The College of Staten Island’s Baseball program took on #2 SUNY Cortland this afternoon in a double header.  The Red Dragons swept the Dolphins winning the first game, 4-3, and the second game, 11-2.  With the pair of wins the Red Dragons improve to, 21-2, overall and the Dolphins fall to, 10-9.

Brian Russell got the start on the mound for the Dolphins in the highly anticipated contest and proved why he is the CUNYAC’s best pitcher.  The Red Dragons would score three runs in the first inning due to an error and one hit.  Russell wouldn’t allow a hit the rest of the game until the ninth inning.

Staten Island answered Cortland’s three runs with two of their own to shrink the deficit down to just one run.  After a pair of singles by Elijah Rodriguez and Nick Delprete both would advance via a wild pitch to put them both into scoring position.  Frank Smith came to the plate with one out and hit a two RBI single to left center but was then caught in a pickle shortly after. 

It was a solid pitcher’s duel for the next five innings where neither team would score any runs until the seventh inning where the Dolphins tied up the game, 3-3, when Delprete doubled to left center and brought home Rodriguez.
Russell was pulled in the ninth inning and was replaced by Failia and was able to retire the first two batters.  With two outs and nobody on the bags Cortland was able to hit a single to left field and was followed by a double down the right field line which brought in what eventually would be the game winning run as Cortland was able to retire the Dolphins batters in order.

The score line in game two doesn’t do the Dolphins justice as they played another good game until the end which can be attributed to fatigue. 

Staten Island took an early, 1-0, lead over the Red Dragons when Frank Munoz singled up the middle and brought Phil Ciprello home for the game’s first run.

That lead would not last long for the Dolphins as in the next inning Cortland would go on to score three runs and then held the Dolphins scoreless the rest of the game until the seventh inning.

Staten Island started to unravel once they let up those three runs as Cortland would go on to score one more run in the sixth and then seven runs in the seventh for a final score of 11-2.

The Dolphins are back in action tomorrow against St. Joseph’s College – Brooklyn at 12:00 pm.