According to Head Coach Corey Paluga following Sunday's win against Utica, "Nick Cottone '19 did Nick Cottone things," as the right-handed hurler compiled the last in a series of quality starts as a senior. Cottone tossed 7.0 innings of three-run ball, allowing only two earned runs while striking out 10. Not only did he tie a program record by making his 10th start of the year, he extended his lead in the single-season strikeout category to a remarkable 70 punch outs.
The Toms River, New Jersey, native did not allow a run in the first five innings against the Pioneers. Although he found himself in jam with the bases loaded in the second, he got Utica's Christopher Ramsundar to fly out to preserve the early shutout. Cottone then struck out two each in the third and fourth frames, before retiring the side in order in the fifth. After giving up three runs in the sixth, he responded with a scoreless seventh, before walking off of the mound for the final time as a Soaring Eagle.
Cottone's senior year has been one of the best by a starting pitcher in EC's five-year varsity history. In 61.1 innings – just two-thirds of an inning shy of the team record – he went 3-3 with a 3.96 ERA, which is tied for the third-lowest among pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched in a season. Along with his new strikeout record, he held opponents to a record-low .223 batting average against.
