Lincoln University, PA | The College of Staten Island Baseball team halted their season-long losing skid at five games, turning back Lincoln University in a pair of ECC contests on the road today by scored of 11-7, and 6-2.  CSI, which ended LU's four-game win streak in the process, improved to 3-10 overall and 3-9 within the ECC, while the Lions fell to 4-8 overall, and 4-2 in the ECC.

GAME ONE
CSI worked their way out of an early hole to overtake the Lions in the opening game, a nine-inning affair.  Against CSi starter Nick Metzger, the Lions kept their bats hot and plated a run in the first inning, as Willie Hines came in on a Hilman Truss RBI fielder's choice to open the high-scoring tilt.  CSI proved they were up to the task offensively as well, as they got even right away in the second thanks to a Salvatore Trancucci IV double off of LU starter Luis Miguel Reinoso, sending home Shendi Ulaj who walked earlier in the frame.

Lincoln punched back with another run in the their half of the second to go back up, 2-1, but in the third, CSI tied it again on a solo homerun by Thomas Joyce, his second of the season.  After Metzger got through the Lions 1-2-3 in the third, CSI went right back to work in the fourth   After Giacchino Virone and Louie Mandile both walked with one out, Thomas Marten stroked an RBI-single to score Virone, and then Julian Iacono hit a sac fly to score Mandile.  Joyce continued his hot hand, scoring an RBI-double to make it 5-2.  DeAndre Bowens had a big hit for LU in their turn of the fourth to narrow CSI's lead to just 5-4, but the Dolphins started to put distance between the sides with a five run fifth inning of play.

A walk to Peter Lombardo, single to Ulaj and a Trancucci fielder's choice loaded the bases, and CSi then scored via an error.  Marten then stroked a bases-clearing double to open the game up at 9-4, chasing Reinoso for reliever Josiah Lara.  Lara would retire the Dolphins and then Jefry Azcona kept LU in the game with a two-RBI double off of CSI reliever Adam Gonzalez to make it a 9-6 game in their turn of the fifth.  After CSi went scoreless in the sixth, LU plugged closer with another digit to make it 9-7 after six full innings of play.

Defense took control from there for the Dolphins.  CSi made the most of an LU error and Joyce stayed hot with an RBI-double to give CSI an 11-7 lead and that's how it would stay.  Steven Collica would come on in the bottom half of the seventh and scored three scoreless innings yielding one hit with five strikeouts as CSI was able to preserve the win.

CSI scattered 11 hits, with Marten going 3-6 with four RBI in the leadoff spot and Joyce followed up going 3-5 with three RBI and a run plated.  LU got two hits each from Hines (2-4, two runs scored), and Azcona (2-5, three RBI).

GAME TWO
CSI's great pitching to end the first game, extended through the second, seven-inning contest at Lincoln, as CSI would limit the Lions to just six hits and a pair of runs in their best pitching performance of the season with Trancucci IV and Collica combining in the inning.

Offensively, CSI left two runs on base in the first, but they would get all the runs they would need in the second.  Ulaj would single against LU starter. Rolondo Alvarez, and then Michael Crocco would get on via a fielder's choice error.  Alan Morel then got on base via a bunt single.  That brought up Mandile, who scorched a ball to center field, clearing the bases with a triple.  Mandile would then come in on a wild pitch to make it 4-0 Dolphins before Alvarez settled to end the frame.  

Trancucci suffered his lone blemish in the third inning, when LU was able to plate two runs, the first on a Max Guadalupe single and the second coming in unearned via error.  Both pitchers were dynamite from there however and play went into the later innings before Alvarez slipped again.  He allowed a Mandile single, and after Mandile stole second, he got to third on a bunt single by Virone before being chased hose on a Joyce fielder's choice ground Ball.  With Virone at third, Angel Santiago then hit a sac fly to make it a 6-2 game.

Down to their final three outs, LU made noise when Trancucci plunked a batter and then yielded a single, but Steven Collica came on again in relief, this time in a save situation, and despite throwing a wild pitch, he would get Damaal Sands out on strikes, and get Elias Beltre to hit into a weak groundout back to the pitcher, ending the threat and the game.

The final line on Trancucci in the win was 6.1 innings pitched allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits with nine strikeouts.  CSI out-hit LU, 8-6, as Virone, Morel, and Mandile each picked up two hits, with Mandile adding three RBI and two runs scored.  Guadalupe went 2-3 in the loss with an RBI and run scored.