March 19, 2008
Box Score
Orlando, FL - For the second-straight game the Wagner Seahawks squandered a golden opportunity for the program's first-ever win over a top-25 opponent in a 9-3 loss to No. 16 UCF. The Green & White stranded 13 runners, including nine in scoring position, while the Golden Knights scored seven of their nine runs with two outs.
The Seahawks fall to 4-6 while UCF improves to 19-1 with its 11th-straight win.
Senior Joe Testa (Brick, NJ / Brick) pitched a solid game, striking out five, against just two walks, while yielding six runs, four earned, in 7.0 innings of work. Testa (2-2) was victimized by the long ball, surrendering three after allowing just three since the beginning of his junior year. The hard-throwing lefty has gone at least six innings in each one of his starts and is now fourth in school-history with 235.0 career innings.
Wagner struck early with a first-inning run. Sophomore Damian Csakai (Freehold, NJ / Freehold) set the table with a lead-off single to center field. He moved over to third after freshman Jon Lucas (Hackettstown, NJ / Hackettstown) reached on catcher's interference and classmate Seth Boyd (Perth Amboy, NJ / Perth Amboy) walked. Sophomore Tom DiPietro (Staten Island, NY / Felician) fought off a 0-2 count to bring Csakai around on a fielder's choice to make it 1-0 Seahawks.
UCF's Tyson Auer tied the score up at 1-1 in the bottom part of the inning with a home run to left-center.
Wagner put together a two-out rally in the second as freshman Brian Martutartus (Carlsbad, CA / La Costa Canyon) walked and Csakai followed with his second hit of the day. The pair moved up to second and third but would be stranded there.
The Green & White reclaimed the lead at 2-1 in the third as Lucas drilled a double that hit off the centerfield wall, some 400 feet away, driving in junior Chris Drechsel (Cranford, NJ / Cranford), who was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning.
Wagner had the opportunity to jump out to a big lead early, stranding six runners of the first three innings, including five in scoring position.
Chris Duffy took advantage of a Wagner error in the fourth, hitting a two-run home run to right field to give the Golden Knights their first lead of the day at 3-2.
UCF's Brandon Romans led off fifth with a home run down the left field line that extended the Knight lead out to 4-2. The Golden Knights would tack on a run in the sixth before Romans hit his second home run of the night, a wind-aided shot to right field, to go up 6-2.
The Seahawks were down but not out. Sophomores Vin Avella (Matawan, NJ / CBA) and pinch-hitter Kevin Payne (Staten Island, NY / St. Peter's) each singled to lead off the eighth while chasing UCF reliever Brian Griggs. After a force play at second, Boyd hit a sacrifice fly to center field to cut the deficit to 6-3. Drechsel then singled through the left side to bring the tying run to the plate. However, as was the storyline of the series, the Green & White could not capitalize.
UCF added three unearned runs in the ninth while retiring the Green & White in order in the bottom part of the inning.
Csakai led the offense, going 3-5 with a run and a stolen base.
Matt Goodyear (1-0) earned the win, striking out five while yielding two runs, one earned, over 4.0 innings. Romans led UCF, going 3-4 with two home runs and three RBI.
Wagner will now head to South Carolina for a four-game series with Winthrop, out of the Big South Conference, beginning on Friday at 6:00 pm. Live Stats will be available for all four games.
