by Daniel Lopes
Coming off of a 2021 season in which they won the Private School Athletic Association (PSAA) championship, Long Island Lutheran and head coach Shaun Manning is pleased with the progress his squad has made in the last year.
“I was really happy with what we were able to accomplish last spring with all the baseball we were able to play, between the Boys of Summer preseason league and the PSAA season,” said Manning. “We ended up getting in a bunch of contests, and it was really good for our kids.”
This year’s team has almost perfect continuity from last season, as all but one player returns from the roster. However, the lone graduate from the team leaves a big hole, as their captain Harrison Leone has moved on to college. Leone was an important part of the roster, especially as a leader. Leone kept the team together through Zoom during the lost season in 2020, and when baseball returned, he made sure everybody was ready to go when it came to keeping up with the practice and lift schedule.
“What he did was kind of irreplaceable,” Manning said. “He showed these guys how to be a leader and how to be responsible as we grow into a bit of an older team now.”
Uncommitted Alex Pelaez (LuHi 2022)
6’0 189 lbsHelped LuHi to PHSAA Title in 2021 while batting .436 pic.twitter.com/HFa1I8toTr
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) December 22, 2021
As far as filling in the leadership gap, the team will be led by its current seniors, catcher Alex Pelaez (Belmont Abbey) and pitcher/center fielder Jack Coogan (Molloy). However, Manning believes that this roster’s playoff experience will help them and there will be more of a collective approach to leadership on the whole.
Uncommitted Jack Coogan (LuHi 2022) with a solid round of BP pic.twitter.com/ezKnCTE1JF
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) January 23, 2021
“Everyone on this roster was part of a championship team last year. So we learned how to win and we learned what it took to get to that level,” Manning said. “So I think that, collectively, everyone picked up more of the slack.”
Joining Coogan on the mound for Long Island Lutheran is sophomore left-hander Marcus Harrison and juniors John Cutter and Michael Malherb. Like Coogan, Cutter and Malherb will also play a role in the field, as Cutter plays third base and first base, and Malherb plays the outfield.
Joining the rest of the team in the field include Emon Fortune, catcher Charlie Lods and outfielder Tommy Bressmer. Bressmer fits to be a candidate for the top of the lineup, as Manning praised his speed on the basepaths and athleticism.
Since Long Island Lutheran is an independent private school, they have some freedom in terms of building a schedule alongside their PSAA schedule. Manning has taken advantage of that, scheduling scrimmages and non-league games against top competition across the island. They begin playing scrimmages on March 18th, with non-league games against teams like Chaminade, St. Dominic’s, Holy Trinity, St. Anthony’s, and Plainview JFK. The matchup against Chaminade will be a family affair as Charlie Lods’ brother, Anthony, plays for them.
Part of the perks of having an experienced team, according to Manning, is that they’re familiar with how everything goes within the team, which has led to them to be “lightyears ahead” of previous years teams in terms of preseason preparation.
“I don’t have to teach every little thing. They know our throwing program. They know our warm-up routine. They know how we like to do infield-outfield,” said Manning. “Whereas in years past, we’ve had to stop and teach that. So now I can teach at a more advanced level.”
Given the experience and amount of returning players on the roster, Manning hopes that his team can continue to compete for another championship.
“The championship [game] date is May 12th, so hopefully we’re playing on May 12th,” said Manning. “That’s our goal as a team, to get there and defend our title again.”
They will start their PSAA schedule against The Waldorf School on March 30th.
