Chargers Softball Maintains Hot Streak; STAC Golf Heads South

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Talk about steamrolling into the playoffs.

The Chargers of Dominican College won 10 of their last 11 games to win the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) softball championship as a prelude to today’s NCAA Division II Region Tournament opener against Southern Connecticut State in Shirley, LI.

“We finished strong, real strong, won the conference without a loss,” understated Coach Joe Burbridge of Suffern. “You know, we expected to be in the mix, but anything can happen. We’re not shocked, though. You just hope to play your best, have a good team, and take your chances.”

Dominican waylaid the opposition en route to the conference crown, beating C.W. Post 4-0 and 6-3, and then sweeping past Georgian Court University 6-2, 7-4 in the championship round.

The Chargers are 106-56 under Burbridge, including a 34-16 mark this season that includes a 19-7 conference record. The Owls of Southern Connecticut are 32-19 all told, with a 20-10 mark in conference play.

The teams split two virtually meaningless games in March in Florida, with Dominican prevailing in the second game of a twinbill, 7-6 in 13 innings.

The Owls won the Northeast-10 title with four dramatic victories in one day—4-2 over Adelphi in eight innings; 4-3 over the University of New Haven; then 5-3 and 4-2 against Merrimack.

Tournament MVP Delaney Childers of Johnstown, OH, led Dominican with two wins and two saves in the tournament. The superb left-hander, Coach Burbridge’s top recruit and an all-CACC selection, struck out 14 and allowed only six hits in the tournament.

“She’s good, very good; the ball moves, she changes speeds, and knows how to pitch,” lauded Burbridge. “She was highly recruited, and we went after her. You’re not always right, but she’s an A-plus recruit.”

The East Region I survivor in the double-elimination tournament will meet the Region II survivor in the Super Regionals May 20-21 as 64 teams vie for the national championship. The finals are penciled in May 26-30 at James I. Moyer Sports Complex in Salem, VA.

Dominican is bracketed with SCSU, top-seeded Dowling, and No. 8 Merrimack; in the other East bracket, second-seeded C.W. Post is joined by No. 3 Molloy, No. 6 Caldwell, and No. 7 the University of New Haven.

The Chargers feature timely hitting that supports fine pitching, and an outstanding defense anchored by sophomore catcher Ashley Corrao of Staten, and sophomore shortstop Julie Plante of Swansea, MA.

“Our catcher is ridiculous, Division I-caliber all the way,” praises Burbridge. “She doesn’t take a back seat to anyone—she’s got a mega arm, and is not afraid to use it. Her reputation is well-known.”

Plante’s forte is her glove.

“It’s legit,” says Burbridge. “We should be OK for awhile.”

Reputable runners-up

For the second straight season, the Rockland Community College baseball team under Coach Joe Zeccardi advanced to the Region XV finals before being eliminated.

Zeccardi, a West Nyack native now living in New City, is a graduate of St. Joseph’s Regional HS. Last year his Hawks lost to Orange CC in the finals.

This year ended with a 12-6 loss to top-seeded Sullivan in a game that last nearly four hours at Hawk Field.

The Generals, a prolific scoring machine, pounded out 16 hits in the title game. All told, Sullivan scored 40 runs on 42 hits on its march to the championship.

RCC did not go gently into the night, however, and were gaining momentum after drawing to within 9-6. But a three-run homer in the seventh by tournament MVP Efrain Bautista off Jordan Kolinsky advanced the Generals to the National Junior College Athletic Association Northeast District tournament this weekend.

Kolinsky, a Clarkstown South graduate, turned in a solid bullpen effort. Other than the homer, Kolinsky struck out seven in five innings, and he also added two hits.

Rockland concludes its season at 19-19.

En route to the final, the No. 4-seeded Hawks upended second-seeded Westchester CC 7-4, as Nanuet graduate Kevin Rocco scattered six hits, allowing only one earned run, and Cornwall High alum Joe Terribile had two hits and an RBI.

Rockland earlier had eliminated No. 3 Orange, 11-8, behind pitcher Jesus Hernandez’s complete game, and four hits apiece by John Ziznewski and Jared Croce.

The Hawks also routed No. 5 Dutchess, 12-2 in five innings. Ziznewski and Croce, both from Staten Island, combined to drive in nine runs to support the crisp pitching of North Rockland graduate Nick Viohl, who allowed only a single.

Biggest stage of them all

Their bags packed and clubs in tow, the golf team at St. Thomas Aquinas College heads to Nashville, TN, tonight (May 13) to compete in the Division II National Championship at Robert Trent Jones Trail in Muscle Shoals, AL.

The Spartans and Coach Steve Ferrara of Stony Point will leave Nashville Saturday morning for a two-hour drive to Muscle Shoals, hoping that their third straight shot at a national title proves fruitful.

The weeklong championship starts on Monday, featuring such Division II powers as Barry University of Miami Shores, FL, Abilene (TX) Christian University, and Lynn University of Boca Raton, FL.

“Those teams can beat many of the Division I schools in the country,” observes Ferrara, who said the Spartans will focus as a group once they take flight tonight.

The veteran coach said his team is prepared to play its best, and lauded Dave Fusco, director of golf at Patriot Hills in Stony Point, and Mike Laudien, director of golf at Philip J. Rotella in Thiells, for making their courses available for practices throughout the season.

Both highly rated teaching professionals, said Ferrara, once coached the STAC golf team, and both help out especially with the mental aspects of the sport.

