Beavers Hope to Regain Baseball Title

Manhattan, New York 

The CCNY men’s baseball team looks forward to a season of redemption and success.

The Beavers want to re-capture the CUNYAC title they won in 2023 when they defeated Lehman College. The team comes into the season with a determined mindset after losing to John Jay in last year’s playoffs.

“Our main goal this season is to stay consistent and play our game every day,” said junior catcher Mike Savino. “We know we have a very talented group of guys who want to compete, but it’s about executing and staying locked in until we win another championship.”

The team features seasoned veterans who were a part of the 2023 championship squad, including senior right-handed pitcher Brandon Paider, who is viewed as one of the team’s leaders.

“I’m not someone who shows leadership through communication. I’m more through my actions,” Paider said. “And I hope the younger guys can seem to realize that.”

Paider finished as a member of the 2024 American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings All-Region 4 All-Defensive Team.  He threw for a conference high 81 innings and was second in strikeouts, sitting down 54.

Outfielder Richard Cirigliano, another star from the 2023 team, made the All-Region-4 Third Team.  In his sophomore year, he led the Beavers with a batting average of .381, 40 hits and 3 home runs. Cirigliano has high hopes for this year.  “As a team we are looking to build on our previous seasons while learning from last year’s challenges. We want to come back stronger and better prepared so that we don’t come up short in the championship again,” he said.

Despite a slow start to the season with a loss to FDU Fordham. The Beavers got their first win of the season over the Purchase College Panthers, 12-5 on Sunday, March 9.

Junior infielder/right handed pitcher Erick Rank led with a team high three runs.  Infielder/outfielder Kevin Budzinski, outfielder Richard Cirigliano, and catcher Alex Montanile chipped in two runs apiece.

Freshman outfielder Demetri Zirogiannis, senior first basemen Michael Chasanov, and Budzinski produced 9 of the team’s 15 hits.

Michael Chasanov helped rack up hits for the Beavers. Photo by CCNY Athletics.

The Beavers split the season series with the Panthers 1-1 after losing a close game 12-11. They still felt optimistic coming out of that series.

After their first win, pitching coach Christopher Jimenez said, “I feel good. We started out pretty slow, not having to field definitely affects how you play. But after a few times being out on the field, the guys are going to come together and understand what they have to do situationally. And that’s what really helped us out in our last win, and moving forward I think we feel more confident facing our few opponents.”

The Beavers practice at Riverbank Park, about a 10 minute walk from the campus. It isn’t like a traditional college team field. But this CCNY team makes do with what they have and gives 100% when they practice as if they were on a traditional field.

Their next game is on Saturday March 21st, where they hope to take care of business against Yeshiva University.