The College of Staten Island men’s baseball squad fell for the fourth straight outing, as the College of Mount Saint Vincent used a two-run first inning and never looked back in a 5-2 win this evening at the CSI Baseball Complex.  With the win, MSV snapped a three-game skid, improving their mark to 2-4, while the Dolphins fell to 1-6 to start the 2011 campaign.
Despite the loss, CSI only gave up a pair of hits through the entire nine frames, but six walks, three hit batters and a pair of errors sealed the home team’s fate.  MSV plated a pair of runs in the first inning off of CSI starter James Mardikos to inflict most of the damage in the early innings.  Mark Sargente blasted a double to left, scoring leadoff man Christian Lavery, who began the inning with a walk, and James Labartino, who reached via a fielders choice.
The visiting Dolphins tallied another run to make it 3-0 in the fifth inning on Matt Morales’ fielding error that scored Josh Sharpe, who reached earlier in the inning via another Mardikos walk.  After registering only a single hit through four frames, CSI finally plated a run in the fifth inning on a pair of hits.  With runners at first and second and two out, Henry Roman roped a single up the middle, scoring Bryan Moreno, but MSV starter Anthony Mongelli got out of further damage with runners at the corners by getting senior Pat Gale to fly out to right field.
MSV took full control with another run in the sixth, chasing Mardikos, and now down 4-1, CSI allowed another run in the top of the 9th, as MSV mixed in two walks, a pair of hit batters, and a sac bunt to score and leave the bases loaded without registering a hit.
Down to their final three outs, CSI did pass a runner across when Gale earned a bases-loaded walk off of closer Brian Rush, scoring Joseph Falcone.  Rush bounced back, however, getting James Lewis to harmlessly ground out to first base with the bases still loaded to end the threat.
CSI spread out seven hits to MSV’s two, with Roman boasting a 3-for-4 day at the dish with an RBI and a walk.  Mongelli earned the win for MSV, tossing six strong innings, allowing a single earned run on four hits, fanning seven.  Mardikos took the loss, going 5.1 innings allowing four runs (two earned) on two hits with four walks and five strikeouts.
CSI will be back in action on Tuesday, March 15, at 4pm, when they host SUNY-New Paltz in a single, non-conference, affair.