The College of Staten Island men’s baseball team used two strong pitching performances, timely hitting, and a rash of opponent errors, to score a doubleheader sweep of John Jay College in the CUNYAC twinbill played at the Tomas D. Morales Field in Staten Island, NY, this afternoon. The Dolphins took the opener, 11-0, before scoring a 10-3 winner in the second contest. The two wins advance CSI to 13-8 overall and 5-1 in CUNYAC play, while the Bloodhounds fell to 3-16 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
In the opener, CSI got a masterful performance from southpaw hurler Chris Falcone. The sophomore worked quickly and efficiently and the first nine outs recorded by the Dolphins were via the strikeout. All told, Falcone would retire 12 batters via the K, allowing just four hits and a single walk in the complete-game shutout, his first of the season. Falcone did not allow John Jay to strand any base runners in their final three frames.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins got all the run support they needed in the first inning, via a Joe Palmeri sac fly that scored Phil Ciprello, who earned on via an error and then was advanced to second and took third on a failed pick-off. That summed up the afternoon for the Bloodhounds, who fell victim to many of their own mistakes throughout the afternoon. CSI registered another run via an error in the second frame, before getting some timely hits in the fourth off of JJC starter Nico Rivera. Frank Sconzo scored two runs on a single with the bases jammed, and one batter later, Will DiFede looped in a single that would score Nick Delprete. After four frames, CSI led, 5-0.
CSI added four runs in the fifth inning, and two more in the sixth to extend to 11-0. JJC helped the cause with another trio of errors, leading to four of the six runs crossing unearned. JJC committed a total of six errors in the contest, leading to six of CSI’s runs to cross unearned.
CSI out-hit JJC, 11-4, in the opener, as John Baggs, Chris Ramanauskas, and Greg Manassa all tallied a pair of hits.
In the second game, things went from bad to worse in the field for the Bloodhounds. JJC collected a total of 9 errors in the second game, tied for the most by a CSI opponent in program history, and the most by a team in a single CSI game since 2008. All 10 CSI runs in the second game were unearned, ruining an otherwise steady performance by JJC starter Matthew Quirindongo, who allowed just five hits over six stanzas. But the Dolphins were up to the challenge on the hill, throwing Mike Fitzpatrick, who settled in and through some CSI errors as well, tossed a complete-game four-hitter, allowing only a lone earned run (three total), fanning five.
Both teams tallied an unearned marker in the first frame, and in the second, the Bloodhounds took a 2-1 lead on a R.J. Davila double play that scored Ronald Barillas. JJC took the lead into the third inning, but then the fielding woes set in, and the Dolphins started to take advantage. In the third, all three CSI runs were scored thanks to three JJC miscues trying to get runners out on the base paths. In the fourth, Delprete opened the scoring after a double and then a sac bunt by Anderson Acosta that was misplayed by Quirindongo. After Acosta stole second and Phil Ciprello walked, CSI had runners at the corners. Ciprello bolted for second, and after drawing a throw, Acosta came in to score, the throw to catch Ciprello at second was then thrown into the outfield, and Ciprello dashed to third. The throw from center field then went well wide of third base, allowing Ciprello to come into home all the way from when the play started at first base. It was a play that proved to be a microcosm of the game itself. CSI would score two more insurance runs in the six before settling for the 10-3 victory.
CSI only tallied five hits in the second game, with Palmeri going 2-4 with an RBI and run scored. Fitzpatrick earned his first win of the season, lowering his ERA to 2.25.
The Dolphins will be right back to action tomorrow afternoon, when they host St. John Fisher for a 12 Noon, non-conference, doubleheader.
