by Tucker Terranova
(Photo: Catherine Scarantino)
Matt Bolton takes us through what worked for him at the plate in a big win for Division pic.twitter.com/7Ne7PxPh3Z
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 25, 2024
Game 2 of our coverage of the Nassau County Championships featured a AA slugfest between No. 6 Division and No. 2 Bellmore JFK.
How they got here:
After finishing as the No. 6 seed, Division entered the playoffs with a chip on their shoulder, determined to prove doubters wrong and continue their run as one of the league’s dominant forces. They’ve done just that, getting hot at the right time and going 5-0 while scoring 47 runs in those games.
For Kennedy, they’ve enjoyed one of the best seasons in school history. They faced off against two gritty opponents, Manhasset and Carey. Despite the challenges, they stood their ground and have only lost one playoff game up to today.
Tale of the Tape:
Who else? Matt Bolton rips an RBI double, 8-3 Division pic.twitter.com/ABjqZFUpX3
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 25, 2024
Looking to strike early, Matt Bolton, a Binghamton-commit and widely regarded as one of the best players on the island, crushed Zach Adelstein’s pitch well over the right field fence for a solo home run, giving Division a 1-0 lead.
“We always try score first, I was just trying to get our offense going,” Bolton, who collected went 3-4 with a walk today, stated in a postgame interview with Axcess Baseball.
Attempting to answer back in the bottom half of the first, freshman phenom and Duke-commit Ryan Yormack launched the first pitch he saw from Matt Marino off the left-center fence for a double. However, Marino bore down and retired the next two batters, holding Kennedy scoreless.
Division continued their offensive onslaught, adding three more runs in the second inning. After gaining baserunners via a throwing error and a walk, Tyler Diez ripped an RBI single to open the scoring. Then, a wild pitch brought Demetrios Zirogiannis home. Caiden Seigel capped off the inning with an RBI double, extending Division’s lead to 4-0.
Adelstein’s day ended abruptly in the third after walking and plunking the first two Division hitters. A passed ball from reliever Vincenzo Caravello seemingly put runners on second and third, but the umpires called Yormack for obstruction, sending Bolton home. They added another via a sacrifice fly from Cody Brush, making it 6-0 Division through three.
Kennedy wouldn’t go away quietly. Ryan Yormack hit his second double of the day to nearly the same spot as in the first inning, making it 6-1. His twin, Derek Yormack, followed with a deep sacrifice fly to bring around Zacharia, and Alex Demas’ grounder to the shortstop scored Ryan Yormack, cutting the deficit in half to 6-3.
Division seemed unwilling to let Kennedy back into the game. With runners on first and second, KK Delacruz grounded Caravello’s offering to third, and a rare error from Kennedy through the legs of Yormack gifted Division a run. They added another run to make it 8-3 via an RBI double from none other than Matt Bolton for his 2nd RBI of the afternoon.
Kennedy loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the fifth. Looking to make it a new ballgame, Demas started the comeback with an RBI single. Jack Finklestein then lined a fastball off Marino’s leg; Marino recovered to get the out at first but surrendered a run. Dylan Babek added an RBI single of his own, and Frankie Stella ripped a sacrifice fly, suddenly cutting Division’s lead to one run.
However, as was the theme of today’s game, Division responded. Diez opened the inning with a single before Siegel reached on an error. The trend for Kennedy continued, as Caravello’s throwing error on Delacruz’s bunt made it 9-7.
In the game’s biggest moment, featuring the Jones Beach Memorial Day Air Show’s U.S. Navy Blue Angels soaring in the distance, Bolton came through again, this time with an RBI to extend Division’s lead to 10-7.
Division piled on from there. Aidan Quinn and Zirogiannis added an RBI each and Cody Brush added two via a triple into the gap. In total, Division plated six in the sixth inning to take a 14-7 lead.
Kennedy added one in the sixth, but Division ultimately hung on for a 14-8 win and can clinch a championship tomorrow at 4 pm in game 2 of the best-of-three set at Farmingdale State College.
“We have to take it one pitch at a time tomorrow and not let the moment get ahead of us,” said Bolton.
