Hofstra
Week 2 College Power Rankings
(Photo Credit: Rob Edwards/KLC Fotos) There’s a couple ways to look at this past weekend for the locals but I’m a glass-half-full person so let’s keep it positive. Let’s get to it: Division-I: 1.St. John’s (Record: 3-3. Trending UP) 2. Stony Brook (Record: 1-6, Trending Neutral) 3. Hofstra (Record: 1-6, Trending Down) 4. Fordham (Record: 1-6, Trending Down) 5. LIU (Record: 1-3, Trending Neutral) Breaking it down: St. John’s won two of three from Cal, no small task for a northeast team to travel cross-country and win a series on the West Coast in February. That was definitely the most positive storyline from this past weekend for the Division-I schools. Also, Stony Brook traveled to ACC Country and lost three games by a total of five runs. While there are...
Week 1 College Power Rankings
(Photo Credit: USC-Upstate Baseball) While it was certainly not the best showing for Division-I baseball teams from our region, there’s two silver linings Sunday was much better than Friday or Saturday. Northeast teams are always behind their southeast and southwest counterparts in February. There’s simply no substitute for going outside and getting live at bats all winter. Granted, the weather this February was better than any since 2012 but it still is different than being outside everyday in Florida. In any event, here’s how the local Division-I teams stack up after one week. We are going to start Division-II next week and Division-III the following week. Please note that this ranking is based on how the teams played this past weekend not based on track records of past...
Saturday College Baseball Recap Powered by Orlin & Cohen
by Joseph Langan As opening weekend continues for the five local teams, only two have found themselves getting their first win of the season. While Stony Brook and Hofstra was able to get in the win column, three others enter Sunday looking to salvage a victory before they head back north. Here’s how it went down: (Make sure to check out Orlin & Cohen by clicking here) Division-I: Hofstra and Purdue battled for the lead early in game one of today’s double header. Trailing 5-4 going into the top of the 6th, Hofstra’s offense exploded, scoring 7 runs in the top of the frame giving them the 11-5 lead. The Pride would only expand upon that lead and go on to win by a score of 13-6. Hofstra’s top of the lineup would provide a huge amount of the offensive production, accounting for 7 RB...
Opening Day Recap Powered By Orlin & Cohen
Well, there’s always today’s games. Despite the excitement of college baseball’s Opening Day, it was a less-than-stellar performance from the local teams. All five teams in action suffered setbacks. The good news is that today is another day for the team’s to bounce back. Here’s a quick rundown of how it went down. Check out Orlin & Cohen by clicking here. Division-I: Hofstra entered the bottom of the eighth inning with a 6-4 lead over Purdue. The flood gates, unfortunately, would open in that inning for the Boilermakers, who put up a five-spot. The big knock came by Kyle LaPlante – who crushed a bases-clearing double to give them a 9-6 lead, which wound up being the final. The closer for Purdue is named Bo Hofstra – coincidentally enough, and ...
Today Is Opening Day For Division-I College Baseball
Although it may be hard to believe, we made it through another off-season. At least for Division-I college baseball fans. That’s right, across the country over 100 teams will kick off their season tonight. The northeast schools get to escape to the warm climate of the south to get their games in under the lights. In terms of the local programs, there will be plenty of action. Stony Brook, Hofstra, St. John’s, Fordham and LIU – who will play their first game since the merger of the two schools. Here’s a quick rundown: Stony Brook is down in San Marcos, TX where they will kick off a four-game set against Texas State. The Seawolves are the reigning America East Champs. Last time they played was in the Baton Rouge Regional in which they had the misfortune of having to f...
Chandler Giovinco On The Road to Recovery
Typically a Tommy John surgery takes 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the severity. When it takes three hours, you know there’s a problem. Chandler Giovinco, a 2019 graduate of Newfield HS, was pitching outside for the first time last season in a non-league game against League I playoff-contender Longwood. He was excited and feeling strong as he finished his warmup. Five pitches into the game, that changed. “I felt it and I heard it,” said Giovinco in regards to the injury he sustained. “I thought I just cracked it so I kept throwing. Five pitches later I looked at my coach and said ‘I’m done.” In that moment, he feared the worst. “My baseball career is over – I thought to myself,” he said. “Then I thought maybe I can hit...
