NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. – Needing to advance out of the loser's bracket of the 2025 East Coast Conference Baseball Championship, the #4 seed Queens College baseball team matched up against #2 seed College of Staten Island Dolphins to open Friday's three-game slate.
Looking to keep their season alive, the Knights outhit the Dolphins 12-7 led by All-ECC senior
Penn Sealey (Raleigh, N.C.) (3-4 AB, 2RBI) and rookie third baseman
Peter Bounougias (Plainview, N.Y.) (3-4 AB, 2B, 2RBI, R) combining for six hits, four RBI and one runs scored.
The duo of All-ECC second baseman
Robert Jacobsen (Temecula, Calif.) (2-5 AB, 2R), and junior shortstop
Nick Piazza (Queens, N.Y.) (2-4 AB, RBI) combined for four hits, one RBI, and two runs scored.
Lastly, the duo of All-ECC sophomore utility
Michael Vilardi (Massapequa, N.Y.) (1-5 AB, RBI, 2R) and rookie third baseman
Tommy Pasqua (Williston Park, N.Y.) (1-1 AB, RBI) combined for two hits, two RBI and two runs scored as the Knights gave their sophomore starter enough run to work behind.
On the mound All-ECC honoree sophomore righty
Peter Nenadich III (Bayside, N.Y.) (W, 4-2, 9.0 IP, 7H, 1ER, 3BB, 6K) was a one-man show as the Bayside native put together a career-best performance to lead the Knights to another win or go home game with first career complete game victory and earned his fourth victory of the year.
GAME RECAP (QUEENS 8, COLLEGE OF STATEN ISLAND 1)
After a scoreless first inning of play, Nenadich III would retire the Dolphins in order in the top of the second before his offense went to work.
Queens sent eight batters to the plate with rookie catcher
Jake Levesque (Pinellas Park, Fla.) earning a four-pitch bases-loaded RBI walk to put the Knights up 1-0 before with two outs, Sealey put the Knights up 3-0 with a two-RBI single to center field.
Working behind an early lead, Nenadich III worked out of a two-out double in the top of the third before he induced a grounder to Piazza to end the inning.
The Dolphins would cut Queens' lead down to 3-1in the top of the fourth but once again the sophomore worked out of trouble to end the top.
Looking to give their sophomore more runs to work with, the Knights doubled their advantage in the home half of the fifth using two hits to score three runs to take a 6-1 lead after five complete innings of play.
With insurance runs behind him Nenadich III and his defense would continue to keep the Dolphins off the scoreboard including the Knights turning double plays in the sixth and seventh to keep the 6-1 lead intact.
Queens added another run in the bottom of the seventh to take a 7-1 lead before Nenadich III faced the minimum number of batters for the fourth time on the day in the top of the eighth.
Behind a RBI single from Pasqua, Queens took a commanding lead of 8-1 after eight complete innings of play.
With a commanding lead of 8-1 and already past the century in number of pitches, the Bayside native returned to the mound to close out the game and earn his first career complete game victory.
However, the Dolphins would not go away quietly as a walk and double delayed the Knights celebrations. Unwilling to break, Nenadich III would go on to retire the next three batters as Queens advanced to Game five of the tournament with an 8-1 victory.
SURVIVE AND ADVANCE
The Knights have advanced to Game Five of the tournament and a win will advance Queens to their third final in the last four years. Queens await the loser of the Winner Bracket game between #1 seed Molloy University Lions vs. #3 seed Mercy University Mavericks. The first pitch is set for 30 minutes after the conclusion of game four.
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