The top four seeds have advanced onto the semi finals, something anybody could’ve predicted. Although there were a couple scares within teams seeded 2-4 having to play a game 3 last week, they won when it really mattered and earned a spot in the semifinals. Both series will feature heated conference rivalry match ups, which means we will be in for an exciting week of baseball to say the least.
Massapequa vs. Oceanside
These playoffs continue to spoil the fans of rivalry match ups, and this takes the cake for biggest series of the year in Class AA. The rematch of Massapequa vs. Oceanside is back in the postseason. Both sides will have their own shot at revenge come this week. Last year, Massapequa knocked Oceanside out of the playoffs and this year Oceanside swept them in three games during the regular season. It’s safe to say these two teams have a little bit of history between them.
The pitching match ups between these two ball clubs is what stands out the most. Both rotations have established themselves as one of the best in the county during the regular season, and seek to continue their success in the postseason.
For Oceanside, Brendan McFall will lead this rotation, followed by Matt Carey and T.J. Thorne. McFall will be an obvious candidate for the Diamond Award, in which he holds a record of 7-1. Behind him, Carey has looked extremely impressive all year, including one no-hitter to his name. The 1-2-3 punch of this rotation will be tough for any team to beat.
The Chiefs too feature a developed rotation, including Daniel Gdanksi, Dom Kiregel and Nick Collins. Although Oceanside may hold the slight edge with starting pitching, this Massapequa rotation can’t be taken lightly by anybody. Expect to see low-scoring games all series long.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Chiefs hold the slight edge. Their lineup features more experience, as well as more power. They’re used to playing on a field with no fence, so don’t let the number of only one team home run fool you. They can flat-out hit. The middle of their lineup features Matt Pinto and Luke O’Mahoney, two of the most feared hitters in the county.
Unlike the regular season, I predict Massapequa advancing to the county championship in a close three-game series. Anything goes once the postseason comes around, and this series will come down to the wire.
Calhoun vs. Plainview
Another conference rivalry rematch has found its way into the conference semifinals. This time it’ll be the top seeded Plainview Hawks taking on the No.4 Calhoun Colts.
In the regular season, Plainview swept Calhoun featuring three close victories. As of right now, this series leans in favor of the Plainview Hawks for several reasons. Last week, Plainview swept Hicksville in two blowout victories to advance to the semifinals. Due to only playing two games last week, every one of their starters is well rested and ready to play. This means Hofstra-commit and Diamond Award hopeful Mark Faello will be ready to go game 1 of the series, who has astonishing stats on the mound this year. If Plainview can go up 1 game to none early in the series, it’ll be strenuous for Calhoun to complete the comeback. Not to mention, Plainview also has a strong back end of the rotation, including undefeated Justin Kimmel.
Although Calhoun has established themselves as a top offensive team this season, they simply don’t have the pitching to keep up with Plainview. Therefore, they will rely on their bats this entire series. The Colts will be led by Jake Edwards and Jack Pugliano offensively. If the rest of the lineup can do their part and string together enough hits against the talented Plainview pitching, they will have a shot at completing the upset.
As far as predictions go, it’s easy to see who the favorites in this series might be. I believe Plainview has too much talent to lose this early in the postseason, and I believe they will earn a trip to the county championship. Regardless of who wins this series, they will face the winner of Oceanside or Massapequa in the county championship, which means a tough match up is yet to come.
