FEATURE STORIES
Q & A With James Goff
When Connetquot won the Suffolk Class AA Championship in 2019, they did so in large part to their core of upperclassmen led by Paul Gibson Award winner Joey Savino, All-State LHP Matt Goodis, large-school playoff MVP Matt Brown-Eiring, All-State catcher Josh McGee and a trio of Division-I players like Alex Ungar as well as the Yalon twins. But to win a championship you win a full team contribution and you also need stout defense. Middle infielder James Goff was a crucial piece to their championship team. He was a starter for much of the season as a sophomore. If they were going to defend their crown in 2020 it would’ve been with him at the top of the lineup and he will certainly be a key piece again in 2021. He announced his commitment to Adelphi University this week and their coachi...
Q & A With Michael O’Shaughnessy
Michael O’Shaugnessy is a 2022 graduate of Christian Brothers Academy in Syracuse. He plays summer ball for the Body Armor Titans United 15U and recently announced his commitment to play at Davidson University. 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 how you made your decision? My experience with the college recruiting process was very fun, but also stressful at the same time. It was fun to talk to all the different coaches and have the experience like I did. But it was stressful towards the end when I had to tell the other coaches I was making the decision to go to Davidson. I chose Davidson because I felt that it was the best fit for me, and when I toured, it felt like I belonged t...
Q & A With Vin Malzahn – Assistant Coach of the Irish National Team
Vinnie Malzahn is the assistant coach of the Irish National Team – which one Gold Medal in Zurich in 2017 during the European Championship. He is also the GM of the Hardball Training Center in Elmsford, NY. Prior to that, he had a standout career at St. Thomas Aquinas, where he was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2016. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say.. Who are some players you tried emulating when you were younger? Ken Griffey Jr and Derek Jeter. Loved watching those guys for different reasons…Jr because I was a lefty and tried to make my swing as smooth and effortless as his and Jeter because of how much he respected the game and how hard he played every single time he stepped on the field. Do you come from an athletic family? My...
Q & A With Aaron Pinto
Aaron Pinto is a 2018 graduate of Stony Brook University, where he was a dominant closer for the Sea Wolves. Despite being a 6’0 RHP, which has traditionally been an obstacle to overcome for aspiring professional pitchers, he was selected in the 24th round by the Cleveland Indians. The week prior, he was dominant in our Axcess Invitational, in which he was one of four players to get selected in the MLB Draft. He has made Cleveland look very smart for believing in him as he posted a 6-1 record with a 1.57 ERA over 74.1 IP. With his mid 90s fastball coupled with his outstanding change up, do not bet against him continuing the rise in the Cleveland system. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Can you explain the path that led you to Stony Brook fro...
Get to Know Aidan Bardi
Aidan Bardi, who hit 18 HRs in Cooperstown, getting his swings in. He’s hit 73 HRs this season. He’s in the Wantagh school district pic.twitter.com/TJxzXPLZmN — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 19, 2019 Move over Barry Bonds–your record has been tied. Eighth grader Aidan Bardi has made a name for himself this season by smacking 73 HRs in astounding performance of power. The young slugger hit 18 HRs in one week in Cooperstown, with more than half of those going to the opposite field. I had a chance to speak with him at MaX Effort Baseball in Farmingdale, NY to watch him hit and ask him some questions after–here’s what he had to say: Who’s your favorite player in Major League Baseball? Mike Trout. Who’s your favorite team? The Angels. W...
Alex Ungar Commits to Albany
Alex Ungar went 3-for-3 and Derek Yalon drove in 3 runs including a 2-R HR in Connetquot’s 7-2 victory pic.twitter.com/0pMIl6xXBo — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 28, 2019 One of the biggest reasons that Connetquot was able to capture the 2019 Suffolk Class AA Championship was their relentless offense. Led by players such as Matt Brown-Eiring, the Yalon twins, Josh McGee and Alex Ungar, they were able to constantly apply pressure to opposing pitchers while also allowing their star-studded staff enough margin for error should they struggle at all. The latter name of the group was the top uncommitted 2020 players until yesterday. He was a highly-sought after player and he announced last night that he was verbally committing to Albany, where he will play in the America East. I...
