Final: Division 13, North Shore 2 (5 innings)
WP: Robert Bradley pic.twitter.com/J5wRdeZVVP— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 6, 2018
With one swing of the bat by James Horodecki, Division made a huge statement.
In what promised to be a tightly-contested rubber match between two of the top teams in Nassau County Class A, it was the Blue Dragons of Division HS who came out swinging early-and-often against a strong North Shore team that opened up its season with a three-game sweep outscoring Floral Park 33-2.
James Horodecki on the 13-2 victory for Division pic.twitter.com/vxG8EJP25p
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 6, 2018
After getting on the board in the first inning on an RBI single by Nick Giovanakis, they exploded for eight runs in the second inning off Danny Livoti with the big blow coming on a grand slam by James Horodecki to extend the lead to 5-0. Jake Thomas extended the lead to 8-0 with a two-run single of his own, and that was more than enough for starting pitcher Robert Bradley.
Bradley, a junior, didn’t pitch last season but looked very much like an ace on the mound today against a high-octane offense. He struck out the side in the first inning, and didn’t allow a run until a two-run shot in the fourth inning off the bat of Will Scarola.
He was very composed, and was very similar to Brandon O’Brien, who was the ace of Division for the previous three seasons and is now at Queens College after compiling a 19-1 record in high school.
The game was ended in the fifth inning, with the new mercy-rule implemented by a 10+ run lead after 5 innings.
North Shore falls to 4-2 and will have another challenge with a talented Bethpage team next week, while Division will face Floral Park.
