NEWS
GAME RECAP: 15U MXE Academy Giac Squad Cruises to 12-1 Win in Boys of Summer Semis
by Trevor Dugan MXE earns a mercy rule victory to advance to the 15U @liboysofsummer championship FINAL: MXE 12 – Black Diamonds 1 pic.twitter.com/OAcHajz3WK — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 15, 2024 The Long Island Black Diamonds National and MXE Academy Giac Squad met at PAL Stadium this Thursday afternoon in the Boys of Summer 15u National Division Semifinal. Peter Malone started the game on the mound for the Black Diamonds, while MXE sent out the left-handed Jack Lyke. MXE jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to a pair of RBI singles, one coming off the bat of Nick Caroli. He would finish the game 1-3 with a pair of runs scored and one RBI. Lyke quickly got the MXE offense back to work by firing a shutdown inning in the bottom of the first. Striki...
GAME RECAP: 17/18U Long Island Saints Advance In BOS Playoffs
by Trevor Dugan The Saints advance on the strength of Lynn’s complete game shutout FINAL: Saints 4 – Elite 0 pic.twitter.com/RGhJr6tHPz — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 15, 2024 The South Shore Elite and Long Island Saints faced off Wednesday night as part of the opening round of the Boys of Summer Varsity Division playoffs. South Shore tapped Robert Grzelaczyk to start, while the Saints sent out Brandon Lynn. The two starters traded back-to-back scoreless innings to start the game. Following the scoreless first inning, the Saints’ middle infield turned a 5-4-3 double play to end the top of the second. Grzelaczyk responded by retiring the next three Saints batters in order in the bottom of the frame. After Lynn struck out two batters in a 1-2-3 top of the third, the Sa...
Q & A With Cole Zaffiro
One of the toughest environments to pitch in college baseball is College Station, TX. The “12th Man” as they are known, are known to be ruthless to the opposition – especially pitchers. Nobody told that to Cole Zaffiro. As a sophomore, all he did was fire four strong innings, allowing 1 ER and striking out five in relief. UPENN won two of three from the Aggies, one of the best teams in the nation. As it turns out, it was a harbinger for things to come as they wound up winning 33 games in a strong season. They built on that the next season, winning 34 games including the Ivy League Championship. The ace of that team was undoubtedly Zaffiro, who led the team with 74.2 IP and struck out 90 batters. The Manhasset native was named first-team All-Ivy League. Fast forward one ye...
GAME RECAP: Bombers Capture 9U American Championship With 14-4 Victory
by Jacob Infald We spoke with Coach Wilson and Royce Barerra. They spoke about their dominant run this summer and what makes this team so special. pic.twitter.com/xov7DDt0W0 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 10, 2024 The Bombers would carry over their dominance from the semifinals into the championship. They would face off against Team Francisco Notorious 9, who had survived a 10-9 duel with Mayhem Baseball-Berman earlier in the morning. Despite an early challenge, the Bombers once again would prevail, winning the championship by a score of 14-4 in only four innings. In the top of the first inning, it seemed like the Bombers’ heads were still thinking about the prior game. Francisco’s dugout had tons of energy, and the bats were alive early. Keanu Westbrook led the game off wi...
GAME RECAP: Bombers Baseball Advance to 9U American Championship
by Jacob Infald We spoke with Coach Pee and starting pitcher Dom Fiorello. Coach spoke about his team’s performance in the semis, and how they look to continue that en route to the chip. pic.twitter.com/gylJ97yYjD — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 10, 2024 It was certainly a great day to be a Bomber, as the Bombers Baseball club from Queens, dominated today’s postseason play in the East Coast Youth Baseball 9U American Summer Showdown Division, winning both games via run-rule. The first contest was a semifinal affair against a talented RVC Tigers squad that simply had no answer for the Bombers, as the Bombers won 10-0 in only four innings. The Bombers were led by their starting pitcher Dom Fiorello. He did not allow a hit over four innings, as he struck out four and walked five...
Bobby Wescott Commits to Stony Brook
On to the Sweet 16! 2026 BodyArmor Vigeant moves on with a come from behind 9-8 win! Down to their last out, Bobby Wescott hits a game tying home run! In extras, Caiden Erker hits a Grand Slam! Congrats boys! @axcessbaseball #TitanNation pic.twitter.com/Ieux8SKIwA — Titans (@TitansBsb) July 12, 2024 Bobby Wescott had a terrific 2024 season for the Plainedge Red Devils. Though he was just a sophomore, he led the way offensively with a .420 batting average, .553 OBP and incredible 1.321 OPS. He compiled 29 hits, six doubles, six triples, four HRs, drove in 29 runs and scored 15 runs. He recently announced his commitment to Stony Brook University. He still has two full seasons of high school remaining, which is certainly bad news for opposing pitchers. His coach Colin Fratrik had the followin...