Mental toughness, of course, will be essential once the practice round is finished on Sunday, and championship play begins on Monday.

“This is a big stage, the biggest stage, the national championship,” Ferrara said, noting that freshmen Tom Linehan and Joe Harney are making their national championship debuts.

Senior Chris Fitzpatrick, and junior John Casey of Garnerville are making their third national championships appearances, while senior Mike Gunderson is making his second.

The Spartans enjoyed a solid week of practice with rounds at Rockland Country Club in Sparkill, Manhattan Woods in West Nyack, Tuxedo Golf Course, and famed Westchester Country Club in Harrison.

“It just says that golf professionals in the area are receptive to good golf,” said STAC athletic director Gerry Oswald of New City, whose decision 10 years ago to shift from dual matches to 36- and 54-hole tournaments has helped to elevate the program.

Oswald, who before coming to STAC doubled as golf coach/athletic director at Fairleigh Dickinson University, praised the efforts of former coach Ken Bortner, and particularly Ferrara, the current coach.

“In the last 10 years we went to nine NCAA Regionals, and in the last five we’ve been No. 1 or No. 2 regularly,” Oswald said. “It’s an effort to get to Regionals, and an even bigger effort to get to Nationals. It is a major accomplishment. Who would think of it? We’ve had a number of players from Nyack, (Clarkstown) North and South, just up the river (Hudson Valley).”

Ferrara’s only concern is the week layoff the Spartans face after winning the Regional championship.

Oswald, laughing, said he has no such concerns.

“I predict we’ll show up at the first tee,” he kidded.

Chargers forge ahead

The Dominican College baseball team, which at one point this season did little to excite the veteran and highly successful coach Rick Giannetti of New City, is apparently in gear as the top seed in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference tournament.

The Chargers, scoring a run in each of the first three innings behind winning pitcher and all-CACC selection Dave Bartuska, opened play with a 7-0 win over No. 5 University of the Sciences at New Castle, DE.

Dan Robinson, a senior outfielder from Massapequa, and also an all-CACC choice, collected his 200th career hit with a leadoff single in the third inning.

The Chargers, now 27-15 overall, play either No. 2 Wilmington or No. 3 Post today at 3 p.m. at Frawley Stadium. Saturday’s game is scheduled at 11 a.m., and again at 2 p.m., if necessary.

Spartans sparkle on diamond

St. Thomas Aquinas baseball players Vin Malzahn, Frank Salerno of New City, and Mark Fochesato, out of Pine Bush HS, and Fred Moore of Woodbourne were named to the all-East Coast Conference first team.

George Wargo of West Haverstaw was named to the second team.

Malzahn, a grad student and Port Jervis HS alum, leads the Spartans with 55 hits and 33 RBI.  The first baseman also had a team-high 14 doubles, three triples and four home runs going into yesterday’s game against No. 1 seed Molloy College in the double-elimination playoffs.

Salerno has 48 hits and 17 RBI for the Spartans. The fleet-footed sophomore second baseman, a Clarkstown South graduate, is batting .338 and has seven doubles and a triple this season.  He also has 24 steals in 27 attempts. 

Fochesato pitched 44 innings during the regular season, with 41 strikeouts. Fellow senior Wargo, a catcher, has 29 hits, 13 runs and 19 RBI

Mortarboard musings

• Softball standouts Kaitlyn Schmier, pitcher/second base; Stephanie Gaudinier, catcher; and Francesca Signore, third base/shortstop, represent Westchester Community College on the all-Mid-Hudson Conference first team.
• The Manhattan College baseball team, which routed Sacred Heart 11-3 in its final non-conference game, concludes its home schedule this weekend against Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) rival Rider, beginning with a scheduled doubleheader on Saturday at noon at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. Sunday’s game is also set to start at noon, with the Jaspers (16-1 MAAC) to honor five seniors including Rob Ardino of White Plains, and Chad Salem of Rye.
• Kate Bowen of Newtown, CT, was recognized for the second time as MAAC rookie of the week after helping the Manhattan College softball team earn the No. 2 seed in the conference championships. The Jaspers, however, were upended by No. 3 Marist 4-3 in the MAAC opener at Poughkeepsie, dropping into the losers bracket.  Manhattan, which faces elimination with loss, takes on defending champion Iona (27-20) at 1 p.m. today at Gartland Field.
• Rockland Community College captured team and individual championships in the Mid-Hudson Conference golf standings. Led by individual titlist Colby Lewis of Monroe, who posted 463, the Hawks nailed down team laurels with 36 points to 27½ for Ulster CC, and 22½ for third-place Dutchess CC. Westchester CC placed fourth. Other golfers placing in the top-10 for RCC were West Nyack’s John Borean, fourth, and Craig Zamolkany of Pomona, seventh.
• Rockland Community College holds an 8-stroke lead over Nassau after the first round of the 2011 Region XV Golf Championship at the Philip J. Rotella Golf Course in Thiells.  After Thursday’s round, four Rockland golfers tallied 324 while Nassau fired 332.  Suffolk sits in third place with a 341, and Orange collected a score of 362, which is good enough for fourth place. Nassau’s Corey Huberty is the tournament leader after a 3-over-par 75.  Monroe Woodbury graduate Colby Lewis is tied with Rockland teammate Dan Gizzi after an opening round score of 76. Gizzi, a North Rockland graduate, completed a career-best round.