WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Hartford baseball team kicked off their busy weekend with a tough loss to the Westfield State Owls to a score of 4-3 this Thursday afternoon.

Rapid Recap:

• Both the Hawks and the Owls were quiet for the first five innings, teams struggled to round the bases early in this match-up.The Owls were the first to strike as senior Jonathan Toth sent a solo homer out of Fiondella Field to take the lead in the top of the sixth over the Hawks. The Hawks were quick to answer with a solid inning as junior Jackson Ciccone (Danbury, Conn.) singled through the left side, stole second off of a wild pitch by the Owls, and sophomore Tyler Shannon (Madison, N.J.) snuck a hit by the third baseman to bring Ciccone home. The two teams stood 1-1 heading into the seventh inning.
• In the seventh inning the Hawks pulled ahead 2-1 on a clutch RBI double from Ciccone that brought junior Joshua Kaplan (Suffern, N.Y.) across home plate. The Owls had their strongest performance in the eighth inning, punching a three-run inning over the Hawks fueled by two wild pitches and an error to fire up the Owls, to end the eighth inning 4-2.
• The Hawks were optimistic as they shut down the Owls in the top of the ninth as freshman Evan Gentile (Berlin, Conn.) struck out the third batter swinging. The Hawks rallied in the ninth with an RBI single from sophomore JJ Romatzick (Stratford, Conn.) letting freshman Nico DiGioia (Hamden, Conn.) to score after he was on base from sealing a double. The comeback fell short for the Hawks with a final score 4-3 this Thursday afternoon.

On the Mound:

• Senior Luke Rier (Miami, Fla.) pitched three innings for the Hawks with one strike-out and held the Owls score-less in the opening innings. Sophomore Sam Smith (Branford, Conn.) was the next Hawk to take the mound facing six batters allowing one walk and claiming one strikeout in his two innings pitched. Senior Teaque Mulcahy (Bayonne, N.J.) gave up a solo home run in the sixth inning but only allowed one run. Junior Jeremy Mangiameli (Middlefield, Conn.) pitched two strike-outs in his just one inning pitched and threw one wild pitch. Up next was sophomore Julian Rondon (Bardonia, N.Y.) who allowed three runs in the eighth inning, allowing two walks, a hit, and was charged with two wild pitches. Freshman Evan Gentile (Berlin, Conn.) closed out the match-up with three strikeouts in his two innings pitched.

At the Plate:

• Junior Jackson Ciccone (Danbury, Conn.) led the Hawks going 2-for-5 with two hits and an RBI making it his 13th for the 2025 season so far. Sophomore JJ Romatzick (Stratford, Conn.) batted strong today going 2-for-5- with two hits and an RBI. Junior Joshua Kaplan (Suffern, N.Y.) had a solid day at the plate recording two hits and scoring a run for the team.

Up Next:
The Hawks are back in action this Friday as they host the Keene State Owls at 2:30 p.m. on March 21st.