Staten Island, N.Y.— The John Jay baseball team overcame an 12-3 sixth inning deficit, to defeat the College of Staten Island, 14-12, in 10 innings in the winner’s bracket game of the 2008 City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) baseball championship at the College of Staten Island Baseball Complex. John Massoni (Staten Island, NY / St. Peter’s Boys) ripped a solo shot in the top of the tenth to give John Jay the lead. Meanwhile Luis Vega (Brooklyn, NY / Christ the King) went 6.1 innings in relief and allowed one run on five hits to earn the win.

 

“We have a saying, ‘John Jay never dies,’” said Vega, who improved to 5-1 on the season. “I knew as long as I held them that our guys would score the runs and put us in position to win. My mindset never changed from the time I entered the game to the time we took the lead."

 

The top seeded Dolphins scored a run in the first and another in the second to take a 2-0 lead after two. But John Jay came roaring back with a trio of runs in the third and the Bloodhounds led 3-2 after 2 1/2 innings. John Jay used a two out rally to score the runs. After the first two batters were retired in order, the Bloodhounds had four straight base runners, scoring the first three. Edwin Hernandez (Brooklyn, NY / Murry Bergtraum) ripped an infield single to short. He came around to score on an RBI single by Massoni, who was 3-for-5 with three runs and two RBI. The next batter, Chris Nastasi (Bayville, NY / IMG Academy), who was 5-for-6 with a run and two RBI, laced a two-run double that scored Steven Roman (Middletown, NY / Chapel Field Christian) and Massoni.

 

But the Dolphins countered back with another run in the third to tie the game. The College of Staten Island then put up an eight run frame in the bottom of the fourth to take an 11-3 advantage, taking advantage of John Jay miscues that resulted in five runs unearned.

 

The Dolphins added one more run in the fifth inning and led 12-3 after five innings of play.

 

The score remained 12-3 heading into the seventh inning when the Bloodhounds came alive, scoring 11 unanswered runs over the final four innings to win the game.

 

John Jay got four runs across in the seventh inning to make the score 12-7. The Bloodhounds sent nine batters to the plate and the first four batters in the inning reached base. Luis Guzman (Yonkers, NY / St. Michael’s), who went 4-for-6 with three runs, led off the inning and reached on an error by the CSI right fielder. The next batter, Albert Cepeda (Bronx, NY / Graphic Arts) scorched a single to right centerfield. On the next play, Xavier Perez (Bronx, NY / Manhattan Center) knocked a shot back to the pitcher, but the CSI hurler elected to go to third. The throw was not in time as Guzman slid in safely to load the bases with nobody out. Hernandez then recorded a base loaded walk to drive in Guzman. Roman then recorded a sacrifice fly to center that scored Cepeda. Later in the inning Nastasi laced a two-out single to drive in Perez. The next batter, Anthony Cestaro (Paramus, NJ / Paramus), who was 2-for-6 with two runs and two RBI, recorded a single as Hernandez advanced to third. But a wild throw to the plate that got away allowed Hernandez to score.

 

John Jay got another run back in the eighth to pull to within four. Hernandez hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Guzman, who led off the inning with a single to right center. The Bloodhounds then rallied back in the ninth inning with four runs to tie the game at 12. For the second time in the last three innings John Jay sent nine batters to the plate as they got four runs on five hits.

 

Massoni led off with a walk, before Nastasi laced a double to move Massoni to third. With runners on second and third, Cestaro ripped a bases clearing single that scored Massoni and Nastasi. Then later in the inning Perez singled to right to score Cestaro. Then a sacrifice fly to center by Hernandez, his second in as many innings, scored Guzman, who reached on a single. Suddenly the Bloodhounds and Dolphins were knotted up.

 

After a scoreless ninth for the Dolphins, the game went into extra innings, where the Bloodhounds quickly grabbed the lead. Massoni led off the inning with a solo shot to right field to give the Bloodhounds the lead and John Jay would win from there.

 

“I was looking fastball. And that is what I got and I turned on it. Our motto is ‘John Jay never dies,’ said Massoni. “There was never a moment in this game we thought we were out of it. Vega did an outstanding job of holding CSI, and we made the plays and we are looking forward to playing in the championship game again."

 

John Jay pounded out 19 hits in the contest and recorded its first extra inning win of the season.

 

The Bloodhounds are in the conference championship game for the third year in a row, and for the second time in three seasons, they will face the Dolphins who defeated Lehman College later in the evening to advance to the championship round.

 

The conference championship is set for Tue. May 13 at 4 p.m. If the Bloodhounds win the 4 p.m. game, they are conference champions, but if CSI wins, they will play a winner take all contest at 7 p.m.