Box Score
Staten Island, N.Y.— The John Jay baseball team, the No. 3 seed, picked up an opening round win in the 2008 City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) baseball championship as the Bloodhounds defeated No. 2 seeded Mitchell College, 11-4, at the College of Staten Island Baseball Complex on Thursday.
With the win the Bloodhounds advance into the winner’s bracket game of the double elimination tournament where they will face top seeded College of Staten Island at 4 p.m. on Friday. The Pequots will square off with Lehman College at 1 p.m. Friday in the first elimination game.
On Thursday, the Bloodhounds recorded 11 runs on 11 hits en route to the opening round win.
The Bloodhounds took the lead in the top half of the first inning with a pair of runs to take a 2-0 lead. Edwin Hernandez (Brooklyn, NY / Murry Bergtraum) led off the game by ripping a triple on the first pitch of the contest, and came in to score on an RBI single by John Massoni (Staten Island, NY / St. Peter’s Boys). Later Massoni came in to score on a fielder’s choice by Johan Abad (Corona, NY / Flushing) to make the score 2-0.
But the Pequots added a run in each of the first three innings and took a 3-2 lead after three innings of play
Mitchell held onto the lead into the fifth inning when the Bloodhounds took the lead for good. John Jay got three across in that frame and led 5-3 after 4 1/ 2 innings of play. Anthony Cestaro (Paramus, NJ / Paramus) ripped a one out triple off the left field fence, and three batters later Cestaro scored to tie the game on an RBI single by Albert Cepeda (Bronx, NY / Graphic Arts). John Jay then took the lead on an RBI single by Xavier Perez (Bronx, NY / Manhattan Center) that scored Luis Guzman (Yonkers, NY / Mt. St. Michael’s) who reached base with a walk and went 1-for-4 on the evening.
The Bloodhounds tacked on another way after the Pequots starting pitcher, Jeremy Chapman, committed a balk that allowed Cepeda to score from third.
The Bloodhounds got another pair of runs in the next inning. John Massoni (Staten Island, NY / St. Peter’s Boys), who was 2-for-4 with three runs and three RBI, laced a triple to right center to score Steven Roman (Middletown, NY / Chapel Field Christian). And later Massoni came to score after Abad reached on an error by the Pequots shortstop with two outs.
John Jay added four more insurance runs, including two in the seventh and two in the ninth to take a commanding lead late in the contest.
“We played a solid game all the way though,” said John Jay baseball coach, Dan Palumbo. “We knew we had to get to (Jeremy) Chapman early in the contest. There is still a long way to go, we need to focused on Staten Island and the chance to play in the conference championship game for the third year in a row.”
Michael Colletta (Staten Island, NY / New Dorp) picked up the win on the mound after going 6 2/3 innings and allowing three runs on eight hits and six strikeouts.
John Jay will face the College of Staten Island in the winner’s bracket game at 4 p.m. on Friday. If John Jay wins, the Bloodhounds advance into the championship game on Sat. at 1 p.m. If the Bloodhounds lose to Staten Island, they return to the field at 7 p.m. Friday for the second elimination game of the tournament.
