MERION STATION, Pa. – Ryan Picollo hit two home runs and collected five runs batted in while Jakob Reed's ninth-inning single plated the winning run as the Saint Joseph's baseball team opened its 2024 season with a 6-5 win over Canisius at a cold and blustery Smithson Field on Friday afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Saint Joseph's (1-0) got on the board right away as Conlan Wall reached on an error and Luke Zimmerman drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the first inning.  Picollo followed with a home run to right center to stake the Hawks to a 3-0 lead.

• The visitors threatened in the top of the third, putting two on with two out before Cole Sebastian hit a fly ball to deep right center, but Wall made an outstanding diving catch to end the inning without any damage on the scoreboard.

• Canisius (0-1) then broke through for a pair in the fifth on a two-run home run by Jackson Strong.

• Picollo struck again in the seventh, extending the lead on another big fly to right center after Wall beat out a single to lead off the frame.

• The Golden Griffins tied things up with two outs in the top of the ninth, benefiting from two hits, an error, two hit batters, and two wild pitches in the inning.

• Extra innings seemed imminent after the Hawks made two quick outs in the last of the ninth, but Justin Igoe singled and was replaced on the basepaths by Colin Myers before Owen Petrich reached on an error to extend the inning.  A wild pitch left the winning run 90 feet away for Reed, who laced a single to left center to score Myers and give the Hawks the win.

BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Colin Yablonski tossed a third of an inning and was credited with the win in his Hawk debut, while Levi Abbott took the loss in two-thirds of an inning of work for Canisius.

• Will McCausland posted a strong Opening Day start on the mound for SJU, allowing two runs on six hits in five innings.  He struck out eight on the day without walking a batter, retiring eight hitters in a row in the early part of the game.  Matt McShane threw three and a third innings of relief, ceding two runs on two hits while fanning six.

• Reed's game-winning hit was his third of the day to lead the Hawks; Wall, Picollo, and Max Hitman had two apiece as well.  Mike DeStefano led the Golden Griffins with four hits on the day.

• The win is the fourth for the Hawks on Opening Day in the past five seasons; Saint Joseph's topped Ohio State in 2020, Towson in 2021, and Quinnipiac in 2022.  The win over Quinnipiac came at Smithson Field, making the Hawks 2-0 all-time in season openers played at home.

UP NEXT
The teams are slated to continue the series on Saturday at noon.