Q & A With Mike Prisco
Newfield has established themselves as one of the teams with elite talent in Suffolk County. This was not always the case–which makes this era that much more significant in their program’s history. You could count on one hand the Division-I athletes they had during the period when I was in high school 2006-2009. Now, you can’t count on one hand how many Division-I athletes they had in 2018 because that would be six. With Mike Prisco‘s verbal commitment to Albany yesterday that means their 2018 League Champion team had six Division-I commits. That is a remarkable number for any team. I had a chance to speak with Prisco and here’s what he had to say… Can you explain your experience with the college recruiting process and why you chose Albany? My experience...
Q & A With Garrett Scavelli
One of the more underrated bats on Long Island over the past couple seasons has been Carey’s Garrett Scavelli. The rising senior was in the news this week as he became the latest impact player to verbally commit to New York Tech. The Bears have locked up a number of high-level players that ensures they will be a championship contender in the ECC for the next several seasons. Scavelli, who hit a scorching .492 as a sophomore on varsity, has a chance to be a Diamond Award winner in 2020. I had a chance to speak with him and here’s what he had to say… Who are your favorite players in the MLB and why? Christian Yelich. I admire his work ethic moving from an average player to an MVP. He overcame adversity around him and continues to succeed. Who are your biggest role model...
Q & A With Logan Koester
Logan Koester, a 2019 graduate of Chaminade HS, was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 32nd round of the 2019 draft. Just two weeks ago, he was leading the Flyers to their 17th NSCHSAA Championship at Hofstra University over St. Anthony’s. Logan is a hard-throwing right-handed pitcher that was named Pitcher of the Year and also hit four HR–which was tied for the conference lead. Here’s what he had to say… Can you describe day three of the MLB Draft–how nervous were you what the past couple days have been like? Day 3 was a nerve wracking day. Before day 3 it seemed almost impossible and it wasn’t really a reality. but after i heard my name get called it felt so surreal and the joy was overwhelming. 2019 has been an outstanding year for you. Are you sur...
Q & A With Farmingdale RHP Matthew Constantine
It has been an unbelievable season for the Farmingdale State Rams. They just recently defeated rival SUNY Old Westbury to capture the 2019 Skyline Conference title. It is their first championship since 2014. A major reason for their success is their starting pitching led by senior Matthew Constantine. The West Babylon-grad leads the team in innings pitched (67.0), wins (7), saves (2) while compiling a sterling 2.28 ERA. Against Merchant Marine Academy–a game that Farmingdale eventually won in extra innings–Constantine went 8.1 innings and then came back on zero days rest and fired 1.1 innings in the championship game. If the Rams are able to advance to the Division-III College World Series, he will certainly be a big reason why. He spoke to me about a variety of topics and here...
Who Is Aidan Crowley?
It seems every year the narrative is that Shoreham-Wading River ‘lose a lot of arms’ from the previous year. Once the season begins, they find another power pitcher that blows away the competition. Last year it was Gabe Romano who emerged to become a front line starter and this year it is Aidan Crowley. The 6’2 uncommitted right-handed pitcher has began 2019 with back-to-back no-hitters against Eastport-South Manor and John Glenn with a total of 22 strikeouts. “My goal going into every outing is to not give up any hits,” said Crowley, the younger brother of Jack who graduated in 2017. Last season, he performed well on varsity as a sophomore, he went 3-1 with an ERA in the 3s. That performance is good, but at Shoreham-Wading River where record-breaking numbers ...
Up Next: Kyle Chase
(Editor’s Note: This is our third installment of our ‘Up Next’ Series in which we profile the top middle school and JV players on Long Island. Our first two athletes were Christian Alicea and Liam Bowes. Now is Kyle Chase, a freshman at St. John the Baptist.) Baseball is not supposed to be easy. It is a humbling game, and you can easily make the argument that hitting a baseball with a round bat is the single most difficult task in sports. For one week in 2017, Kyle Chase laughed at that concept. He not only made it look easy, but he treated it as if it was the most rudimentary of tasks. He batted .833 (25-for-30) while leading the Body Armor Titans to first place in a 104-team Cooperstown tournament. He was not just hitting singles, either. He crushed 11 HRs and drove in ...
