John Jay athletics photo

BROOKLYN, N.Y. (May 11, 2024) – For the first time since 2007, the John Jay College Bloodhounds are CUNYAC Baseball Champions, sweeping CCNY in a best-of-three series Saturday at Maimonides Park.

Just one season ago, John Jay finished 3-20 overall. Now, the Bloodhounds can call themselves conference CHAMPIONS, knocking off the defending champions to claim the league title for the eighth time in program history.

Santo Anzalone was named the Championship’s Most Valuable Player. The infielder produced a strong afternoon at the plate, combining to go 5-for-8 with five RBI and three runs scored.

Game 1: John Jay 6, CCNY 1 (Box Score)
Following a scoreless five innings of play between both teams, John Jay broke the game open with four runs in the sixth. Anzalone put the Bloodhounds on the scoreboard with an RBI single to score Jaxen Gangwish. Two batters later, Quentin Bowman produced a two-out RBI single to score John Spallin. On the very next at-bat, Anzalone scored on a double from Anthony Agosta.

John Jay scored twice more to make it 6-0 in the eighth inning, securing the win and getting within a game of claiming conference bragging rights.

Alvy Grullon earned the win on the mound for John Jay. He tossed 7.0 innings, limiting CCNY to one run on seven hits with four strikeouts. David Michalski tossed the remaining 2.0 innings, holding the Beavers to just one hit.

Game 2: John Jay 5, CCNY 4 (Box Score)
Facing elimination, the defending champs scored the game’s first run in the second inning on an RBI groundout from Stephen Suprun.

John Jay left seven runners on base until the seventh inning, when the Bloodhounds went off for four runs, as Anzalone hit a grand slam into the left center to put his team up, 4-1.

CCNY cut into its deficit with two runs in the eighth, powered by a two-run single to left from Michael Chasanov. John Jay responded with a run in the bottom of the frame with an RBI single to center from Isaac Salazar to make it 5-3.

The Beavers added another run in the ninth thanks to a RBI single from Chasanov, but did not get any closer, as Michael Mauro put away the game with a strikeout to secure the conference championship for the Bloodhounds.