POMONA, NY – The College of Staten Island baseball team will close out its regular season series against the St. Thomas Aquinas Spartans on Tuesday afternoon at Clover Stadium in Pomona, NY.
Weekend Recap
After the Dolphins' commanding 20-2 victory last Thursday to open the four-game series, the Spartans responded with a doubleheader sweep, winning 7-6 and 5-2.
In game one, the Dolphins rallied in the ninth inning to tie the score at six, but a wild pitch allowed the Spartans to walk off with a 7-6 win. CSI loaded the bases with one out following a Michael Flashner single. Jason Romance drove in a run to cut the deficit to 6-4, and the Dolphins later capitalized on a Spartans error to even the score before the decisive run crossed the plate.
Game two saw the Dolphins take a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning behind a Jack Kehoe RBI double and a Jaden Waterman sacrifice fly. The Spartans answered with three runs in the bottom half of the inning and held CSI scoreless the rest of the way to secure the 5-2 victory.
Current Standings
Following the weekend, the Dolphins sit at 6-12 overall and 3-7 in ECC play, while the Spartans improve to 16-6 and 7-3 in conference action. STAC currently holds second place in the conference standings, with CSI in fifth, just ahead of Queens.
Individual Leaders
Both teams rank among the top offenses in the ECC. The Dolphins lead the conference with a .310 team batting average, while the Spartans follow closely at .300.
Jamel Vera leads CSI with a .397 batting average, along with team highs of 27 hits, 18 RBI, and five doubles. The junior also moved into second on the team with three home runs, trailing only Jason Romance, who has four. Romance is batting .379 with 25 hits and 15 RBI, while Jandel Brito ranks third on the team at .378.
On the mound, Michael Furst leads the staff with a 5.09 ERA and 20 strikeouts across 23.0 innings pitched. Aidan Kielty follows with a 6.20 ERA and 17 strikeouts.
The Spartans are paced by a conference-leading hitter batting .470 with 39 hits and 29 RBI. Two additional players are hitting .348 and .346, respectively. On the mound, their top pitcher carries a 5.11 ERA with three wins, while another key arm owns a 7.16 ERA with 16 strikeouts.
