by Daniel Lopes
Final: North Shore 4, Plainedge 3
WP: Nick Livoti (3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 K)Rosen and Maldonado RBI each
North Shore improves to 9-5, Plainedge is 12-2 pic.twitter.com/K2MtovNPdr
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) June 5, 2021
Despite only having one player on the roster who had significant varsity experience in 2021, North Shore and head coach Scott Lineman continued to battle, posting an 11-8 season and losing to Plainedge in the playoffs. While the season may not have ended in a title, it was still essential for their growth.
“One good thing [that] came out about it is that we did have a couple of underclassmen play a significant amount of time last year to gain experience going into this year.” Lineman said.
While most of their core still remains, they will be without three major contributors in center fielder Chris Bartlett (SUNY Maritime), shortstop/pitcher Luke Vaccaro, and catcher Ryan Dattner, who all graduated in 2021. While they all provided major production for North Shore, Lineman believes that some of their biggest impacts were felt outside of the lines.
“They were very good leaders. They had great work ethic, and they were role models for the underclassmen,” said Lineman. “They were guys that would do anything to help the team win, and not having them on the team this year leaves some leadership shoes to be filled.”
To fill in the shoes of his old senior trio, Lineman will look to his current senior trio of first baseman/pitcher Nick Caprarella, center fielder Julian Sferrazza, and second baseman Gavin Goss (Dean College). The three have already all made impacts on the field, with Caprarella hitting for a .375 batting average, Sferrazza stealing 12 bases, and Goss being a good bat who plays quality defense at second base. While they may take over with leadership, Lineman believes that the team sports a well balanced offensive attack. This also includes returning juniors like catcher/third baseman Sean Maldonado and shortstop Jayden Rosario, who hit .312 and .305 last year, respectively.
On the mound, they will be led by a pair of underclassmen in juniors Matt Malone and Nick Livoti. Both pitched on the team last year, combining for three of the teams 11 wins on the season.
“They didn’t walk a lot of hitters, which is very important to us. We want to make sure we’re throwing strikes. We have a very good defense, so we don’t want to give [the other teams] free passes,” said Lineman. “Matt Malone and Nick Livoti are two guys that showed that they definitely have the ability to pitch at the varsity level.”
Filling out the rest of the pitching staff will be juniors Gavin Butler and Matt Nochowitz, as well as sophomore Garrett Gates. All three pitched at the junior varsity level in 2021 and will look to contribute at the varsity level this year.
One added benefit of the 2022 season that Lineman and North Shore have taken advantage of is being able to workout and practice in the winter. Starting in December, the team began gathering for strength and conditioning workouts, as well as hitting work in the cages. As they shifted into the new year, they began their pitchers and catchers workouts. While the practice is beneficial for the team, Lineman believes that the gatherings are also important for the sake of chemistry.
“I think it’s so important to build that bond and increase the unity amongst your team,” said Lineman. “With today’s [game], with all the players playing on different travel teams in the summer, they don’t always get to play together. So, as much as they can play together starting in the winter, and playing together as a team, I think it can benefit them when the season starts.”
In a highly competitive conference, Lineman’s goals for the team remain simple.
“Our main goal is to try to win every series and try to just get into the playoffs,” Lineman said. “Once you’re in the playoffs, anything can happen.”
While the league season starts on March 28th, North Shore will get a bye week to start the season. Instead, they’ll start their season on April 4th with a three-game set against reigning conference champions Island Trees.
