E.J. Cumbo
OTD: NYIT Advances to Division-II College World Series
The NYIT Bears defeated reigning East Region Champion Southern New Hampshire, 6-3, to advance to the program’s first Division-II College World Series next week in Cary, NY. On May 10, the Bears were shutout, 4-0, by the University of Bridgeport to get eliminated from the ECC Tournament. Now, 15 days later, those Bears are hoisting the trophy that proves they are one of the top-8 teams in the nation. This game did not feature the high drama of Friday night, as E.J. Cumbo got the Bears’ offense going with a three-run shot to open up a 3-0 lead. It was Cumbo’s seventh HR of the season and his 44th RBI of the season. His team totals are unbelievable (.453 AVG, .525 OBP/..692 SLG, 7 HR, 44 RBI, 43 R, 19 BB, 19 K, 22-25 SB). He’s been able to do that in only 159 at bats, which is 50 fewer than S...
OTD: NYIT Captures NCAA East Regional
Head Coach Frank Catalanotto on NYIT’s rapid ascension in his first season pic.twitter.com/le2EN2ND3e — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 18, 2019 One year ago, NYIT closed out their regular season with a loss to Queens College to finish their campaign at 13-25-1. On June 7th, they made waves by hiring 14-year MLB veteran and Smithtown native Frank Catalanotto. The move was a positive step forward for a program that had suffered through 13 straight sub .500 seasons. In less than one year, the program has rapidly ascended into becoming a 35-win team that will now participate in the NCAA Division-II Super Regional next weekend either at Southern New Hampshire or neighborhood-rival LIU Post. The 35 wins is a program record, previously set in 1987. Today they continued their fairy...
Cumbo Has Historic Peformance, New York Tech Finishes Closes Out 2020 With Two Wins
by Joseph Langan With the sad news of season cancellations and the heartbreak of seniors across the nation due to COVID-19, New York Tech played one last set of games to end their season yesterday and today. Here’s how it went down: NYIT took on Felician in game one of the two-game set in West Palm Beach, Florida yesterday afternoon. Unbeknownst at the time that it was their second-to-last game of the year, the Bears crushed the Golden Falcons by a score of 24-8. In today’s matinee, the Bears came out this afternoon and picked up right where they left off last night, cruising past Felician in-game two of the series 12-1. Felician opened up game one by taking a 1-0 lead, a lead they would hold only until the to of the third. After that, the floodgates opened for the Golden Falcons s...
Fall Ball Series Powered by East Coast S & P: New York Tech
Here at New York Tech for the first installment of our 2019 Fall Ball Series Brought to you by @EastCoastSP pic.twitter.com/trKDqWhnPL — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 28, 2019 (This is the first installment of the 2019 Fall Ball Series. In our third year of this segment, we will continue to visit the local college campuses, focusing on their upcoming baseball season. We will have exclusive quotes and videos from players and coaches. Please check out East Coast Strength & Performance by clicking here.) When we last checked in with New York Tech, they were heading to their first College World Series in program history. From the doldrums to one of the top-8 teams in the nation was beyond the wildest expectations anyone had pegged for them. Head Coach Frank Catalanotto, no...
NYIT Pounds Nine Runs on 11 Hits to Advance to East Regional Championship Game
Final: NYIT 9, Franklin Pierce 3 WP: Joseph Murphy S: Zach White Cumbo: 4-for-5, 4 R Bears advance to the NCAA East Regional tomorrow pic.twitter.com/IkI950LQfa — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 17, 2019 Early wake-up call? No problem. The NYIT Bears cruised past perennial Division-II powerhouse, Franklin Pierce, by the score of 9-3 to advance to the Division-II NCAA East Regional Championship Game tomorrow at noon. The game today began at 9am, but it didn’t matter one bit to the Bears offense who put up a three-spot in the first inning thanks to RBI hits by E.J. Cumbo, Kieran Dowd and Matt Malone. “We actually do pretty well in the early morning games,” said Jake Lebel, the power-hitting first baseman for the Bears. “We’ve had three or four of them a...
