Staten Island, NY | It was senior day at the CSI Softball Complex and the team honored their two seniors, Vanessa Jioia and Nicolette Trapani, before the game against John Jay College. The Dolphins swept the Bloodhounds on their final home game of the season, 8-0, 8-1, to improve to 20-10, 12-0 while knocking down the Bloodhounds to 8-22, 5-7.
Game One | Staten Island 8, John Jay 0 (6 inn.)
In her final home start of the season, Trapani (9-6) threw her second no-hitter in a row. Trapani used 79 pitches to strike out 11 and walked just one batter.
Much like they’ve done all season, the Dolphins jumped out to an early first inning lead, tallying three runs on two hits with John Jay keeping the inning alive with an error. Vanessa Jioia got the Dolphins on the board with a big hit to left field which drove in Patricia, who earlier reached on a single up the middle. The Dolphins had two men on the bases and two out when Erica Olsen safely reached first via a dropped fly in left field which scored a pair of runs.
Staten Island took a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the second after Antoinette Galbo brought Riches home with an RBI single to left center. Jioia kept her bat hot and collected her second RBI of the game with an RBI double to left field.
John Jay settled into the game and kept the Dolphins scoreless in the third and fourth inning knocking them down in order both times.
CSI broke out of their funk the bottom of the fifth when errors would once again strike John Jay. It once again happened with two outs as another dropped fly in left field extended the inning. Gabriele DeLeon’s flyball to left field brought Galbo in from second after she reached on a successful bunt. The sun was shining brightly at the CSI Softball Complex and Olsen took advantage and hit a pop up to shortstop which brought home DeLeon to give CSI a 7-0 lead.
Jioia embraced senior day and tallied her team-high third RBI in the bottom of the sixth with a walk-off bunt, scoring Julianna Cretella from third.
Jioia finished game one 3-for-4 with 3 RBI while Riches also finished 3-for-4 with 2 runs scored.
Game Two | Staten Island 8, John Jay 1
Alison Meagher (10-4) struck out three and walked four on 97 pitches in the 8-1 win over John Jay in the second game of the day. Meagher allowed just one run on five hits in her 14th appearance of the season.
It was John Jay who struck first in the second game, using two hits to score their run. Mariela Guzman found her pitch and hit the gap in left-center for an RBI double. CSI would answer right back with a run of their own when DeLeon scored Riches with an infield hit.
CSI took the lead for good in the next inning, plating three runs on two hits with John Jay committing a pair of errors. Christina Cerverizzo was first on base with a single through the left side. After both Trapani and Riches reached via a fielding error by the Bloodhounds, Galbo crushed the ball to left center for a bases-clearing double. It would turn out to be all the runs the Dolphins would need to defeat the Bloodhounds but the Dolphins added three more in the bottom of the fifth and one more in the bottom of the sixth to go on to win their second of the day.
Riches brought in two of the three runs in the fifth with a double to right center while Cerverizzo brought in the other run with a screamer down the left field line.
The Dolphins scattered 14 hits in the win, their fourth highest hit total of the season. Cerverizzo finished 2-for-4 with 2 runs and an RBI while Galbo tallied 3 RBI on 2-of-4 hitting.
Up next for the Dolphins will be William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ.
