Over the past few years, Class AA has been controlled by dominant teams, followed by a few “on the bubble” teams. Constantly classified as an on the bubble team, Farmingdale is ready to change their fortune this season.
“This year we need to get over that hill so we can look back, not up at our AA rivals which we have been battling with for the past number of years,” stated Head Coach Frank Tassielli.
Following a 10-8 season where they fell to Oceanside in the semifinals, the Dalers know they are on the brink of a potential county championship appearance. Perhaps this is the year they finally get over that bump.
The strength of this team is their pitching. Not only do they return several significant arms, but they can be considered one of best pitching staffs in Class AA.
The ace of this talented Farmingdale pitching staff will once again be Justin Rosner.
“It’s amazing that Roz will be starting his 3rd year on Varisty and he will undoubtedly be our #1 guy,” said Coach Tassielli. “Another year of maturation and growth and our additions on the hill will hopefully close the gap between Pequa and Oceanside,” he added.
As an early Diamond Award candidate, Rosner is coming off a season where he was named All-County, and struck out 50 batters in 36 innings.
In the quarterfinals against Calhoun, Coach Tassielli was able to utilize Rosner twice. He single-handedly led Farmingdale to the semifinals by allowing two hits and striking out 12 in game one, followed by a complete game effort, allowing four hits and striking out nine. It’s safe to say Rosner is comfortable in big game situations.
Justin Rosner (Farmingdale 2020) looks great in the early going. Delivery similar to Zack Wheeler. Pitched varsity as freshman pic.twitter.com/9dfJ1p9teW
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) November 4, 2017
Behind Rosner in the rotation is Queens College-commit Dante Interlandi, a very impressive southpaw that is coming off a solid 2-1 season. Along with him is 6’3″ sophomore Anthony Quatromani also returns to this pitching staff, along with 6’4″ junior Kyle Stamm.
A significant addition to the Dalers rotation will be 6’4″ Will McCarthy, who transferred back from Holy Trinity.
Out of the bullpen, seniors Alex Hajko and Matt Contarino seek to continue their great work from a year ago. In 2018, Hajko appeared in ten games, finishing with a 2-1 record and two saves. Contarino appeard in eight games, in which he won one game and had two holds.
Offensively, the Dalers lose Robby Keane (Molloy) and James DiSanti (Hilbert). Although it will be extremely difficult to replace them, they still return bats who were consistent for them last season.
Farmingdale returns two vital stars to their lineup who started every game in 2018. 2B Jacob Taormina, was named All-Conference last year, finishing with a .415 batting average, along with eight doubles and 16 walks. Aside Taormina in the lineup, the Dalers also return St. Joseph’s-commit CF Phil Krpata. As a junior, Krpata was named All-League and batted .377 from the lead-off spot, swiping 20 bags.
Keep a look out for seniors (3B) Sean Sullivan and (RF) Tyler DiBlasi to make an impact, along with juniors (C) Robbie Manetta and (LF) Kevin Wilson.
Sophomores (RHP) Andrew Alameda, (MIF) Pat Quinn and (OF/1B) Matt DiSanti will seek to make some noise as first-year varsity players.
Evidently, Farmingdale has something to prove in 2019. Led by a strong pitching staff and a balanced offense, it’s easy to see why Farmingdale can make a deep postseason run once again. Their top-heavy conference consists of Massapequa, Oceanside, Syosset, Freeport and Hempstead.
Right out of the gate, the Dalers open up against Oceanside and Massapequa, so they’ll immediately see how they stack up against their rivals. Don’t be surprised if Farmingdale starts off the year hot.
