FEATURE STORIES
Fordham Ace Matt Mikulski Not Fazed by the Hype
On Thursday, May 16, 2019 Fordham began a crucial three-game series against A-10 rival Dayton needing to win two of the three games in order to qualify for the conference tournament. They sent their Friday starter to the mound hoping to get the first win under their belt and only needing to win one of the next two after that. Dayton had other plans, though. They wound up scoring 7 runs (6 earned) on their way to an easy 17-4 win. It turns out that loss lit a fire under the Rams who wound up winning the next two games to lock up the No. 4 seed in the Atlantic-10 tournament – which they hosted. Now as the host team, Fordham turned their game up another notch. They captured the first game against Richmond, 7-6, in 10 innings. They kept that momentum going into the next game against VCU,...
Q & A With Jack Halloran
One of the more underrated players on Long Island is Westhampton Beach senior 3B Jack Halloran. The Emory-commit is coming off a stellar summer season in which he batted .554 with 12 HR and 46 RBI playing for the East End Aviators. Additionally PG Tournaments recently named him first-ream All-American for hitters. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Who are some people that have had a possible impact on your career? I credit my family for instilling the fundamentals of authentic character from a young age, which I pride myself on as an athlete. Without a doubt, our assistant coach at Westhampton Beach, Dan Pulick, has had the largest impact on my playing career. These past few years, we have spent countless hours breaking down the game of baseball to...
Up Next Powered by The Yard Sports Academy: Kevin Schnupp Jr
Defense is critical behind the plate. Just about every winning team has a strong defensive catcher that can lead his pitching staff. And if they can get some offensive production from that player, then it’s a bonus. Comsewogue freshman catcher Kevin Schnupp Jr. is one of those two-way catchers. He has been lauded for his defensive abilities, his leadership of the pitching staff but he also handled the bat extremely well in 2020. Here was his stats. AVG: .413 2B: 19 3B: 3 BBs: 17 Rs: 34 OBP: .540 His father, Kevin Schnupp Sr, is the longtime head coach of Sachem East, where he helped lead the Arrows to the Suffolk County title in 2005. He has been pleased with the progress of his son: “Kevin has really progressed so much over the past year,” he said. He has grown up on the...
Q & A With Jack Turner
It speaks to the depth of a team when they can win the County Championship and still have some young phenoms in the pipeline at the JV level. That was the case with Sayville in 2019 as they captured their first Class A County Championship in program history while still having a hard-throwing pitcher like Jack Turner stashed away. He put himself on the map recently while playing for Team Steel this summer and LI Strong this fall. His fastball touched 90 at Felician University team camp and committed there on Sunday. He should be a big piece of Sayville’s team this season. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Can you explain your experience with the college recruiting process and why you chose Felician? The college recruiting process was tough at ...
Nick Ungania Commits to SUNY Binghamton
Nick Ungania (Chaminade 2022) pic.twitter.com/91vb7zALKH — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 3, 2020 When the news was released last year that a Long Island-native gifted SUNY Binghamton baseball with a $60 million donation – the largest in university history – it had a few tangible effects. Besides bringing some additional credibility to northeast baseball, it also immediately became a destination for high-end players. Getting recruited by Binghamton had gotten a little more competitive. The school is already ranked No. 88 in the U.S and now they are about to have arguably the second best baseball complex in the nation. Justin Rosner is a 2020 Farmingdale graduate that is currently at Binghamton, and he will be getting joined by another Long Islander in the fall o...
Up Next Powered by The Yard Sports Academy: Sebastian Lippman
(This is the third installment of the “Up Next” Series Powered by The Yard Sports Academy. Previously we featured Andrew Koshy and Josh Knoth.) Young stud alert 🚨 Sebastian Lippman (Plainview JFK 2024) sitting 84-86 MPH pic.twitter.com/U9tkENfQ4h — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) November 8, 2020 Often times as a scout or reporter you attend a showcase or tournament and are underwhelmed with the product on the field. As a scout, it’s easy to stay quiet and walk away if you’re bored. As a reporter, you have to try to make something out of nothing. Being that I am both, I have to walk that fine line of telling the truth as a scout but generating buzz as a reporter. Other times, it’s really easy. An example of this was on November 8 at Prospect Sports for a ...
