Flashback Friday looks at the top moments from the 2016-17 athletic year at the College of Staten Island. This week, we continue rolling with championship moments from a year ago.  The Baseball team dropped the first game of the CUNYAC Tournament played at CSI in early-May, but rebounded to win four-straight games in what is becoming customary come-from-behind fashion to stake the CUNYAC Championship.

#4 - Baseball comes back to win CUNYAC Championship
Date:  May 7, 2017
Who:  Baseball
Where: CSI Baseball Complex, Staten Island, NY
What Happened:  The defending CUNYAC champs were seeded tops overall in time for the CUNYAC Championship Tournament, but the Dolphins opened up play by suffering a 6-4 loss to John Jay College, putting them in a hole early in the double-elimination tournament.  Coming back the next day, CSI exacted revenge on John Jay with a 6-1 win, then toppled CCNY by a lopsided 21-3 count to earn a trip to the CUNYAC Championship against Baruch College on May 7.  Things didn't come easy from there.  Baruch needed just one win to stake the championship while CSI needed to sweep a doubleheader.  In the opener, CSI got out to a 2-0 lead, but Baruch rallied for three runs in the eighth inning to go up, 3-2.  With just six outs left to their season and against one of the CUNYAC's most dominating pitchers, the Dolphins came back with a vengeance, scoring four runs in the eighth to take an improbable, 6-4, win. In the second, winner-take-all final, the game was deadlocked after five innings, 0-0, until the Dolphins erupted for three runs in the sixth and another two in the seventh, riding the arm of sophomore Chris Karnbach who threw a complete-game shutout, clinching the 5-0 win for CSI.  It was CSI's third straight CUNYAC Championship and their 18th in program history.

Q & A with Frank Sconzo

Frank – the baseball team has been so successful over these last four years.  What's the recipe for success year in and year out for you guys?  It all starts with good talent and good coaching. Without those two keys it's tough to build a successful baseball program. On the other hand you also need a group of guys who can mesh together and become a team and that's exactly what we had.

Going into this season, you were the defending champs and that makes teams like yours a target throughout the year.  Is it easier or harder to be in that position going in to the season?  I would say that it's harder to be in that position because everyone else is out for you and they want to beat you. Our team doesn't back down from anything so being the defending champs wouldn't effect the way we play. We play hard from the first inning to the last whether were the best team or the worst team.

Coach Mauro says baseball is such a long game and there is no room for panic or urgency.  Is that a philosophy that the whole team adopts?  Coach Mauro definately knows a lot about the game and this is something he keys in on the most because it really is a long game and anything can happen at any moment. All we need to do is bear down and grab hold of the moments so that we don't allow them to take control of us. We as a team know that whatever comes our way can be handled with patience. 

After a great regular season you guys drew John Jay in the playoffs and they always seem to give you trouble.  What happened on that first day that saw you guys come up short?  I think that as a team we just did not expect to be upset the way we were and once it started to happen they did not let it stop, but a good team always bounces back and we did exactly that by bringing home another championship.

After that first day you rebounded really well and defeated John Jay and CCNY to clinch the final with Baruch awaiting.  How important was that huge win over CCNY (21-3) for the team's confidence going into the final day?  The win over CCNY was huge for our confidence because we felt like if we continued to hit that well no one was going to beat us even with that one loss already under our belts. We just bore down and tried our hardest and came out champs.

Facing elimination, you guys are down 3-2 in the 8th against Baruch and they had full momentum.  How do you explain that tremendous comeback, and how did it feel to come in to score to tie the game up?  I knew it was going to be a tough game. Baruch is the best opponent we face inside the CUNY. We were down the whole game and we knew that if we lost it was over so we fought as hard as we could. Nouvertne walked, I walked, and Demarco was able to sacrifice us over giving Meola a chance to tie the game and he ended up giving us a lead that we would not give up. 

Jason came in to wrap it up in the 9^th and you guys took that first game.  What is it about this team that has it playing its best when their backs are up against the wall?  We hate elimination. I'll be the first to tell you because I hate losing so much. I was lucky enough to win three championships in four years and I can honestly say that one that we were eliminated from was the worst experience to possibly have. A few guys from this team were on that team to when we lost so they know as well that it's terrible and that we couldn't let it happen so we didn't.

Although you won the final pulling away, the game was 0-0 going into the 6^th inning.  You were behind the plate catching Chris Karnbach in what was a superb performance.  What would you make of his effort that day?  That kid is something else man. He really throws the ball so well and has a funky delivery to make it even more effective. He was ready for that game and all of his pitches were on. We were dealing through six, we just needed to jump out in front with some runs and that game was ours. There was no way they were going to hit him and he was making sure of that.

You end up scoring and getting enough insurance to complete the comeback and win the final, 5-0.  You were emotional after the game.  Tell me what that feeling was like for you?  The feeling was unreal. Many people don't get a chance to win a championship yet alone be in one. I was lucky enough to have experienced four straight while losing the first and then winning three straight. I was so emotional because my last game in my college career ended with a championship that I'll be able to remember forever.

Frank, after an incredible career with CSI, how would you categorize your career and what CSI Baseball has done for you personally?  CSI has made a great impact on my life. I met an unbelievable group of people and made so many unforgettable memories. I'm lucky enough to say that my career was incredible. Every time I step on the field I always give 100 percent so I'm so happy and so grateful to say that I had a successful career and I wish I could start it over from the beginning. I'll never forget CSI or my team and the crazy things we went through during baseball. I'm honored and humbled to have been a part of this program.

Other Highlights
CSI Story
Boxscore - Game 1
Boxscore - Game 2
CUNYAC Story
Post Game Interview
Championship Game Film
CUNYAC Highlight Video