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No. 1 LuHi Crusaders Earn 10–3 Win Over No. 9 Columbia Prep

by Justin Notargiacomo

The No.1 seed LuHi Crusaders earned a 10–3 victory over No. 9 Columbia Prep in the quarterfinal matchup in the NYSAIS Tournament . LuHi set the tone early and continued to build on its lead throughout the game, getting key contributions from TJ Borzumato at the plate and Matthew Muzikant on the mound.

Columbia Prep applied early pressure in the top of the first inning, putting runners on base and threatening to score. LuHi starter Jayden Hauser worked himself out of trouble to open the game, ending the threat with a lineout to shortstop. 

In the bottom of the first, Matthew Garib followed a leadoff single from Borzumato with a 1 out double, where Timothy Peguero came through with a single to left field on the first pitch he saw, driving in the game’s first 2 runs. 

Columbia Prep threatened back in the top of the second inning, capitalizing on a dropped third strike, two hit batters, and a defensive error. 

LuHi struck right back quickly in the bottom half of the inning, as Borzumato delivered a two-RBI single to swing the momentum back in LuHi’s favor, and Cam Coco added an RBI single right after to extend the lead to 5-1 heading into the third.

In the top of the third, Columbia Prep narrowed the gap. Levi Lefkowitz tripled to drive in a run, and Copper Krenza followed with an RBI single. LuHi answered once again in the bottom of the inning, as Kayden Bates drove in a run with a double, making it 6-3 LuHi.

Borzumato continued to make his presence felt throughout the game. He reached base in each of his plate appearances, finishing 3-for-3, to go along with a walk, 3 RBI’s and 3 stolen bases. 

Cole Thomas provided stability on the mound in the middle innings. In the fourth, he worked around a one-out triple and stranded the runner on third, preventing Columbia Prep from cutting further into the lead.

LuHi extended its advantage in the bottom of the fifth inning. Freddy Von Borgen drove in a run with a double, Bates followed with a sacrifice fly, and Borzumato added another RBI single to cap his strong offensive performance.

The Crusaders added their final run in the bottom of the sixth when Garib singled in a run, pushing the lead to 10–3.

Matthew Muzikant closed out the game for LuHi, delivering three scoreless innings. The Monmouth commit allowed just one hit and struck out five, keeping Columbia Prep off the scoreboard and securing the save.

Head Coach Shaun Manning preaches the phrase “be good and be simple”. 

“We caught the ball well, hit the ball well,  got bunts down, made clean plays…we were good and simple and played good, steady, clean baseball today.”

LuHi’s balanced offensive attack resulted in a 10–3 win over the Columbia Prep Lions. The performances of Borzumato and Muzikant stood out, highlighting a game in which LuHi controlled the game from start to finish.

LuHi will continue their playoff run on Monday, where they will play in the semi-finals of the NYSAIS Tournament. LuHi will look to win and get back to the championship, where they lost last year to a suicide squeeze in extra innings.

“We only graduated one senior last year. Everyone here lived in that moment.” Coach Manning said. “Everyone remembers sitting there at the end watching another team celebrate a state championship, and we got right back to work all winter. The goal is to get back there again and win the one. One game, one inning, one batter, one pitch at a time, and we’ve stuck to that and we got one more to get to get back to that moment.”