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Once upon a time Farmingdale State College was the type of program that was in a transitional phase. They had recently switched to a four-year school and were no longer regarded as an agricultural school. On the baseball diamond they were anything but dominant. In 2005 they posted a 7-22 record, including 5-17 inside the Skyline Conference. Fast forward to 2013 and the Rams, led by Keith Osik, have captured their sixth consecutive Skyline Conference. They have not lost a game in the playoffs since 2009. They defeated Old Westbury 2-1 in a non-traditional pitchers duel. The starter for the Rams, Cameron Kitt lasted only two innings, despite holding the Panthers to one unearned run. Kevin Martinez took over and fired three hitless innings, which allowed the Rams to take 2-1 lead on a fielder...

#1 seeded Farmingdale State has advanced to the Skyline Conference Championship today, as they took down #2 Old Westbury 5-1. Senior Ron Remi had himself a good day at the dish, going 3-4 with three RBI and a stolen base. Pitchers Michael Dolce, Cameron Kitt and Alex Weingarten held the Panthers to one (unearned) run, allowing just five hits and striking out seven. Farmingdale State will look to take home their sixth straight Skyline Conference Championship, and will be in good position to do so. Since they have not lost in the tournament, the Rams will have to lose two games to whoever their opponent is, whereas Farmingdale will only have to win one game to become champs. If Farmingdale advances, they will earn a spot in the NCAA Division III Regional tournament, where they will get a cha...

With a school-record in his sights, closer Alex DiSanto entered in the ninth inning with the Old Westbury Panthers clinging to a 1-0 lead. He did what he has done all season, and that is finish off close games for his team, who defeated No. 3 ranked Purchase to advance to the semi-finals against Farmingdale. DiSanto recorded his program-record 13th save of the season, which allowed starter Arismendy Nunez to record the victory. The lone run was scored by Paul Valerio, who came across on a single by John Angelino. Purchase threatened in the sixth, loading the bases against Nunez, but he toughened up and escaped the jam unscathed. The Panthers improved their overall record to 24-13-1, and will have another important matchup at 10 a.m. against their bitter Nassau County rivals.

Missing the playoffs is not something Adelphi was accustomed to. Last year’s disappointing season was somewhat new for the proud program. They made sure it would not occur for a consecutive season, as the Panthers defeated New Haven 2-0 in a tidy two hour game to clinch a postseason berth. The starting pitcher, John Mulford, tossed 4.1 shutout innings but did not factor in the decision because he failed to complete five. He was relieved by senior Jeff Andersen who tossed 3.1 perfect innings and was credited with the victory. He was the beneficiary of shoddy New Haven defense which committed three errors and allowed the deciding run to score on an error by the catcher on an attempted pickoff play. Adelphi tacked on an insurance run in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Rich Mejia.  Mr. R...

After five consecutive Skyline Conference championships, it would actually be more of a surprise if somebody defeated the Farmingdale Rams in a playoff game. They took the first step in capturing their sixth straight as they shutout Maritime 5-0 behind Anthony Eiler’s six shutout innings. The senior left hander improves to 4-2 on the season. David Zilnicki got Farmingdale on the board in the bottom of the third with an RBI triple. He is now batting .470 (!) on the season. Not a bad senior season for the Riverhead native. The Rams tacked on one in the fourth on a successful suicide squeeze by Ron Remi. Coach Osik is no stranger to that play. Anthony Alvino drove in two with a single in the seventh. The bullpen tossed the final three innings for the Rams, as they made it look pretty ea...

It wasn’t quite New York Giants defeating New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, but Maritime upset St. Joe’s in the first-round of the Skyline Conference playoffs with a 4-0 shutout. It comes as a surprise considering the track record of the teams leading up to this point. The loss means that the Golden Eagles season ends at a disappointing 16-22 record. Maritime starter Chris Meyers tossed the complete game shutout, scattering only three hits while fanning six. He was forced to work around four errors. The only hits for St. Joe’s were by Mike Aloisio, Dan Diblasi and Anthony Gallo. Offense was an issue for them all year long, with a team average of .239 and just 4.5 run per game. Rob Hyde took the loss for the Golden Eagles, dropping his record to 4-3 on the season. Af...

