FORT PIERCE, FL - The CMSV Baseball team returned to the diamond on Wednesday afternoon, wrapping up a 3-game series with Westminster College. The Dolphins took game 1 of the doubleheader 7-3 but then lost by the same score in game 2, their first loss of the 2017 season.
In game one, the Mount exploded for seven runs in the first four innings, with five of those runs being unearned. CMSV starting pitcher
Michael Kochen went all 7 innings, giving up just two earned runs on six hits, while striking out five batters, to earn his first win of the season.
James Valenti's aggressiveness on the base paths got the Dolphins in position to score their first run. The freshman singled with one out, then stole second and advanced to third on an infield error. Fellow freshman
Kyle Tamburi then smacked a 2-out single scoring Valenti to his side on the board first. After advancing to second on a passed ball,
Justin Vavaro singled home Tamburi to make it 2-0 CMSV after two innings of play.
The Dolphins blew the game open in the 4th inning scoring five runs. Once again, aggressive base running was the catalyst for the CMSV runs. Two singles, a walk and a fielders choice loaded the bases with one out for
Luis Castillo, who grounded into a fielder's choice, but the high throw to second that nabbed a runner, allowed two runners to score, putting CMSV ahead 4-0. Castillo came around to score one batter later on an RBI single by
Emanuel Giumarra, who in-turn scored on a
Zachary Saunders single. Saunders scored the 7th CMSV run of the inning on an infield error.
Kochen only ran into trouble in the sixth inning when he surrendered three runs, two earned. The defense bailed their pitcher out by turning an inning ending double play, putting an end to a two-on, one out rally.
In game 2. it was Giumarra who provided the offense for the Mount, he collected two of the teams three hits and drove in all three runs.
Westminster had two pitchers combine for a 7 inning three run, three hit performance.
Bryan Cantero picked up the loss for CMSV, as the junior failed to complete four innings. The three Mount pitchers struggled to miss bats, as they combined for only three swings-and-misses in six combined innings of work.
