FLUSHING, N.Y. – Looking to earn an East Coast Conference series split Sunday afternoon the Queens College baseball team welcomed the Dolphins of College of Staten Island to Hennekens Stadium for the fourth and final game of the series.
The offense tallied 11 hits with three Knights recording multi-hit games led by junior shortstop
Nick Piazza (Queens, N.Y.) (3-5 AB, RBI), senior center fielder
Nick O'Conner (Wantagh, N.Y.) (2-4 AB, R, BB), and rookie left fielder
Matthew Jackson (Brooklyn, N.Y.) (2-5 AB, 2B, 2RBI, R) as the trio combined for seven hits, three RBI and two runs scored.
While graduate student
Penn Sealey (Raleigh, N.C.) (1-6 AB), senior first baseman
Matt Filip (Maspeth, N.Y.) (1-2 AB, R, 3BB), senior right fielder
Leo Alvarez (Oceanside, N.Y.) (1-4 AB, RBI, R) and senior catcher
Thomas Napolitano Jr. (Scottsdale, Ariz.) (1-3 AB, HR, RBI, R, BB) combined for four hits, two RBI and four runs scored.
But it would be missed opportunities for the Knights as 14 base runners were left stranded before the Dolphins rallied in the top of the ninth scoring four runs to defeat Queens to the final score of 8-6 and earn the series victory.
GAME RECAP
The Knights would take a 1-0 lead in the home half of the first as senior second baseman
Robert Jacobsen (Temecula, Calif.) scored the first run of the game on a junior third baseman
Yoskar Guzman (Richmond Hill, N.Y.) grounder to first base. But the Dolphins would avoid further damage as they stranded two Knights on base to end the frame.
The Dolphins tied the game in the top of the third with three straight singles before Queens executed a double play to avoid further damage.
Queens would quickly respond in the home frame as with one out the Knights would load the bases with O'Conner singling through the left side before Filip and Guzman earned back-to-back walks.
The Dolphins would get a second out on a fielder's choice play at second but it would allow O'Conner to score from third as Queens reclaimed a 2-1 advantage. Jackson would put Queens up 4-1 with a two-RBI double down the left field line.
As Queens worked out of trouble in the top of the fourth, they would load the bases with two outs, but the Dolphins would get the final out and keep the home side advantage at 4-1.
CS would take advantage of two fielding errors in the top of the fifth to score two runs and cut the Knights' lead down to one, 4-3.
But the Knights responded in the home frame of the fifth as Piazza put Queens up 5-3 with a RBI single to left center to score Jackson.
As the Knights' defense held the Dolphins' offense at bay, the Knights would leave two runners stranded on base in the bottom of the sixth.
Queens would extend their lead to 6-3 with a solo shot from Napolitano Jr. in the bottom of the seventh to begin the frame. With the Knights looking to add more insurance runs, Piazza singled up the middle but the Dolphins would avoid further trouble as they were able to execute a double play before getting the third out of the inning.
The Dolphins would score five unanswered runs as they cut the Knights advantage down to 6-4 in the top of the eighth before completing a rally in the top of the ninth with four runs to earn the series victory to the final score of 8-6.
NEXT PITCH
Queens will have a bye week from conference play as they return to non-conference play on Wednesday, Apr. 2
nd as they welcome Pace University Setters to town to complete the two-game series. The first pitch is set for 3:00 p.m.
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