allowed nine hits and three walks. Tyler Shedler-McAvoy’s two-out single scored Dana to extend the Pirates’ lead to 4-1.
“We’re behind in the count,” Trapasso said. “We can’t throw anything else (besides fastballs) for a strike. We’re just not pitching well for two days in a row. That’s what’s going to happen.”
The ’Bows made several DVR-rewinding plays. Dustin Demeter took a throw from shortstop Maaki Yamazaki, fell down, and with his back pockets on second base, threw to first to complete the double play. Adam Fogel, playing center field, made a diving catch on a drive into the alley.
But the ’Bows had difficulty piecing hits against Billy Layne, a 6-4, 181-pound right-hander who was making his second start after four relief appearances. In his previous start, Layne pitched four innings in a road victory over Oklahoma State. On Saturday, he went five innings, allowing three hits and one unearned run.
The Pirates finished what they started in winning the game that was suspended on Friday.
Shortstop Al Molina scored the go-ahead run from third when Sebastiano Santorelli grounded into a double play in the 11th inning. The ’Bows went down in order in the bottom of the inning.
The Pirates were leading, 8-7, when the game was suspended in the seventh inning Friday because of heavy rain. When the game resumed Saturday afternoon, the ’Bows tied it on Tyler Murray’s RBI single to right in the eighth. But the next 11 UH batters did not reach base.
Matt Leon pitched three innings of relief to earn the victory.