by Tony Genualdo
For the last three seasons, Oceanside has knocked on the door of being championship contenders. Last season was no different. After finishing the regular season with a 13-5 record, their playoff run started off strong with a playoff series win against Farmingdale 2-1. But their run ended at the hands of Port Washington in the semifinals. They lost in 3 games and finished with an overall record of 16-8. Head Coach Mike Postillo knew that once October came around, it was time to get back to work.
“For the months of October, November, and December, we focused on muscle building,” said Postillo. “For January and February, we do core circuit training. Beginning in December, we also begin skill practices on Wednesday nights, where pitchers begin to throw, and fielding and hitting get started.”
Postillo says the offseason is always busy at Oceanside. For the first time in a while, there is some uncertainty who will step up and fill the void left by last year’s class. Thirteen seniors graduated at the conclusion of last season, and 7 of them are now playing at the collegiate level. Among them are Noah Eisel, Leo Alvarez, Jake Lazzaro, Chris Siklas, Austin Vlahakis, and Jake Reyer.
With all those vacant positions to fill, Kevin Murphy, James Capozzi, and Matt Ciociano all return to the team. The other spots as of now are all for the taking.
“I’m excited about all the open position battles for this team,” Postillo said. “We are looking at freshmen through seniors, and we will consider everyone regardless of their grade.”
When asked about the other teams in the conference, Postillo stresses that nothing is guarantee – especially not with the back-to-back-to-back Class AA Long Island Champions in their backyard.
“We play in a great conference… every program has great coaches whom I respect a lot. On any given day, any team can beat anyone.”
Oceanside looks to get back on the right track and there’s a lot of excitement.
“The boys have been working extremely hard and I’m proud of their offseason effort to this point,” Postillo said.