GAME RECAP: South Shore Elite Prevails over Long Island Elite Despite Being No-Hit
by Joe Bello Brody Myers of South Shore Elite Went 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K in relief in his team’s 4-3 victory. pic.twitter.com/R8KBRych7J — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 5, 2024 South Shore Elite took on Long Island Elite in a LI Boys of Summer 14u American Division matchup on Monday evening. South Shore came away with the win by a score of 4-3, despite being no-hit by Long Island Elite. Antonio Manfre and Ryan Brush combined for the no-no. Manfre finished with 4.1 IP, 0 H, 7 K, 4 BB, 4 R (0 earned runs). While Brush got the last four outs only allowing one walk. Manfre had a good day at the plate for LI Elite as well, going 2 for 2 with two RBI. Ethan Reiner started on the mound for South Shore, unfortunately leaving the game due to injury after only 1.1 IP. We wish all...
GAME RECAP: LI Storm Blue Sweep Farmingdale Greendogs in Saturday DH
by Jacob Infald With postseason play looming, today’s late season doubleheader in the ECYBL 12U Summer Showdown National division between the Farmingdale Greendogs and the LI Storm Blue lived up to the hype. With both teams jostling for playoff positioning, the Storm were able to rise above, winning the first game 4-3 courtesy of a walkoff, and the second contest 3-1. We spoke with Ian after his heroic afternoon. Two RBI hits including his walkoff double. He talks about the fight of his squad and how that will play to their advantage going into the postseason. pic.twitter.com/q8lkl7kJ2o — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 3, 2024 Game 1: The action for game one began in the bottom of the second inning. Nick Thurstan led off the inning with a double to left for the Greendogs. Thur...
Q & A With Mike DiFilippo
One of the hallmarks of a winning college program is player development. While any program would love to bring in the big-time recruit, it’s just not rational to expect that every player on your roster will be a PG All-American or an All-State player. There needs to be instances of players that come in and take a leap forward. During my time at Farmingdale State College, that would occur routinely. Players that were either overlooked in high school or simply took their game to another level once they stepped foot on campus. St. Joseph’s is the new king of the Skyline Conference – having won back-to-back-to-back championships including a thrilling walk-off win, 9-8, this year over those Farmingdale Rams in the winner-take-all finals. The Golden Eagles, who lost their first...
GAME RECAP: Conor Lockwood Leads the Way as Owls Defeat Bolts 8-3
by Joe Bello Here is Conor Lockwood following his stellar performance today. Went 6 innings only allowing 1 run and notching 10 strikeouts. While also going 4 for 4 at the plate with 2 doubles and 3 RBI. pic.twitter.com/7BOSOo6Vwx — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 31, 2024 The Owls Baseball Club took on the Long Island Bolts in a Boys of Summer 16u American Division matchup on Wednesday afternoon. The Owls won the game by a score of 8-3, mainly due to the stellar play of Conor Lockwood. Lockwood was dominant in his start today for the Owls, throwing 6 innings while only allowing 1 run and notching 10 strikeouts. He also led the offense on the other side of things going 4 for 4 with 2 doubles and 3 RBI. The Owls started off the scoring in the top of the first inning. Conor Lockwoo...
GAME RECAP: Southampton Breakers Capture 2024 HCBL Championship
by Tucker Terranova (Photo Credit: Ron Esposito) Championship MVP Ty Gilligan talks about the adversity-filled season that the Breakers have faced, along with his hot-streak that catapulted the offense during their recent winning streak. pic.twitter.com/cEBcY2MVYI — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 30, 2024 If you’ve been following the 2024 Southampton Breakers, nothing about this season should surprise you anymore. Starting with a dismal 1-6 record through the opening week of HCBL action, it seemed Southampton’s season could quickly spiral downward. However, they never lost confidence in their group, finishing the season on a 10-0-1 tear to secure their spot in the dance. “We started off a little slow, but we saw it from the first day of practice. We have a very talented te...
Conversation With Garrett Scavelli
We are in a new era of college baseball which includes the transfer portal acting as free agency for the big Division-I programs. The reality is that it benefits the Power 5 programs much more than our local teams. In certain cases, however, a program like St. John’s could utilize the transfer portal and upgrade their roster with a player that has excelled at the Division-II level. Garrett Scavelli, a player that thoroughly dominated at Molloy University on his way to being named the 2023 ECC Player of the Year, entered the transfer portal in that summer. Over his 3 year career, he slashed .357/.458/.562 with 121 runs scored, 92 RBIs and 60 extra-base hits. It was a major talking point from local coaches who obviously were interested in Scavelli’s services, but also in the situ...
