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DOMINICAN TOPS NJIT, 5-4 FOR CACC BASEBALL TITLE

Chargers Earn Fourth Championship In Five Years

May 7, 2005

Courtesy of Mark Mentone NJIT Sports Information

NEW CASTLE, Del. – Dominican (N.Y.) College won the 2005 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference baseball championship with a 5-4 title game victory over No. 1 seed New Jersey Institute of Technology on Saturday afternoon at Wilson Field. It is the Chargers’ fourth tournament title in the last five years and their 12^th in head coach Rick Gianetti’s 16-year tenure.

 No. 2 seed Dominican (25-19) came out of the winners’ bracket and needed one victory in two attempts on Saturday to earn the championship. The Chargers got on the board first, scoring two unearned runs in the top of the fourth inning, before chasing NJIT starter Dennis Keefe (Linden, NJ) (3-3) in a three-run fifth. Tournament Most Valuable Player Pete Gilardo (Cornwall, NY) and Jose Escalera (Bronx, NY) lined consecutive run-scoring singles, and the Chargers later scored on a throwing error.

The fifth tally proved decisive when NJIT scored four times in the sixth off of Dominican starter Todd Spindler (Chesapeake, VA), including the last three with two outs. Austin DeRogatis (Toms River, NJ) capped the rally with a two-run single. Spindler (4-1) retired the next hitter on a fly ball with the tying and go-ahead runs on base.

Highlander reliever Cory Kuzmik (Teaneck, NJ) worked 4 1/3 innings of shutout relief, striking out seven and allowing one hit, to keep his team alive. NJIT put two runners on with one out in the eighth before Dominican’s Mike Mondesir (Jamaica, NY) relieved Spindler and induced a double-play ground ball. The Highlanders again put two runners on base in the ninth, but Mondesir worked out of trouble for his first save of the season.

Dan Lupo (West Milford, NJ) had three hits for NJIT (22-18). Gilardo went 3 for 5 to finish the tournament 8 for 12.

2005 CACC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT RESULTS

(at Wilson Field, New Castle, Del.)

May 5

#2 Dominican 7, #3 Caldwell 5

#4 Wilmington 7, #1 NJIT 1

May 6

NJIT 14, Caldwell 1
Dominican 6, Wilmington 1
NJIT 6, Wilmington 3

May 7

Dominican 5, NJIT 4

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Nick Mauro, Caldwell
Bryan Fitzgerald, Wilmington
Bret Urban, Wilmington
Chris Legiadre, NJIT
Dan Lupo, NJIT
Kwesi Mitchell, NJIT
Joe Catanese, Dominican
Matt Dilgen, Dominican
Keith Gebert, Dominican
Pete Gilardo, Dominican
Eliezer Nunez, Dominican

MVP: Pete Gilardo