The College of Staten Island Baseball team is back in action after six days off when they travel to Dobbs Ferry, NY to take on the Division II Mercy College Mavericks in a doubleheader beginning at noon. The Dolphins went 4-2 during their season-opening trip in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina while the Mavericks enter today's games with a record of 2-8.
CSI vs. MERCY COLLEGE
Matchup: College of Staten Island (4-2) vs. Mercy College (2-8)
Where: - Dobbs Ferry, NY
Live Stats: https://mercyathletics.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Live Video: https://team1sports.com/mercyathletics/
All-Time Series: Series tied at 6-6
Last Meeting: April 10, 1997 - CSI won 12-1
Players to Watch (CSI): The Dolphins come in swinging the bats very well to open the season and that has started with CUNYAC Rookie of the Week
Giacchino Virone who is hitting .571 and
Thomas Joyce, the CUNYAC Player of the Week, who is hitting 350. However, they are far from the only Dolphins off to a red-hot start as
Jett Nouvertne and
Peter Lombardo are both hitting .421 through 21 at-bats and
Louie Mandile is hitting .333 in a team-leading 24 plate appearances. Virone, Joyce and Mandile all have a pair of doubles already with Mandile also adding a triple. That puts him in a tie with
Anthony Lozada for the team lead in extra base hits with three. CSI also demonstrated power during their time in Myrtle Beach as Nouvertne and
Andrew Nathan both homered by the time day two of the three-day trip had concluded. On the mound,
Nick Metzger earned CUNYAC Pitcher of the Week with his winning performance against John Jay on Sunday, but
John Esposito is still being relied upon as the team's ace entering the season.
Alexis Santos is the only Dolphins pitcher to appear in three of the first six contests and has been called upon late in games to navigate high-pressure situations thus far.
Players to Watch (MC): The Mavericks are led statistically at the plate by a trio of players that have appeared in all 10 games, Miguel Ortiz-Sanchez, John Mooradian, and Anthony Murphy. Ortiz-Sanchez is the team leader in nearly every offensive category, but Mooradian is close behind in many of those while holding team lead in doubles with three. However, it's Murphy that has excelled in the power department with a team-high three home runs. On the mound, Jack Kelly has pitched to a 1.65 ERA in three appearances second only to Ryan Dieguez who has yet to surrender a run. Manuel Sanchez is the third and final Mavericks arm to pitch to an ERA south of 6.75 for a Mercy College team that has struggled to the tune of a 7.50 team ERA through ten games.
News & Notes: Today marks the first meeting between the two sides since 1997 which was won by the Dolphins 12-1. That victory marked the third straight by the Dolphins over the Mavericks against whom they hold a 6-6 mark. Their twelve matchups with the Mavericks have spanned over eighteen seasons from 1979 to 1997, but the two teams are certain to become more familiar with one another as they share a home in the East Coast Conference. Mercy will be the first of five ECC opponents the Dolphins will face this season among the other Division two opponents the Dolphins will play throughout the year.
