Contributed Story
STATEN ISLAND — March 18, 2008 — Sophomore pitcher Mike Prunka (Glen Spey/ Eldred HS) pitched four scoreless innings and struck out seven batters on Friday to lead the Sullivan County Community College (SCCC) Generals to a 2-1 victory over the Globe Tech Knights at Richmond County Bank Ballpark, the home of the Class A Staten Island Yankees of the NY Penn League.
Freshman catcher Fred Moore (Neversink/Tri-Valley) went 2-for-5 with double to pace the Generals’ offense in their season-opening triumph over Globe Tech (0-1), a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I team.
SCCC’s John DeGroodt (Walden/Valley Central) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to record his first save. He also went 2-for-4 at the plate.
SCCC’s Ray Valdez (Bronx/JFK) doubled home Mike Donohue (Walden/Valley Central) with the tying run in the top of the seventh inning.
In the eighth, Eddie Pagan (Bronx/Hicksville) drew a walk with the bases loaded to give SCCC (1-0) the lead for good.
“Our pitching was lights out today,” praised SCCC Coach Mike Marra. “As a staff, we struck out 12 and only walked one. Our defense made some terrific plays behind our pitchers today.
“This was the blueprint for how we can win games this year, with solid pitching and defense,” Marra added. “We’ve been working hard for the past eight weeks with our pitching plan and our detailed defensive execution and it was nice to see it pay off today.”
Yesterday, the Generals began a six-game trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. They were scheduled to face Northern Essex (Mass.) Community College in their first game in Myrtle Beach.