It was a very busy day for the local teams. Even some Division-III action got underway on Long Island. Here’s how it went down…
Division-I:
St. John’s 7, Tulane 3
E8 | 7-3 SJU
Make it 12 Ks for Red Storm pitching tonight! @nickcirelli pic.twitter.com/zNSKCr0dCW— St. John’s Baseball (@StJohnsBaseball) February 26, 2023
The Johnnies won their second straight over Tulane led by 13 strikeout by the pitching staff. Joe Mascio started and struck out 10 over 4.1 innings, allowing 3 ER. He was lifted in favor of Tommy Finnegan who threw 1.1 innings of relief. The heavy lifting was done by Nick Cirelli who fired 3 shutout innings, allowing just one hit and 3 strikeouts.
The offense was led by Paul Orbon, who went 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Marty Higgins had two hits including the go-ahead RBI single in the sixth inning to give St. John’s a 4-3 lead that they would not relinquish. David Glancy also had 2 hits including an RBI double and a walk.
They will look for the sweep today at 2pm.
LIU 14, Kennesaw State 19
Kennesaw State jumped out to an early 6 run lead in the second inning. An RBI triple by LF Jamarie Brooks opened the scoring in the opening frame. The Owls then added to their lead by scoring seven runs in the fourth inning. A three-run home run by third baseman Hudson Mimbs capped off the hot start. The lead grew to 13 before LIU began to claw back into the contest.
The Sharks fought their way back into the game and did so with five home runs. LIU first got on the score sheet in the 5th inning thanks to an RBI single by DH Carlton Harper and then added a three – run shot by left fielder Myles Proctor in the sixth inning. JC Navarro, Jack Power, and Jake Masstillo (2 HR, 6 RBI) all went deep in the final three innings of the game. A grand slam by Masstillo in the ninth inning closed the gap to only five runs, but the Sharks could not complete the comeback.
LIU closes out this three game set against Kennesaw State Sunday at 1:00 PM EST.
Stony Brook 11, Troy 15
Troy struck first in this game tallying three runs in the opening frame. A leadoff home run by center fielder Kole Myers opened the scoring. The Seawolves got on the board in the second inning via an RBI double by Johnny Pilla. Stony Brook then took the lead in the third inning following a three run rally capped off by a Chris Leone RBI single. The Seawolves continued to attack Troy pitchers and tacked on six runs in the fourth inning. Third baseman Evan Giordano drove in his second run of the afternoon and then scored on a fielding error. First baseman Brett Paulsen hit an RBI single up the middle and then made it home off a wild pitch. Second baseman Johnny Pilla capped off the Stony Brook scoring with an RBI single.
The Trojans staged their rally, scoring nine consecutive runs. 4 home runs over two innings by Shane Lewis, Tremayne Cobb Jr, William Sullivan, and Kyle Mock produced much of the damage.
The Seawolves got one run back in the eighth inning off a sac fly from Paulsen, closing the gap to just one run.
However, Troy held off the comeback and scored their final three runs in the eighth inning. Mock smacked his second home run of the day, and Lance Gardiner hit a solo shot to cap off the afternoon.
These teams will close out this three game set Sunday at 1:00PM EST.
Division-II:
Molloy 6, Wilmington University (Delaware) 0
Molloy stayed red-hot as they improve to 6-0 on the season. The Lions opened the scoring in the third inning via an RBI single from leadoff hitter JJ DeVito. Wilmington could not generate anything off of starter Brian Morrisey, who threw seven shutout innings and only surrendered two hits. Morrisey also struck out five batters.
The Lions added on to their lead by tacking on an insurance run in the seventh inning and four more in the eighth inning. Center fielder Garett Scavelli brought in the second run of the game via a fielder’s choice. In the eighth inning, both Sean Serrano and JJ DeVito smacked RBI singles and Scavelli helped to produce his second run of the game (this time unearned) due to a fielding error.
Richard Gennaro shut the door and secured the save over the final two innings of play. Gennaro gave up one hit and tallied four punchouts.
The Lions look to continue their undefeated season Sunday 9:00 A.M. against the University of New Haven.
Adelphi
Game 1: Adelphi 0, College of Staten Island 4
The Panthers played a double header against the College of Staten Island.
Following two scoreless frames to open the first game, Jake Myers of Staten Island was caught stealing second base, but during the throw Christopher Reilly was able to make it home and gave the Dolphins an early lead.
Two strong starts by Ryan Kehoe of Staten Island and Adelphi’s Jordan Falco shut down opposing hitters and allowed only one run combined.
The game remained close up until the ninth inning, when the Dolphins broke through. Right fielder Angel Santiago hit an RBI triple, which doubled the Staten Island lead. Nick Cippoletti then smacked an RBI single and eventually scored on a wild pitch to increase the Dolphin lead to 4.
Alex Martinez tallied a two inning save and struck out three Panthers while only allowing one base runner via a base on balls.
Second game:
Adelphi, 8, College of Staten Island 6
The Panthers got their first win of the season, taking advantage of some sloppy CSI defense as they made 3 errors. The Panthers took a 4-3 lead in the fourth inning on a Jack Wishner RBI groundout to score Alec Maag. Earlier in the inning, Maag had tripled to tie the game at 3-3.
The Panthers had 10 hits and drew 6 walks. Maag and Wishner peached notched two hits apiece. Brendan Kenneally came on in relief of Stevie Proko and he went 4 strong innings in relief, striking out 5 batters to earn the win. Robert Affenita III struck out two in the 9th to lock the door.
Adelphi will close out their trip in Myrtle Beach today at noon against Bridgeport.
Queens 6, Post 4
The Knights got their first win of the season, behind a strong pitching performance by Center Moriches grad Liam Pulsipher. He went six innings, allowing 2 ER and struck out 4. Longwood grad Danny Gargano shut it down with a 3 inning save, striking out 3.
The offense was led by Francis Segarra – he had the go-ahead two-run triple to put the Knights up 4-2. He also had an RBI single in the eighth inning, he had 3 hits and 3 RBIs on the game. Marc Cisco, reigning Player of the Year, had two hits, scored two runs and drew a walk. Jorsixt Jimenez had two hits and an RBI.
The Knights will be back in action tomorrow against Chestnut Hill College.
Division-III:
USMMA 1, Wells 0
USMMA 7, Wells 0
Just a dominant day by the pitching staff as Kole Register and Tyler Reistetter started and allowed no runs on the board. In Game 1, Register went the distance, allowing no runs on four hits, struck out four and issued one free pass. The only run came in the bottom of the 7th on a walk-off error. Tyler Reistetter had two hits in the game.
Reistetter started and struck out 8 over 4 shutout innings. The offense backed him early and often, scoring three times in the first, once in the second and never looking back. Ernest Darling led the way with a 3-for-3 performance with an RBI. Joey Zanetti and Jack Millen each had big games at the plate with multi-hits.
They will be back in action today with a DH against Sage at home.
