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Wildcats outscore Mount Sinai 16-4 to advance to Class A finals

 

By Bill Landon

Slamming home a win was exactly what Shoreham-Wading River’s baseball team did.

Wildcats ace Brian Morrell, and first baseman Dean Stalzer both hit grand slams in a 10-run second inning to lead Shoreham-Wading River past Mount Sinai, 16-4, in the Class A semifinals May 20. The team will face Bayport-Blue Point May 24 in the championship round.

Morrell’s bat got the game started in the first inning with a two-run home run over the left field fence. Senior Thomas Brady singled next, and classmates Vincent Uzzi and Jon Luppens hit RBI singles for a 4-0 Shoreham-Wading River advantage.

The Mustangs were unable to answer, and the Wildcats’ bats went back to work in bottom of the second.

“It was a fast ball inside and I knew it right away [that it was gone].”

—Dean Stalzer

Senior Kyle Baylous hit a ground-rule double, Morrell followed with a single that put runners at the corners and senior Nick Manesis drew a walk to load the bases. With the table set, Stalzer jumped out on a fastball, and sent it flying over the left field fence with room to spare for a grand slam that doubled the Wildcat’s lead.

“We came out hot like we planned to do,” he said. “It was a fast ball inside and I knew it right away [that it was gone].”

The inning was far from over. Uzzi and senior Alex Bettenhauser hit singles, and Luppens drove Uzzi home for a second time. Senior T.J. Sicoli smacked the ball through the gap to load the bases, and Baylous was hit by a pitch to walk home the Wildcats’ 10th run.

Enter Morrell. The University of Notre Dame-bound pitching ace also jumped on a fastball, and blasted it the opposite way for the second grand slam of the inning and a commanding 14-0 lead.

“That just doesn’t happen … two grand slams in one inning is amazing,” Morrell said. “They pithed me outside all day … it was a fastball away and I just wanted to beat them.”

Morrell, who has pitched three no hitters this season and six in his varsity career, was critical of his performance on the mound despite earning the win and going 2-for-4 with two home runs and six RBIs.

“My command was pretty bad today — I made my pitches and got outs, but they hit me a little bit,” he said. “Going to the county finals means a lot especially after last year where we fell short. We have a great team and I feel that we can do a lot.”

“The potential is always there to put together two good innings early, but that was pretty intense.”

—Kevin Willi

Senior Will Esposito lit up the scoreboard first for Mount Sinai, and Morrell walked the next batter to load the bases. Looking to spark a rally, junior Ryan Picarello nailed a two-run shot to right field, but the Mustangs couldn’t keep the inning going. In the bottom of the fifth, Mount Sinai tacked on its final run.

After a close game between the two teams in their last outing, Shoreham-Wading River head coach Kevin Willi said he was surprised by the margin of victory. He added he was impressed with the collective effort his squad showed and how everyone made a contribution. He said the Wildcats have scored 32 home runs in its 22-1 season.

“The potential is always there to put together two good innings early, but that was pretty intense,” he said. “It was good because we just came off our closest game of the season, the 3-2 win over Mount Sinai, where we had to come back down 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh. To come back — getting the bats going — that’s been the story all year.”

But the Wildcats didn’t need to worry about coming back this time around. Stalzer, who finished 2-for-5 with five RBIs, plated Morrell in the bottom of the sixth, and Uzzi drove home Stalzer to give the game its final score.

“We knew that Mount Sinai wasn’t going to lay down and let us have it,” Stalzer said. “So our mindset was to be really focused today. If we lost today it would’ve been our first loss [in the postseason], and we didn’t want to play them again.”

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By Bill Landon

Tori Hussey sent Smithtown East into the next round.

Her one-out grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning broke a 2-2 tie on the way to the No. 6 Bulls’ 7-4 Class AA first-round win over No. 11 Half Hollow Hills West May 15.

“I heard my first base coach saying ‘get out, get out’ and then after that, I heard everyone cheering and then I saw it,” Hussey said. “I knew it was a changeup, and I had to be ready for anything at that point.”

Half Hollow Hills West struck first when pitcher Jillian Weinstein smacked a two run home run over the left field fence in the top of the third. With one out and runners at the corners, the Colts threatened to extend their lead in the top of the fourth when an infield line drive sailed toward Smithtown East’s short stop, but Kyra Dalli snatched it and fired the ball to first before the runner could get back for a double play that ended the inning.

The Bulls battled back in the bottom of the fifth inning — with runners on first and third — when Samantha Swenson stepped into the batter’s box. She jumped on the first pitch and found the gap to bring home Lauren Schiraldi and make it a one-run game.

“I remember them being a good team the last time we played them — they definitely got better as the season went on and that showed,” Swenson said. “But we played our game, we got ahead of them and we won.”

Courtney Hohenberger’s bat spoke next when she ripped a single into the outfield, scoring Dalli from third to tie the game with no outs. After an out, Taylor Bigliani was up next, and showed patience at the plate. She let pitches outside the zone pass her by to draw a walk and load the bases. Hussey had a full count before slamming the ball out of the park, driving home Swenson, Hohenberger and Bigliani for a 6-2 lead.

Swenson added another base hit, sending Schiraldi over to third, and Hohenberger belted the ball deep to bring home Schiraldi.

“Our defense was shaky at the end, but we stuck together, made a few great plays,” Hohenberger said. “[In the seventh inning] I just knew we had to get the outs.”

Starting pitcher Ashley DeGiorgio got into trouble, loading the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh, and sending head coach Glenn Roper to the mound. He decided to stay with his starter, who limited Half Hollow Hills West to two runs before retiring the side.

“They had their best hitter at the plate and what was going through my mind is ‘do I change the pitcher or not?’ It’s a tough decision,” Roper said. “It’s a tough spot to put a kid into that situation with bases loaded and nobody out.”

DeDiorgio struck out four in the complete game win. Swenson went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Smithtown East will hit the road May 17 to take on No. 3 Deer Park with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m.