THIBODAUX, La. - The Alabama State Hornets lost to Stony Brook 3-2 Friday in the first game of the Colonel Round Robin Baseball Tournament, hosted by Nicholls State University.
The Hornets scored in the top of the first, as an error allowed catcher
Richard Gonzalez to score to give ASU a 1-0 lead.
After the Seawolves tied the game in the bottom of the first, Alabama State regained the lead in the third.
Manny Rodriguez was hit by a pitch for the second time in the game, and came around to score on a fielder's choice to give ASU a 2-1 lead.
Stony Brook (1-0) tied the game in the bottom of the 5
th on a home run by Willie Carmona and took the lead in the 7
th on an RBI double by Carmona.
“I told the guys before the game that we need to concentrate on playing good baseball and not so much the outcome of the game,” head coach
Mervyl Melendez said. “Yes, you play this game because you want to win, but the bottom line is we have to get better. We're very young and we're playing quality teams. Stony Brook is a very good team, an NCAA Tournament-caliber team, and I thought we did a very good job.”
The Hornets (0-6) put runners on base in both the eighth and ninth innings, but could not get the game-tying hit.
“Once again, we're within one base hit of tying the ball game,” Melendez said. “I have to stop looking at the record and the way we're playing baseball and the future of the program, the near future more than anything else. I'm not satisfied with the loss, but I am satisfied with the way we have been competitive in four of the six games. We just have to start winning ball games and it's going to come. If we continue to play like this, the wins are going to come.”
ASU will play their first doubleheader of the season Saturday, playing host Nicholls State at 1 p.m. before facing Stony Brook at 5 p.m.