Up Next Powered by The Yard Sports Academy: Andrew Koshy
Andrew Koshy (Kellenberg 2023) and Christian Alicea (St. John the Baptist 2024) combine on a strike-em-out, throw-em-out pic.twitter.com/OPBSG7ytF9 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 27, 2020 This is the second installment of the “Up Next” Series Powered by the Yard Sports Academy. The first featured athlete was Josh Knoth. It hasn’t even been two years since there was a high-end pitcher at Kellenberg HS and they already have another. Sophomore Andrew Koshy transferred into the school from the Mineola school district and he already is generating some buzz. The hard-throwing righty had a dominating summer for Team Francisco Notorious 9. Despite often playing against older competition, his numbers were straight out of a PlayStation. Record: 9-1 ERA: 0.58 Innings...
Q & A With Cole Lindquist
Smaller programs such as John Glenn rely on strong individual grad classes to prosper together and deliver a playoff-berth for the school. John Glenn would’ve likely made a playoff run in 2020 had there been a season thanks to seniors like Dan Brown (Pace), Aidan Desmond (Gettysburg) and Matt Polestino (SUNY New Paltz). While it is unfortunate that they didn’t get a season, they do seem to be on the right path considering some of the players they still have in the program for the next two years. One particularly exciting player is two-way player Cole Lindquist. According to his coach, he said “he can literally play anywhere but he has really been shining on the mound.” This summer while playing for MVP Beast 2022, “he has been lights out.” He compiled a ...
Where Are They Now: Craig Hansen
(Getty Images) In 2002, Craig Hansen set the standard for dominant pitchers on Long Island. Simply put – he was untouchable. The Glen Cove senior captured the Diamond Award given to the best pitcher in Nassau County. He compiled an unblemished record of 7-0 with 106 strikeouts over 61 innings. He allowed just 22 hits and most incredibly – he was perfect, allowing 0 runs. He wound up accepting a scholarship to pitch at St. John’s University for Coach Ed Blankmeyer. By his junior year, he was one of the best pitchers in the country. He established himself in the prestigious Cape Cod League with the Harwich Mariners. During that summer, he compiled 10 saves with 41 strikeouts in just 21.2 innings without allowing an earned run. All he did was continue to dominate during his junior season than...
Up Next Powered By The Yard Sports Academy: Josh Knoth
Josh Knoth (Pat-Med 2023) sitting 80-81 T83 pic.twitter.com/GLYUZPinPB — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 25, 2020 Pat-Med has been no stranger to hard-throwing right-handed pitchers in recent years. While everyone will immediately think of Mets RHP Marcus Stroman, there have been quite a few since including Matt Vogel – who was also drafted out of high school in 2013. Knoth is showing the type of potential to join that list. As we learn more about pitching, we can learn even more about a pitcher’s ability to be effective. Spin rate, perceived velocity and spin efficiency are all factors that make a pitcher more difficult to square. Sometimes, it’s more simple than that. When a pitcher is in 10th grade, only 160 lbs and already sitting in the low 80s, that’...
Q & A With Dylan Bruno
With the pandemic cutting short the high school playing careers for many athletes, and effecting the recruiting process for others, families have turned to alternate options to maximizing exposure. One option is attending a boarding school like IMG Academy. Many families on Long Island have the means to do so and it effectively negates the lost year of development. I spoke with Dylan Bruno, who transferred from St. Dominic to IMG Academy, this fall to see what went behind the decision and if we may see more students make similar moves. Who are some people in your life that played a big role in your baseball career? My father without a doubt. He pushed me day in and day out. He trained with me constantly and started coaching me since I was 8-years-old. He always put our team against the tou...
Q & A With Brendan Williams
Every year there’s a player who makes that ‘jump’ from a good player to one that you can’t ignore. Franklin Parra comes to mind as a pitcher that was very good but then became a prospect. Logan O’Hoppe certainly would be the very definition of that. Last year there was Andrew Ledbetter. This year it’s looking like Brendan Williams of West Hempstead is that player. After his outing on Sunday, many people have become curious how he was in obscurity until his performance in the Northeast Elite. That’s just what happens when you play in the countywide conference. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Let’s start off with the obvious – was Sunday the best moment of your career? I feel that Sunday night w...