Mark Faello Proves His Resiliency in Knocking Out Cancer
He knew something was wrong immediately. After a teammate expressed concern over extreme inflammation of his neck, Mark Faello looked in the mirror to see for himself. “My neck was blown up on the right side,” said Faello. “My teammate said it looks like you have two necks,” he added. Some of the doctors that he visited didn’t have an answer but they did speculate that it could be an infection. After visiting a lymph node specialist, the worst fears were confirmed. “After doing the biopsy, the doctor confirmed that it was Hodgkins Lymphona–a form of cancer that attacks the lymphatic system which is part of the immune system. There are fewer than 200,000 cases per year and it is most common among early adulthood males. Faello noted that he was ̶...
Who Were The Best College Teams of The 2010s?
Like we did a couple weeks ago with high school, it’s time to debate the top college teams of the 2010s. The rules are as follows: Each program can appear on this list only one time. This is to avoid having the list stocked with Division-I schools. The schools that are in consideration are Stony Brook, Hofstra, NY Tech, Adelphi, Molloy, LIU Post, Queens, Dowling, Farmingdale State, Old Westbury, St. Joseph’s, Maritime, Suffolk CC and Nassau CC. Without further ado, here it goes. 10. Suffolk CC 2018 (Record: 30-13) This team had a terrific combination of pitching and defense. Leading the charge offensively was Jeff Towle. A catcher with true power potential at the plate, he hit three HRs in one game in early March. He finished the season with a triple slash line of .463/.543/.86...
Matt Prokopowicz Named Head Coach of St. Dominic HS
The St. Dominic Bayhawks have a new coach at the helm and it is Hofstra‘s hit king Matt Prokopowicz. He was an assistant to Brian Anderson last season. “I can’t even tell you how pumped I am for this,” said Prokopowicz in a state of jubilation. “I’ve been working for this for a long time. After being on the staff last year, I developed a good rapport with a lot of the kids. It’s a real pleasure to call St. Dominic my home and it’s really something special to have my own program. I’m hoping to be here for 15-20 years, maybe even more,” he added. Prokopowicz is among the most prolific hitters in Long Island history. In addition to an incredible career for Hofstra in which he batted .416 as a freshman (10th in the nation) and .431 as...
Fall Ball Series Powered by East Coast Strength & Performance: Hofstra
Here at Hofstra University for the Fall Ball Series Powered by @EastCoastSP pic.twitter.com/VJUmiak5nt — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 5, 2019 Playing in the CAA presents challenges to any northeast team. The grueling conference schedule is often unforgiving. Fall behind in the standings early and you can be left in the dust and out of postseason contention. The Hofstra Pride, led by Coach John Russo, nearly completed a miraculous postseason push but just missed out in 2019. This season, they are primed to return back to the postseason–as they did in 2018–and they certainly are using the new-age tool to maximize their chances. I was down there today for their exhibition match up against Molloy College and observed their tablet that was placed halfway between the ...
Recap of Week 4 of the New York Baseball Academy at Hofstra
We have just concluded Week 4 of the New York Baseball Academy at Hofstra University. Another excellent week of baseball from the young ballplayers. The fourth recipient of the Axcess Player of the Week Award is Jake Ganulin. He is pictured below on the left. A number of other awards were given out this week such as Cy Young, Silver Slugger, Gold Glove, Golden Spikes, Best Catcher, Most Improved, Web Gem and of course, the coveted Super Hustler Award. Below are the winners of the Super Hustler Award, which is given out to the players that best exemplify what the New York Baseball Academy represents. With just two weeks remaining, you do not want to miss out! Here’s the link to register for the final two weeks of one of the finest summer baseball academies in the nation. Groups 1+2: B...
Fall Ball Series Presented by The Greene Turtle: Hofstra
Hofstra Head Coach John Russo discussing the impact John Rooney had on the program and the freshmen that have performed well this fall pic.twitter.com/cgw7FbHryd — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) October 14, 2018 Hofstra played their “Blue v Gold World Series” today which served as an intrasquad game with a competitive feel. With so many newcomers battling for starting roles come spring, it was the perfect way to get a sense for what they will be working with this season. They played it like a real game, with the Gold team even using starting pitcher Andrew Mundy in the last inning to put out a fire with runners on the corners and one out. The hard-throwing St. John the Baptist RHP threw one pitch, made a terrific sliding play on a bunt attempt and even doubled off the run...
