CANISIUS COLLEGE ATHLETICS
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Senior left-hander J.P. Stevenson‘s 11 strikeouts led the way for Canisius as the Golden Griffins beat Saint Peter’s, 5-1 in game one Sunday at the Demske Sports Complex.
The New Glasgow, P.E.I., native, didn’t surrender a base runner until one out in the fifth inning when Peacocks senior Angel Perez placed a ball just inside the right field foul line and was able to scamper around to third base for the triple. The 6-foot-1 Stevenson allowed only one more hit, a double in the sixth inning, giving up one unearned run in six innings of work.
Stevenson received plenty of run support right from the start as the Griffs scored four of their five runs in the bottom of the first inning. In the frame, redshirt senior Christ Conley singled to left field to score junior Mark McKenna for the game’s first run. Redshirt senior Liam Wilson next and legged out a triple to bring home Conley. After senior Ryan Stekl reached on a fielding error allowing Wilson to score, fellow senior Joseph Preziuso was able to get to first on a fielder’s choice, and Stekl darted home on a throwing error by Saint Peter’s, putting Canisius up 4-0 after one inning of play.
The Blue and Gold tacked on another run in the third as Wilson advanced to third on a wild pitch, and subsequently scored, as the throw from the Saint Peter’s catcher sailed into left field, allowing Wilson to walk home for the 5-0 Griffs lead.
The Peacocks mustered a run in the sixth stanza as sophomore Hunter Mason doubled to left center and ended up scoring as an errant throw from the outfield trying to retire a runner went out of the play, bringing Mason in to score their only run.
Saint Peter’s senior right-hander Willie Krajnik was charged with his third defeat of the season as he went five innings, surrendering five runs (three earned) on six hits while striking out six and walking three.
GAME TWO
The Canisius offense exploded for its second 16-run performance of the season, and of the series, as the Golden Griffins slammed 14 hits all over the Demske Sports Complex on its way to a 16-2 victory over Saint Peter’s in game two. The win moves the Griffs to 17-10 on the campaign and 6-3 in the MAAC, as the Peacocks dropped to 0-22 and 0-9 in the conference.
Saint Peter’s held an early 2-0 lead after two and half innings of play, however, the advantage didn’t hold for long as Canisius began its barrage with two runs of its own in the bottom of the third, featuring a RBI single by McKenna and a RBI double by Wilson, tying the game at 2-2.
The fourth inning saw the Blue and Gold post seven scores on only two hits (a single and a triple), two hit-by-pitches, two steals (including a steal of home), four walks (two with the bases loaded), a sacrifice fly and one Peacocks error. When the inning finished, Canisius led 9-2.
The Golden Griffins continued to push their lead in the fifth inning as Stekl and redshirt sophomore William Krullhit back-to-back RBI doubles to push the score to 11-2.
In the seventh and eighth innings, Canisius added five more runs on a two-run double by Preziuso and RBI singles by senior Cyrus Senior and freshman Jacob Martins, closing out the 16-2 victory.
Junior right-hander Andrew Sipowicz cruised to his fourth win of 2018 for Canisius. The Buffalo, N.Y. native, strolled through four innings, scattering four hits while giving up two runs and striking out two batters before handing the ball over to a quartet of Canisius relievers to finish off the game.
Saint Peter’s sent sophomore southpaw Anthony Ramos to the bump as he surrendered six runs on five hits and four walks, to go along with four strikeouts as well.
GAME NOTES
• With his four hits on Sunday, Wilson has reached base in all 27 games this season and 29 times in his last 30 games dating back to last year. Wilson’s streak also includes an on-going 11 game hitting streak.
• Conley’s on-base streak now stands at 17 straight games with his one hit in game one Sunday.
• With the win in game one, Stevenson now has 23 career victories, moving him into a tie for third place in program history with Alex Godzak (’13).
• With his two starts on Saturday, Stekl has now started 198 games in his Canisius career, ranking him third all-time in school history passing Ian Choy (’10).
UP NEXT
The Griffs return to action with a mid-week non-conference match-up versus Kent State April 11. First pitch from Kent, Ohio, is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.