By Tim Oakes
The undefeated B1000 Seminoles (Iadevaio) 17U team in the LI Boys of Summer League were matched up against the New York Knights Friday night at Eisenhower Park. The Seminoles piled on 12 runs in the win to continue the team’s early-summer power onslaught in which the team has outscored opponents 40-10.
Right fielder Matt Nilsen led the charge in the Seminoles 12-5 victory. The recent graduate knocked in a team-high three runs on three hits, finishing the game a home run shy of a cycle. Nilsen has committed to play baseball for SUNY Purchase next spring after graduating from Wellington C. Mepham High School.
Nilsen acted as the catalyst in a productive third inning, driving in the first of four runs on an opposite-field triple down the right field line.
“I was looking to bring the ball to left field but they brought it on the inside part of the plate. I turned on it and it worked out well,” said Nilsen.
Catcher Max Vera drove him home via an RBI double in the next at-bat. Left fielder Sean Hellmich followed suit, but nearly outdid his teammate, when he belted an RBI double off the left-center field wall. The hit was mere inches away from becoming a two-run home run. The hit capped off a the four-run inning, giving the team a 6-1 lead.
The team truly began to pull away when cente rfielder Greg Monteleone added a two-run double in the 5th inning, increasing the Seminoles lead to 10-2.
They were hitting the ball perfectly today,” Seminoles head coach James Iadevaio said. “They were working the counts, and once they did, they were crushing [the ball].”
While the Seminoles lineup had no issues scoring runs, the team’s starting pitcher Ryan Wall was cruising thru the first five innings of the game. Wall allowed just one earned run on four hits before being removed from the game in the sixth inning.
The Knights scored its first run of the game on a fielder choice, bringing the team within one run of the Seminoles. But the red-hot Seminoles offense did not allow them to get any closer tying the game from that point on.
“We are a new team, just put together this winter. I’m surprised. But the more we play together, the more we are going to get better.”
Up next, the 6-0 Seminoles will travel to West Islip, NY to take on the 2-3 LI Titans (McKay) 17U at St. John the Baptist High School. The game begins at 4:00 p.m