After a short hiatus, Baseball on the Island returns. Not a moment too soon either. The playoffs are right around the corner for some teams–and already upon us for some–and Long Island teams are gearing up. St. Josephs begins the first-round of the Skyline tournament today as they face Maritime in a win-or-go-home matchup. Here is where the rest of the teams stand as May begins: Adelphi: Despite their 21-22-1 record, the Panthers have played their best ball in the division. They have four games remaining, including a crucial three-game series against New Haven who ended their season last year. They currently hold the fourth and final playoff spot in the Southwest Division of the NE-10 with a two-game lead over Assumption. Dowling: The Golden Lions are 18-18-1 (12-8 in the ECC),...

Farmingdale State: The Rams took both games of a doubleheader Saturday against Purchase, clinching the #1 seed in the Skyline playoffs with a 15-1 conference record. In game one, the Rams won 4-2, who were led on offense from catcher Eric Weiner, who went 3-4 with two RBI and a run scored. Anthony Eilers dominated in game two, throwing a complete game shutout in seven innings, allowing only four hits and striking out eight. The Rams winning streak has extended to 14 and look to take this hot streak into the playoffs. Old Westbury: Like Farmingdale State, the Panthers swept their Saturday doubleheader, as they faced Mount Saint Vincent. In game one, it was a back and forth game, with six lead changes, but Old Westbury was able to hold on to a 9-7 victory. The offense was led by John Angelin...

Photo is credited to LIUPostPioneers.com The Adelphi Panthers took a commanding 6-0 lead after three innings, but ultimately CW Post kept chipping away and won on a walk-off single in the ninth by Angel Pimental. The victory sent CW Post to 13-17 on the year, and drops the Panthers to 17-17-1. In the top of the first the Panthers scored four runs, thanks to a three-run triple by Rich Mejia and an RBI single by Kevin Hutzel. Another Hutzel RBI brought the score to 5-0, and Donato Signore’s RBI made it 6-0 which chased starter Rafeal Martinez. Anthony Brunetti’s drove in a run in the fifth to get Post on the board, and Vinny Iacono’s SAC fly made it 6-2. The real blow was a three-run homer by Keith Herring to cut the deficit to one. John Bellock tied it up in the eighth wit...

Adelphi: The Panthers were nearly no-hit by Jonathan Chudy of Pace, who held them hitless into the eighth inning. They defeated Adelphi 3-0 to improve their overall record to 24-9 while the Panthers drop to 17-16-1. John Mulford took the tough luck loss for the Panthers, allowing three runs in seven innings as he drops to 3-1 in his freshman year. Dillon McNamara came on in the relief to toss a scoreless eighth to extend his scoreless streak to 21 to begin the season. John Campbell, Anthony Zarrella and Kevin Hutzel accounted for all of Adelphi’s hits. Hofstra: The Pride took down Manhattan by the score of 6-3 to improve their record to 18-20. The score was knotted at three entering the seventh inning, when Robbie Cafiero (2-5 on the day) drove in a run with a double. They added two ...

Photo is credited to GoSeawolves.com Despite an otherwise disappointing season thus far, Tim Knesnik has become the fourth Stony Brook player to be named Rookie of the Week. The award bodes well for the future of the team as they clearly have the makings of a solid core group of players. The previous winners were Daniel Zamora, Jack Parenty and Austin Shives. Knesnik tossed eight innings on the week, allowing only one run. The eight innings spanned two appearances, one being a start against Manhattan in which he tossed three no-hit innings. In his second appearance he came on in relief to toss five innings, allowing only one run. The damage could have been worse but he escaped a first-and-third with no outs scenario without allowing a run. For the season he has a 3.38 ERA with a 3-1 record...

Photo is credited to GoHofstra.com Bryan Verbitsky of Hofstra delivers a pitch during an April 14 game. Verbitsky tossed the final three innings.