GAME VIDEO – The College of Staten Island softball team saw their program record 19-game win streak come to an end tonight, falling to visiting Montclair State University by scores of 2-0 & 1-0 in non-conference play at the CSI Softball Complex.  The losses dipped the Dolphins to 23-5 overall while the pair of victories lifted the Red Hawks to 19-13 overall.

GAME ONE
Today was a day that belonged to the pitchers and in game one CSI’s Jacqueline Cautela went toe-to-toe with MSU’s Kiara Ruiz.  Cautela wiggled out of a jam in the first inning when she yielded a hit and a walk, but was able to close unscathed.  Again in the third frame, MSU threatened, this time loading the bags before Cautela got Ali Walek to pop out to end the threat.

CSI, however, could not get much going with the bats, stranding base runners in multiple innings, but never truly threatened.  Meanwhile in the fourth inning, MSU got a one-out single from Victoria Gehring and the sophomore proceeded to steal second.  After getting an out, Cautela then made a mistake and left a pitch high for Alana Luna, and she ripped a shot to right-center to plate Gehring to make it 1-0.

MSU doubled the lead in the top of the seventh with a big insurance marker.  Kaylee Powers did it by herself as she scorched a towering fly ball to centerfield that just bounced off of the top of CSI’s Kristy Colangelo’s glove.  While Powers entered second base, CSI could not corral the ball and Powers kept motoring and went all the way home, beating a play at the plate to take a 2-0 lead.

Down to their final trio of outs, Vanessa Jioia got things started with a leadoff single, but a settled Ruiz then induced two harmless pop ups and a foul ball to tame the threat and score the complete game win.

Ruiz yielded four hits, fanning two batters and only walking one batter.  Cautela had the hard luck loss, yielding two runs (one earned) on four hits, walking three and fanning one.  Jioia finished as the only multi-hit player, going 2-3.

GAME TWO
The stellar pitching bled right into the nightcap as this time CSI’s Nicolette Trapani locked horns with Sam Keating.  The pitchers got through two and a half perfect innings before CSI squandered a huge opportunity in the third frame.  Jamie Holmes started with a single and then Julianna Cretella legged out an infield hit.  After two outs, Antoinette Galbo registered a bunt single to load the bags for CSI’s leading hitter, Patricia Riches.  The freshman, however, was thwarted and chased after the first pitch and pooped out harmlessly to third base.

It took till the fifth inning for MSU to register a hit and when they did they placed two in the inning.  With two outs and runners at first and second, Trapani responded by getting Gehring to pop up to the pitcher’s circle to end the frame.

The scoreless tie would last until the sixth inning when the game’s most important swing would take place.  To lead off and early in the count, Luna got a hold of a Trapani hit and smashed it over the left field wall to make it a 1-0 game.  Trapani settled to retire the Red Hawks from there but the damage was done.

The lead was good enough for Keating.  In the sixth she yielded a hit but escaped and after MSU committed an error to allow Colangelo to reach in the seventh, Keating walked Jamie Holmes.  With runners on first and second and just one out Keating responded by fanning pinch-hitter Alison Meagher after a long at-bat and Cretella grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the game, completing the back-to-back shutout for the Hawks.

Keating went the distance, yielding four hits in the shutout while fanning a pair.  Trapani took the loss, giving up a run on five hits while striking out three.  Galbo registered two hits for CSI.

The Dolphins will next be in action on Saturday, when they travel to face nationally-ranked Moravian College for a twinbill.  They will follow that with their CUNYAC finale on Sunday against John Jay College at the CSI Softball Complex at 1pm.