Cutrone Goes the Distance Again as Baseball Downs CCNY, 6-1

NEW YORK – Junior Chris Cutrone (Levittown, N.Y./Island Trees) went the distance in back-to-back starts holding the CCNY to just one run powering the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) baseball team to a 6-1 victory on Thursday afternoon at Randall's Island.

The Bears (12-8) bounced back from a tough loss against another CUNYAC foe Staten Island yesterday and have now exchanged wins and losses over their last five. The Beavers (6-6-1) have now dropped three-in-a-row after assembling a five-game win streak.

Just five days removed from hurling 123 pitches over a 10-inning effort, Cutrone won his fifth straight decision to improve to 5-1 on the hill and fired 126 pitches to hold the Beavers to six hits, striking out eight in the process in his third complete game of the season.

Cutrone escaped the bottom of the third catching Jacob Sonenshine looking to leave runners at second and third in a scoreless game. The Bears followed with two runs in their next at bat off back-to-back doubles from Mike Cundari (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) and Joe Mendez (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell), a Beaver miscue on the Mendez double allowing him to score.

St. Joseph's tacked on four more in the top of the fifth, Thomas McKenna (Bellerose, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) starting the scoring with a two-run base knock that scored Francis Rapp (Baldwin, N.Y./Oceanside) and Anthony Inserillo (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) who led off the frame with back-to-back walks. Cundari later delivered Nick LoPrinzi (Howard Beach, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) with a sacrifice fly and Mendez blasted his second double to score Cundari for his second RBI.

A six-run cushion would be more than enough for Cutrone who surrendered just two hits over the final six innings. The Beavers finally pushed one across in the sixth when Jaquan Murphy led off the inning with a walk, advanced to third on a single and scored on a Sonenshine sacrifice fly.

Mendez (2-for-5, 2 RBI, 2 2B, R) and Cundari (2-for-3, RBI, 2B, R) led five different Bears who combined for seven hits.

Beavers leadoff man Jhosse Estrella paved the way for CCNY reaching base all four plate appearances, finishing 2-for-2 with a pair of walks.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Other contributors: Domenick Camerada (1-for-3, BB, RCS), Francis Rapp (0-for-2, R, 2 BB, SB)
• Thomas McKenna made his first start this season from the leadoff spot in the order and went 1-for-4 with two RBI, a run scored and two stolen bases.

THE BEAR FACTS

• St. Joseph's improves to 6-3 in the all-time series versus CCNY and has won the last five meetings.
• With a walk in the fourth, Cutrone upped his reached base safely streak to 18 games. Rapp also increased his reached base safely steak to a second active longest 11 games.
• Mendez recorded his team-leading seventh multi-RBI game of the season. With six total bases, he surpassed Kevin Diaz '13 for the career lead in that category.
• Cutrone's eight strikeouts matched his career high, set twice previously. Cutrone caught three batters looking and now holds the Bears career record for batters struck out looking (38).
• Cutrone moved into a tie for second in all-time wins with 11, sharing the mark with senior Donny Pagano.

NEXT UP FOR THE BEARS – The King's College

The Bears has a day off before opening the weekend with a road game against Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Conference and United States Collegiate Athletic Association rivals The King's College on Saturday, April 12 at Thomas Edison High School. First pitch is slated for 11 a.m.