Playing in League-I is no easy task. For Longwood, the opportunity to compete with the likes of Ward Melville and Pat-Med might not come around every year. When they do have the talent, it’s crucial that they capitalize.
Having three senior pitchers that have all committed to play in college is a huge benefit. Throw in a Div-I bound catcher that happens to be one of the best athletes in the country doesn’t hurt either.
June 5 at Dowling
Head Coach Ryan McSherry is confident that he has the right pieces in place for a huge turnaround from last year’s four-win team.
“Overall, we can sum up our team as, ‘solid’. Defensively, offensively, and pitching is all- around good. We will be highly competitive and the expectation is to always win the League 1 title,” he added.
The optimism is certainly warranted, especially with the staff being led by Adelphi-bound Troy Simpson.
He’s a hard-throwing righty that put himself on the radar with a strong showing last summer with the Titans and on the showcase circuit.
He will be joined by Matthew Parson–who is committed to Lackawanna College–and CJ Owens (SUNY Purchase). Having three pitchers with the pedigree to pitch in college is generally what it takes to succeed when you find yourself in a crucial May series against a League-I foe.
They will have the peace of mind of pitching to Hofstra-bound catcher Sean Rausch.
If you haven’t heard of him, click here to see why they’re excited to have him for another year.
He “is a 5 tool player that will control the run game and will contribute tremendously to the core of the lineup”. Rausch has a very smooth, yet powerful swing. He is an All-State football player as well.
They also have another All-State football player in Antonio Scala, who will be expected to produce some power in their order. They are counting on All-League outfielder Cameron Alfano (committed to Farmingdale State) to supply some pop as well.
Aiden McGrath and Andy Garcia are two more impact players that will play crucial roles in Longwood’s success.
The Longwood program has produced some very talented players in recent years–highlighted by Dan Parisi (Dowling), Andruw Gazzola (Stony Brook) and JJ Bessell (Dowling).
The latter name will be with the team as the pitching coach this season. In fact, the entire coaching staff are Longwood grads. Head Coach McSherry graduated in 2005, Assistant Coach Steve Mandery graduated with him and Bessell graduated in 2010.
Despite Bessell and Parisi both having terrific college careers, it’s the youngest one (Gazzola), who may have the best career of all.
The 2014 graduate had a stellar freshman year at Stony Brook and he was named Baseball on the Island’s Rookie of the Year.
Players of that magnitude help the perception of Longwood’s program.
” The fact that we have guys like Andruw Gazzola playing at Stony Brook raises the bar high for our program,” said McSherry. “Andrew was a great hitter during his time here and is spoken of in high regard. Our athletes aspire to do well during their time here and pursue their passion of baseball beyond high school. Andruw’s success and aspirations have trickled down,” he added.
Brandon McClain
Let’s get back to that County Championship!
Unanimous
You have missed several players that are currently playing college baseball. Camden Orlogio, Chris Weiss, Tim Kennedy, I’m sure there are more that I’m missing.