Knights Battleground Week 30

Softball 

Entering the week, the Knights had won 14 straight games and ended up with 4 games on the week, two on Friday away at Central Maine, and two home games this weekend, which was Sophomore Day for the Lady Knights against the Monroe Express on Saturday. 

In the first game against Central Maine, CCRI opened the scoring with a run in the first inning and added another in the second. After a scoreless third, they pushed across another run in the fourth and four more in the fifth to take a commanding 7-2 lead. The sixth inning saw the Lady Knights explode for 13 runs, sealing the game via mercy rule. Crystyliah Covel led the way with two hits and seven RBIs, while Zoe Battersby homered and scored three times. Brianna Grenier went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, and two RBIs, and Hannah Smith added three hits, five runs, and a stolen base. Other contributors included Kathryn Motta, who scored three runs and drove in three; Sophia Valentini, who added a hit, an RBI, and earned the win on the mound with six innings of five-hit, one-earned-run ball; and Kayleen Kim and Jenna Altieri, who each doubled and drove in a run. The Knights went on to win 20-2 in game 1.  

Game 2 proved to be similar for the Lady Knights, dominating Central Maine from start to finish. Rhode Island completed a dominant doubleheader sweep over Central Maine CC with a 14-3 win in five innings. After a scoreless first inning, CCRI took control in the second with three runs, then exploded for eight runs in the third to make it 11-0. Central Maine answered with three runs in the bottom of the fourth, but CCRI responded with a run in the fourth and two more in the fifth to enforce the mercy rule. CCRI racked up 16 hits and played flawless defense with no errors. Hannah Smith went 2-for-2 with three runs scored, Kayleen Kim collected two hits and two RBIs, and Crystyliah Covel went 2-for-2 with two RBIs. Other key contributors included Jenna Altieri (2 RBIs, triple), Jaiden Harding (2 RBIs), and Zoe Battersby, who had three hits and an RBI. Janina Mazzulla earned the win in the circle and helped her own cause with two hits and an RBI. Next was a home series against the Monroe Express  

The CCRI Lady Knights exploded for eight runs in the second inning en route to a commanding 12-0 win over the Monroe Express on Saturday. The big inning was fueled by clutch hits from Jenna Altieri, Zoe Battersby, Sophia Chevian, and Kayleen Kim, along with a Monroe error and a productive fielder’s choice. Chevian also shined in the circle, tossing 4.2 shutout innings while allowing just two hits, striking out four, and walking none. Offensively, Kim led the charge from the eighth spot, going 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Valentini also notched two hits on the day, while Chevian drove in two with a key single in the second. 

The Lady Knights looked to keep the momentum going as they faced Monroe Express again on Saturday. 

Rhode Island was able to cruise to an 8-0 victory behind a balanced offensive attack and a strong outing in the circle from Janina Mazzulla. Mazzulla was lights out, tossing 4.1 scoreless innings while giving up just three hits, striking out seven, and walking two. The defense backed her up perfectly, playing error-free ball with Kayleen Kim leading the way with six defensive plays. CCRI jumped out early in the bottom of the first, capitalizing on a pair of Monroe errors to plate three runs. They kept the pressure on in the second with RBI contributions from Zoe Battersby and Hannah Smith. Jenna Altieri added another run in the third with a groundout to extend the lead to 7-0. Offensively, the Lady Knights spread the wealth. Battersby, Altieri, Jaiden Harding, Kathryn Motta, and Smith each recorded a hit. Motta, Grenier, Battersby, and Altieri all notched an RBI. 

Softball will play all 6 of their games in 3 days this weekend, starting with two home double-headers Friday and Saturday against Southern Maine and Monroe University. Then they will travel on Sunday to finish the weekend with two games against Southern Maine.  

Baseball 

Knights Baseball has been on a 7-game win streak headed into this week, where they had one game scheduled against Holyoke, followed by a 3-game set vs Northern Essex.  

CCRI got on the board early against the Cougars in the first when Chris Piscione grounded out to bring in a run. However, Holyoke refused to go quietly, tying the game in the eighth with a passed ball and an RBI single from Herick Cortes. Pat Mitchell set the tone early on the mound, tossing five shutout innings and allowing just one hit while striking out seven. Josh Pedus closed things down, throwing a clean final frame to seal the win. The Knights racked up 12 hits in total. With the score knotted at three in the top of the ninth, Alan Carpenter delivered the decisive blow—a two-run double that ultimately secured the victory for CCRI. Carpenter led the team with two RBIs, while Kelvin Santos and Kody Fretts each collected multiple hits alongside Derek De La Cruz.  

Thier first game of the 3-game series with Northern Essex was under the lights at 7:00 PM on Wednesday. The Knights got things rolling in the second inning when Aiden Bolwell singled to bring in two runs, followed by a bases-loaded walk to Chris Piscione and an RBI single from Alan Carpenter to cap a four-run frame. Brayden Beard got the start for CCRI, going five innings while allowing three runs on four hits with three strikeouts.  Despite the early cushion, Northern Essex chipped away and took control in the bottom of the eighth. A hit-by-pitch to Ynaber brought in the go-ahead run, followed by a walk to Megan and a sacrifice fly from Carter to push the score to 7-5. Clyde Boutier, who struck out six over two innings, was tagged with the loss after surrendering four runs on one hit and five walks in relief.  

In the next game on Saturday, CCRI again looked poised to grab a victory over the Knights. However, a late error in the eighth inning broke a 5-5 tie and handed the Knights a narrow 6-5 loss. Logan Dean gave CCRI a strong start, going seven innings while allowing six hits and five runs (three earned), striking out seven and walking just one. Despite out-hitting Northern Essex 7-6, CCRI couldn’t hold onto the momentum. Chris Piscione led the offense with two hits, while Dylan Perreault, Alan Carpenter, and Damon Ascencio each drove in a run.  

In their last game of the weekend against Northern Essex the Knights were looking to finally close out a game and get into the win column and avoid a series sweep.  

Pat Mitchell was sharp on the mound, allowing just one hit across seven scoreless innings, striking out five and walking three to earn the win. His defense backed him up flawlessly, turning a double play and committing no errors. CCRI broke the scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth, erupting for four runs. Derek De La Cruz got the rally started with an RBI single, followed by another RBI single from Chris Piscione. Alan Carpenter then delivered the big blow — a two-run triple to cap off the inning. 

CCRI added insurance in the later innings and finished with nine hits total. De La Cruz went 2-for-3 and led the team with three RBIs. Rhode Island would go on to win the game 6-0, and avoid the series sweep.  

The Knights have 6 games in 7 days this week, starting Tuesday and ending on Sunday. They begin with UConn Avery Point Tuesday, followed by 5 games on the weekend, 2 against Southern Maine and 3 against Bunker Hill.