by Trevor Dugan
St. Dominic bats around, hits four straight RBI singles to take the lead in the fifth!
SS Louis Gounaris got the scoring started with this two-run single!
St. Dominic 7 – Kellenberg 0
End fifth pic.twitter.com/EoAYBAA676— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 25, 2026
With their season on the line against reigning league champion Kellenberg, St. Dominic High School placed their trust in a pitcher who missed much of May with an arm injury. Ray Kim did not disappoint.
The Rhode Island-commit fired a complete game shutout Monday, striking out eight and leading St. Dominic to a 7-0 win over Kellenberg Memorial High School at Hofstra University to force a decisive Game 3 in the NSCHSAA championship series.
“I was injured for three weeks, and Kellenberg hadn’t seen me at all this year, so I don’t think they knew what to expect,” Kim said after his shutout victory. “My arm was feeling really good, every pitch was working, so I knew every pitch would mix very well.”
St. Dominic’s 11-4 loss to Kellenberg in Game 1 this past Saturday pushed them to the brink of elimination, and marked their third straight loss to the Firebirds, making Monday’s season saving win all the more sweeter.
Kim was matched across the first four innings of Game 2 by Kellenberg starter Chris Parisi. The Queens College commit earned a win against St. Dominic last week in the tournament semi-final, and kept them off the board until the bottom of the fifth Monday.
The St. Dominic offense jolted to life in the bottom of the fifth, putting up seven runs to chase Parisi from the game and take a commanding lead. After a flyout to begin the inning, two singles and a walk loaded the bases for sophomore shortstop Louis Gounaris, who laced a single into center field to plate two runners and give St. Dominic their first lead of the championship series.
St. Dominic beats Kellenberg 7-0 to force a decisive Game 3 of the NSCHSAA championship series, tomorrow at 11:00 A.M!
FINAL: St. Dominic 7 – Kellenberg 0
Ray Kim: 7.0 IP 5 H 0 ER 8 K, W, RBI
Louis Gounaris: 1-2, 2 RBI R
Dylan Weinstein: 1-3, RBI R pic.twitter.com/T37u2p6u01— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 25, 2026
Next to bat was leadoff man Dom Muccia, who smacked another RBI single through the right side to make it 3-0 St. Dominic. The Bayhawks made it four straight as the next two batters, senior right fielder Dylan Weinstein and Kim, kept the rally going to push their lead to 5-0. Two more runs scored on a pair of bases loaded walks, pushing things to 7-0 before the inning finally came to an end.
“Our guys have been relentless all year,” St. Dominic head coach Joe Fusco said. “The bats were not competitive in the first four innings, so we brought them in and told them, ‘remember who you are,’.”
Kim cruised through the final two innings to cap off his complete game and extend St. Dominic’s season. After a 9-9 regular season, during which they battled through a multitude of injuries, the Bayhawks’ 2026 playoff run may come as a surprise to some. But in their dugout, this was expected from the start.
“We put a lot of emphasis on the mental side of the game, making sure our guys are always confident,” St. Dominic’s assistant coach Steve Lee explained. “Our guys always believe they’re going to win, having that unwavering confidence is crucial, especially when you take your lumps in a season where you go 9-9.”
“We focus on positive imagery before games, we’ve already imagined ourselves in this situation and winning,” Kim added. “We just need to keep doing the same thing and we can win tomorrow. I’m really confident in our team, we’re a family.”
The NSCHSAA champion will be crowned Tuesday, May 26, at Hofstra University, when St. Dominic and Kellenberg meet for Game 3 at 11:00 A.M.