The College of Staten Island baseball squad recently finalized their 2019 campaign and the team will celebrate with the naming of four Dolphins to the City University of New York Athletic Conference All-Star teams, headlined by CUNYAC Rookie of the Year Domenick Castiglione. The freshman outfielder was joined by juniors Jett Nouvertne and Andrew Nathan, senior Sean Becker, and fellow freshman John Esposito as All-Stars. Junior first-baseman Vincent Brennan was named to the CUNYAC’s All-Sportsmanship Team.
Castiglione put up a very impressive debut season for the Dolphins, starting 33 games. The one-time Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week this season in the conference, he finished fourth on the team with a .336 batting average, scattering 39 hits, 10 of them for extra-bases, all doubles, tied for the team lead. He was second among all Dolphins with 29 runs scored, and finished third on the team with 21 RBI. Castiglione, who finished second on the team in walks with 16, also finished third on the squad in on-base percentage at .412. He was also perfect in all three of his stolen base attempts and boasted a .942 glove in center field, making a total of 49 put-outs this season. Castiglione started the campaign on a five-game hitting streak. He also made a pair of appearances on the mound this season, going just three innings, not allowing a run or a hit while fanning four batters.
Junior Jett Nouvertne put up his finest season to date, leading the Dolphins with a .375 hitting percentage and eclipsing 50 hits on the season, finishing with 51. He led CSI with 30 runs scored, and 23 RBI, putting up 11 extra-base hits with a team-best seven triples, the third-highest single season total in CSI history. Nouvertne also led the team in slugging at .537 and was second in on-base percentage at .415. He also led the unit defensively with 69 assists, primarily at second-base. Nouvertne was also the only Dolphin to play and start in every game this past season. He is the former CUNYAC Rookie of the Year, having won the honor in 2017.
Third-year senior Sean Becker was a mainstay behind the plate this season for the Dolphins, appearing in 30 games, all of them starts at catcher. He finished third on the Dolphins with a .350 batting average, posting a team-high 13 extra-base hits, including 10 doubles and a pair of home runs, both tied for tops on the team. Becker added 22 RBI in 100 at-bats, and combined with his nine walks, he led the team in on-base percentage at .425. Behind the backstop, Becker led the team with 204 put-outs and was 5th on the team with 20 assists. He also finished his career on a five-game hit streak.
First-year junior transfer Andrew Nathan certainly made his presence felt in his first go-around with the Dolphins. After a lukewarm start, Nathan finished as one of CSI’s finest hitters, finishing second on the team with a .352 batting average. He finished second on the squad with 44 hits, adding five doubles, a triple, and a pair of home runs. He finished fourth on the squad with an even 20 RBI adding nine walks and a .410 on-base percentage. Nathan was successful on all five of his stolen base attempts, and finished up the year playing a majority of games at the shortstop position, where he finished second on the team with 57 assists and seventh with 35 put-outs.
Rounding out the list of All-Stars for CSI was the lone Dolphins pitcher on the list, freshman right-hander John Esposito. In his first collegiate action, he led the team in wins, going 4-4 overall with a team-best 1.99 ERA. He led CSI with 49.2 innings pitched and 48 strikeouts, walking just 25 batters and yielding just 30 earned runs. Opponents batted just .242 against Esposito this season and the freshman allowed just three extra-base hits all season and registered a lone save as well.
Alongside CSI’s list of award winners was Vincent Brennan. Brennan was the CSI representative on the All-Sportsmanship Team.
John Jay College’s Zach Hyde earned the conference’s Player of the Year award while Jarret Oehler from Lehman College was the CUNYAC Pitcher of the Year. Baruch College skipper Jose Torres was named the Coach of the Year after successfully leading Baruch College to both the regular season and postseason championship titles.
