FINA: Wantagh 6 Division 2 WP: Jimmy Joyce Anthony Fontana: 2-Run HR Trevor Fagan: 2 RBI’s pic.twitter.com/cWeM3Nk9nD aXcess Baseball (@axcessbaseball) May 23, 2017 Wantagh once again proved they are a “playoff team” as they downed the Division Blue Dragons by a score of 6-2 in game one of the three-game series. From the start of this game, the Warriors seemed to have control of this game. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Trevor Fagan delivered a 2 RBI single, and later scored on a wild pitch. His 2 RBI capitalized a 4-run 1st inning, and gave star pitcher Jimmy Joyce all of the run support he needed. “When you give a pitcher like Jimmy an early cushion like that in the ballgame, it helps him and us play comfortably the rest of the way,” said Fagan...
And then there were four. The first two rounds of playoff baseball in Class A brought rivalry match ups, games that came down to the wire and a ton of upsets. Let’s hope the next round brings the same amount of excitement. With the first week of playoffs in the books, here’s a look at the upcoming best of three series’ in Class A. Division vs. Wantagh: The match up players and fans have been waiting patiently for is finally here. The rivalry between two of the most decorated programs in Nassau County is back, and this time, they will be playing for a trip to the county championship. Before anybody goes and makes any predictions, there are several aspects that need to be highlighted. The first aspect is that the regular season does not matter. Although Division beat Wantag...
The final week of the season has ended in Class A, which means chaos is underway. The “first four” of the playoffs feature the 4 lowest seeded teams battling for 2 spots to get into the round of 16. These games will take place on Tuesday afternoon. The round of 16 is scheduled to kick off on Saturday afternoon. After yet again a crazy week of baseball, here are the top 5 teams at the end of the season AND my predictions for the postseason. 5. MacArthur (12-3) (Last week: Unranked) MacArthur was hoping that Garden City would drop one game in the series against Manhasset in order for the Generals to capture a county championship. Unfortunately for them, Garden City swept Manhasset which means that MacArthur has the 6 seed heading into the playoffs and will face their cross town r...
With one week remaining in the regular season, things are really starting to heat up in Class A. As of right now, there is not one dominant team in Nassau County. This means that we are in for an outstanding postseason. With that being said, here’s this weeks new and improved top 5. 5) Lynbrook (9-3) (Last week: 2) After dropping the first 2 games of the series to North Shore, the Owls bounced back in game 3, winning 11-3. Last week marked Lynbrook’s first series loss all year, but they have no reason to panic. North Shore always seems to get hot at the right time, so it makes plenty of sense that they played their best baseball of the year last week. With 3 games left to play, Lynbrook still holds a 2 game lead for first place. All they have to do is beat Valley Stream South o...
After a crazy week of baseball, 3 new teams have earned a spot in the top 5. With only 2 weeks left of play, virtually every conference title is up for grabs. Let’s take a look at the new top 5. 5) Garden City (6-2-1) (Last week: Unranked) Being on the outside looking in for the entire season, the Trojans have finally cracked the top 5. Rich Marooney and TJ McEvoy continue to carry this experienced team offensively, along with help from Andrew Nagal on the mound. After beating MacArthur this past week, it’s safe to say Garden City is now the favorite to win conference A1. With an easy series coming up against Great Neck South, Garden City will look to solidify its spot as the top team in the conference. 4) Plainedge (7-2) (Last week: 5) Plainedge continues to impress more and m...
Bases loaded, two-out, 3-2 count, one-run lead against the reigning New York State Class A Champs from Wantagh. Gianni Sozio was on for the save and was facing Charlie Interrante–one of last year’s playoff heroes. After just missing with a 2-2 breaking ball he induced a ground out to SS to end the game to slam the door on the 2-1 victory for Bethpage. Final: Bethpage 2, Wantagh 1 pic.twitter.com/CkOHhfloh8 aXcess Baseball (@axcessbaseball) April 19, 2017 “I was really nervous to be honest with you,” said Sozio directly following the game. “Legs were shaking–but the only thing on my mind was the win. They’re a great team with great hitters–and of course I had to face the top of the lineup which is never easy to go through. They hav...
With opening day less than a month a month away, baseball fans and players alike are beginning to get excited about the start of the season. With tons of talent across the board in 2017, it should be an extremely exciting season to watch. With that being said, here’s a preview of what to expect in the upcoming season. Conference A1 Conference Champs – Garden City (10-5) 2nd Place – MacArthur (10-5) 3rd Place – Mepham (9-5) Conference MVP – Jason Coules (Bellmore JFK) Cy Young – Bobby Lewis (MacArthur) Coming off of a stellar postseason run in which they knocked off the defending county champion Division Blue Dragons, the Trojans enter the 2017 season with plenty of experience under their belt and a real shot at a county championship. The Garden City roster has...