FISHKILL, N.Y. - Celebrating senior night at Dutchess Stadium, the Mount Saint Mary College baseball team earned a 10-6 non-conference victory over the College of Staten Island on Wednesday evening. The Knights moved back to the .500 mark for the season at 14-14 overall.

Mount Saint Mary supported senior starting pitcher Matt Paci (Goshen, N.Y.) with 10 runs, and Paci held up his end of the bargain by pitching into the seventh inning. Paci allowed seven hits and five runs over six and a third innings. He walked three and struck out four for his second victory of the season.

The Knights struck first in the second inning, as senior Louis Peisel (Brewster, N.Y.) doubled home junior Max Tecce (Glen Cove, N.Y.), who had reached earlier in the inning with a single.

Following a leadoff single from junior Joe Clarke (Maybrook, N.Y.) in the third inning, sophomore Michael Morelli (Washingtonville, N.Y.) crushed a triple to the wall. Morelli later scored on a sac fly from Tecce. With the bases loaded later in the frame, senior Billy Casey (Marlboro, N.Y.) drove home a pair of runners with a double in the gap. Junior Brian McNoble (Lynbrook, N.Y.) knocked in the fifth run of the inning with a sac fly to left, making it 6-1 in favor of the Knights.

Staten Island answered with a single run in the top of the fourth, but Morelli was quick to answer for the Mount, clobbering a home run down the left field line. Junior John Conroy (Middletown, N.Y.) followed with a single, Tecce doubled, and both runners scored on a double from Peisel. Sophomore Paul Cherubino (Middletown, N.Y.) plated Peisel with a single to give the Knights a 10-2 advantage.

With the Dolphins threatening in the seventh inning, senior pitcher Justin Murphy (Wallkill, N.Y.) entered to limit the damage. Murphy limited CSI to three runs in the inning, maintaining a 10-5 advantage for the home side.

Staten Island would load the bases again in the eighth and this time, it was sophomore pitcher Joe CoFrancesco (Hamden, Conn.) who entered to put out the fire. CoFrancesco struck out the first two men he faced before walking home a run to make it 10-6. The sophomore struck out the final batter of the inning, stranding three Dolphins on the basepaths.

CoFrancesco would stay on to pitch the ninth, and after walking the leadoff man, he struck out the next two batters. Another walk ensued, but he struck out the final batter to nail down the win for the Mount. CoFrancesco recorded all six of his outs via the strikeout.

Peisel finished 3-for-5 with three runs batted in and a pair of runs scored, while Tecce was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI. Cherubino also recorded three hits (3-for-5) to go along with a run and an RBI. Morelli finished 2-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

The Knights continue their season tomorrow at St. Joseph's College of Brooklyn. The game is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Padavan-Preller Fields in Bellerose, N.Y.