Staten Island, NY | On a day where senior hurler Joseph Decelie flirted with a no-jitter late into the opening game, the College of Staten Island baseball team ultimately had to settle for a doubleheader split with visiting College of New Rochelle. The Dolphins pounded the Angels in the opener, 16-3, before CNR exacted revenge with an 8-6 winner in the second game. With the split the Dolphins moved to 9-15 overall, while CNR moved to 3-21.
GAME ONE – STATEN ISLAND 16, NEW ROCHELLE 3
Despite some control issues early, the day belonged to first-year CSI senior Joseph Decelie, who took a no-hitter into the seventh inning for hif first win in a CSI uniform. What certainly helped him settle into a groove was a nine-run first inning that set the tone for the lop-sided game. Domenick Castiglione got things started with a two-run single that plated Michael Ciancio and Jett Nouvertne. Two at-bats later, Sean Becker added a two-RBI double on CNR starter Adam Gonzalez. A fielding error, a bases-loaded walk in the inning, an RBI-single by Ciancio, an RBI-fielder’s choice by Nouvertne and two wild pitches added to the eventful frame. In the end the Dolphins sent up 14 batters in the inning, posted seven hits, and stranded a pair of base runners.
That proved more than enough for DeCelie, who after walking a better in the first, walked another two in the second, but settled down nicely to end the threat, and from there motored through the next four innings, three of them in one-two-three fashion.
While DeCelie was making short work of the CNR hitters, the Dolphins added a digit in the third on another Castiglione RBI-hit that scored Ciancio, and then CSI exploded to a six-run sixth inning against reliever Jorge Vila. There, CSI scattered six more hits, the biggest one a monster home run sent over the left field wall by Sean Becker, a two-run shot that also scored Andrew Nathan.
That set the scene for Decelie, who had a no-hitter going into the seventh inning. Decelie started with a strikeout of Rocky Gonzalez Baez, and then another of pinch-hitter Ransel Pinedo. From there, however, Decelie would walk the next three batters. That brought up Thomas Velasquez with two outs and the bases loaded, and on a 1-1 pitch, Velasquez stroked a base-clearing single to right field, breaking up the no-hitter and the shutout. Decelie would respond by getting Chris Suarez to strike out, capping an otherwise fine performance for the right-hander.
The final line for Decelie in the win was seven full innings and the complete-game one-hitter, allowing just two earned runs with 11 strikeouts. Gonzalez took the loss in five innings of work, allowing 10 runs (six earned on nine hits, striking out four.CSI out-hit CNR, 16-1, with Castiglione leading the charge, going 4-5 with four RBI. Nathan went 3-5 with two RBI while Becker also went 2-5 with four RBI and two runs scored..
GAME TWO – NEW ROCHELLE 8, STATEN ISLAND 6
The Dolphins scored five of their six runs in game two in the final three innings but it wasn’t enough, as timely hitting by the visitors and strong early innings on the mound paved the way for the doubleheader split. The Blue Angels recorded their first lead of the day on CSI starter Michael Lenahan in the second inning, exercizing a suicide squeeze play to score Xavier Warren off of a Christian Valentin bunt. This came after Warren led off with a walk, and was sacrificed to second and then advanced to third on a stolen base.
CSI, however, wasted no time tying the game up in their turn of the second. John Pomerico walked with one out to start the rally, amd Anthony Lozada followed with a single. After CNR starter Justin Grullon recorded a strikeout, Nicholas Dedato came up big with an RBI hit that chased in Pomerico to knot the score at 1-1.
From there, however, CNR, inflicted damage, and used a big fourth and fifth inning to open up a 6-1 lead. First, CNR scored two in the fourth despite only one base hit, helped along by a CSI error. In the fifth, the Angels plated three more runs on three hits, chasing Lenahan in place of Alexis Santos. The inning featured an infield hit from Angel Vega, a bunt single by Juan Diaz Jimenez, and a play at the plate that resulted in a dispute at home plate as Vega appeared to be tagged by catcher Luke Smieya or was out of the baseline when coming home. The Dolphins, however, were overruled.
Down 6-1, the Dolphins needed to play catch-up and nearly did. In the fifth, the Dolphins got one run back when Michael Crocco, who led off with a base hit was plated by a Nouvertne single. In the sixth, still against Grullon, CSI scored another pair of runners on a Michael Crocco two-out, two-RBI triple that put CSI closer at 6-4. That chased Grullon for Alex Erwin to try and record the four-out save. Erwin was able to register the final out via fly out to end the threat.
Moving to the seventh, CNR got a couple of huge insurance runs to go back up again 8-4. Warren started it with a two out walk, his fourth walk of the game, and after a hit, he and Suarez came around to score on a Pinedo single coupled with a CSI throwing error, their fourth error of the game.
Down to their final three outs, CSI had room for more drama. Steven Collica reached on an error, and pinch runner Ciancio scored on an Anthony Lozada double, with Lozada moving to third on the errant throw. Pinch hitter Nicholas Meola then tagged an RBI-single to plate Lozada, making it an 8-6 game. CSI continued the pinch-hit train, as Castiglione came on. He would smoke a pitch to straightaway center field but Suarez made the snag to register the first out. Vincent Brennan then came on, but would ground out to short, as did Crocco to end the game.
Grullon recorded the win, going 5.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits, walking four and striking out five. Erwin recorded the save in 1.1 innings of relief while Lenahan took the loss, tossing 4.2 innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on four hits. Crocco, Nouvertne amd Lozada each tallied a pair of hits for the Dolphins, who out-hit CNR, 8-6.
GAME VIDEO