E.J. Cumbo’s Big Day Gives NYIT Thrilling 10-7 Win Over Wilmington
It only takes one pitch for Mueller to seal the deal. NYIT 10, Wilmington 7 (10 innings) Franklin Pierce will take on NYIT at 9am tomorrow pic.twitter.com/PcVENv56LF — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) May 16, 2019 Last year, E.J. Cumbo was sidelined with a hamstring injury and was forced to watch as his team limped to the finish line in their first season in the ECC. Today, he was the catalyst and pilot of their ship that is now headed to the winner’s bracket in the NCAA Division-II East Regional after their dramatic 10-7 victory over No. 4 Wilmington. Cumbo, the nation’s second-leading hitter for most of the season, is now hitting a robust .448 following today’s 4-for-6 performance in which he drove in four runs–including a two-run double in the top of the 10th...
LIU Post and NYIT Split Battle on the Boulevard Presented by Muddy Locker Sports
(Today’s game coverage is brought to you by Muddy Locker Sports. Please check them out by clicking here!) In a crucial ECC double header this afternoon at Angelo Lorenzo Field, LIU Post and NYIT split the two games with NYIT taking the first game and LIU Post salvaging the split in the second. Here’s how it went down: Game 1: LIU Post sent ace James Varela to the mound against a high-powered NYIT lineup, who countered with Chris Mott. The Pioneers got off to a quick start in the first with a RBI singles by Dave Brehm and Anthony Vaglica. They added another run in the third on an RBI ground out off the bat of Jimmy Mendyk. With their ace on the hill, it appeared like that would be enough but Varela did not have his best stuff on this afternoon. The Bears forced Varela’s pi...
Matt DeAngelis’ Walk-Off Single Propels NYIT to DH Sweep over Queens
NYIT Head Coach Frank Catalanotto on their 13-5 victory over Queens College pic.twitter.com/HT3ERUNOED — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) March 30, 2019 NYIT has found all sorts of ways to win ballgames this year. Frank Catalanotto‘s squad continued their winning ways with a DH sweep over ECC rival Queens College on Saturday afternoon by the scores of 13-5 and 5-4. Here’s how it went down: Game 1 D.J. Masuck got the start for the Bears, he ran into immediate trouble when he allowed a leadoff home run to freshman John Strauss, but that lead would not last long for the Knights. The Bears got on the board in the second inning on an RBI single by Nick Tedesco to score Matt Malone. The real action occurred in the third inning, when the bats exploded for seven runs, beginning wit...
Defensive Player of the Year Award Finalists Announced
We will be hosting our third annual Awards Banquet on Saturday, January 6 at Villa Lombardi’s. Among the several awards we will be handing out will be the Defensive Player of the Year Award to the top high school player on Long Island. The four finalists are: E.J. Cumbo (Clarke 2017, NYIT) Brad Malm (Pat-Med 2017, Albany) Logan O’Hoppe (St. John the Baptist 2018) Mike Palazzolo (Hills East 2017) We are planning an evening to remember with special guests at the beautiful Villa Lombardi’s. It will be a great way to celebrate another enjoyable season of baseball here on Long Island with the people that made it all possible! **If you would like to purchase tickets to the event, you can do so by clicking here.**
Joe Francisco: Who Are the Top Hitters on Long Island Right Now?
(Editor’s Note: Joe Francisco is the owner of Performance Factory where he works with many of the top hitters on Long Island of all ages. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 32nd round of the 1999 MLB Draft out of Wagner College. The following words are his own.) by Joe Francisco Top Hitter in SUFFOLK COUNTY Brian Morrell Height: 6’1” Weight: 195 Bats/Throws: R/R Poistion: SS/RHP High School: Shoreham Wading River College Commitment: University of Notre Dame (ACC – NCAA Division I) Profile: The reigning Yastrzemski Award winner and Newsday Player of the Year hasn’t skipped a beat coming off of last years .405 AVG, 12 HR, 28 RBI performance. He’s hitting .500 with 5 HRs despite being pitched around all season with (8) intentional walks. Morrell is explosive in the batt...
Vinny Trovato Outduels Harrison Cohen, Clarke Wins 4-0
Anytime you are going against an opposition’s ace, you have to do the little things. Clarke executed well, stealing six bases in their 4-0 victory against Harrison Cohen and Cold Spring Harbor. Their starter, Vinny Trovato, fired a four-hit shutout with only 99 pitches. “He mixes everything, said Head Coach Tom Abruscato. “He did that in a playoff game for us last year. He throws three pitches every game for a strike on any count. When you can pitch backwards, it’s great,” he added. They knew they would have a difficult task against George Washington-commit Harrison Cohen, but they were able to benefit from some defensive miscues and aggressive base running to get on the board. “When you face a kid throwing 90, you can’t chase and we chased early i...
