by Andy Smith
Nic Kostulias walks it off for Mineola, 5-4, over Wantagh pic.twitter.com/1txHZoAZbJ
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 5, 2022
Mineola had a 2022 full of ups and downs. The Mustangs got off to a strong start which established momentum that carried them into a good portion of the season. However, they hit a rough patch but were able to get through it by finishing strong with a sweep of the final series of the regular season series against Seaford. The Mustangs finished with an 8-9 record and lost to Manhasset in the opening round of the playoffs.
Entering his 28th season as the head coach is Helms Bohringer, an Adelphi graduate, who also graduated from Mineola in 1985. He reflected on what lessons were learned in the roller coaster season. “We learned that every game is important and proper preparation prevents poor performance.”
Mineola will be without three key contributors in 2023 who are all currently playing college baseball. TJ Cox, now a Farmingdale Ram, was injured last offseason and only ended up starting two games in his senior season. Cox was still extremely effective in these two starts. He totaled thirteen innings with fourteen strikeouts. Cox finished with a 1-1 record, with the win being a shutout.
Currently playing at Mt. Saint Vincent’s, Connor Martin, was featured on both sides of the ball at Mineola. Martin possessed a potent bat and posted a .327 AVG with three triples, one long ball and swiped fifteen bags. On the mound, Martin was 1-0 as a reliever and tallied one save and struck out eleven batter’s in nine innings.
Tristan Abreu, now at SUNY Purchase, was a clutch hitter for the Mustangs by hitting over .600 with runners in scoring position. In addition, Abreu posted a .373 AVG with fourteen runs batted in.
Mineola returns a large group of players with varsity experience. Coach mentioned three players that he expects to have a major role on the team. Senior infielder and pitcher Jack Ryan is committed to Misericordia University. Ryan hit .322, stole ten bases, scored fourteen runs and tallied nineteen hits in the box. On the mound, Ryan was dominant in a relief role and notched two saves.
Joining Ryan at Misericordia University, senior Michael Duda will be the foundation behind the plate. The backstop was described as an “outstanding defender.” Duda also has an impact bat and last year posted a strong .315 AVG, six runs batted in and scored eight runs.
Rounding out the college commits is senior pitcher and infielder Nick Kostulias who is playing at SUNY New Paltz in 2024. On the mound, Kostulias finished with a 3-2 record and a 2.71 ERA. The senior held opponents to an OBP of .213 last season.
They have three others college commits and they are Peter Haralambidis and Justin Tighe (Mount Saint Vincent) and James Strobel (Mount Saint Mary’s) that are all returning seniors.
Bohringer spoke about the state of the rotation and the experience it now has. “The rotation should be pretty solid as we have every starter returning due to TJ starting the season last year on the disabled list.”
The Mustangs have six returning seniors who will see time on the bump.
Mineola will only have juniors and seniors on the team but Bohringer emphasized the importance of position battles. “There are battles for every position as we have twenty players on the roster.”
The positions of depth are on the mound and in the outfield.
Mineola will be in a competitive league this season with Wantagh, Island Trees, Plainedge, Clarke, Lynbrook, and North Shore. “I feel we have an opportunity based upon the players we have coming back to compete for a playoff spot in a super competitive league,” Bohringer added.
Mineola begins their 2023 campaign on Monday March 27th as they welcome Wantagh.
