FINAL: North Shore 5 Mepham 2
WP: David Aufiero (CG, 2ER)
Mike Tedesco: HR pic.twitter.com/2eyZhBOSgg— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 18, 2018
Pitching on three days rest is never an easy task to accomplish, especially when it comes in an elimination game.
However, that didn’t stop David Aufiero from bringing his best stuff. The hard throwing ace went the distance for North Shore, propelling them to a 5-2 victory over Mepham. He finished his outing allowing seven hits, one earned run and struck out eight.
“I just did the same thing I’ve been doing all year and it worked out,” said Aufiero.
At the plate, North Shore came out of the gates blazing hot. The Vikings put up three runs in the bottom half of the first, giving Aufiero a comfortable cushion to work with early on.
Following the three-spot in the first inning, Mike Tedesco tacked on to the lead with a solo shot in the bottom of the third. He finished the day going 2-for-3 at the plate with a home run and 2 RBI.
“Coach always tells us to stay back and the pitcher wasn’t throwing as hard as we’ve seen all season, so I tried to get my foot down early and got a fastball and was able to hit it,” said Tedesco when describing his home run.
North Shore would eventually jump out to a 5-0 lead in the fourth inning, slimming down any chances Mepham had of completing a comeback victory. Judging by the atmosphere in the Mepham dugout, they felt their chances of winning this ballgame were diminished. As a result, Aufiero took advantage of the hindered Mepham team.
Working out of jams seemed to be the theme of the day for Aufiero on the mound. In the fifth inning, he was able to work out of a jam surrendering minimal damage, allowing only one earned run.
The Pirates threatened with two runs in the fifth, but that was quickly shut down. Matt Lewin nailed the runner at home from center field on a laser beam throw to end the Mepham rally.
From this point moving forward, it was smooth sailing for the Vikings.
With the victory, North Shore will have an extremely tough task in front of them as they play the Wantagh Warriors in the quarterfinals. If they wish to advance to the semifinals, they need to beat the back-to-back Long Island Champions twice. Although that’s asking for a lot, anything is possible for North Shore who improves their record to 17-5.
