Mike Merolle
Westhampton Beach Primed For A Better Season In 2024
By Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Westhampton Beach 5, Hills West 4 WP: Ryan Knieriemen Ryan Knieriemen: 2 for 4, RBI single Frankie Noto: 1 for 3, RBI single Reilly Miller: 1 for 2 pic.twitter.com/6ppG0UZjlT — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 12, 2022 It was a tough season for Westhampton Beach in 2023, finishing the season with a record of 2-18. Sixth-year head coach Asa Grunenwald believes the team’s biggest struggle was finding consistency on the mound. After seasons of development, Grunenwald is excited for the talent this year’s Westhampton Beach brings. Grunenwald has a group of seniors that has been a part of the program for six years. Riley Miller, Nick Rizzo, Kevin Smith, Ethan Selt...
Saturday College Recap (3/9) Powered by Orlin & Cohen
by Mike Merolle Despite the rainy weather, quality baseball was played by the local schools on Saturday. A freshman impressed yet again on the Division I stage and there were a few Division III doubleheaders. Division I Stony Brook 4 — Siena 3 It was a clean sweep for Stony Brook this weekend in their home-opening series against Siena. The Seawolves hosted the matchup in Joe Nathan Field on Saturday afternoon. Stony Brook got their seventh win of the season after coming out on top, 4-3. Stony Brook got the scoring going early. Erik Paulsen Jr. hit an RBI double in the first inning to score Cam Santerre. Following that, Matt Brown-Eiring hit a single that led to Paulsen scoring on a throwing error by Siena’s left fielder Sean Camacho. Santerre made a surprising play in the fifth when h...
Island Trees Gears Up For A Bounce Back 2024 Season
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Island Trees 2, North shore 1 WP- Kevin Kristyensen Save- Christian Taylor James Karras and Andrew Mule with multiple hits pic.twitter.com/sjlKSvekB2 — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 13, 2023 Last season was a transitional year for Island Trees as the Bulldogs finished the year with a 5-13-1 record. There were many new faces on the team and Island Trees had a new coach in 2023. Now in his second season as head coach, Mike Valiando expects competitive baseball in Island Trees. “Last season did not end the way we wanted it to… We had a lot of new faces. Last year’s team showed flashes of what it could be at times,” Valiando told Axcess Baseball. “I am ex...
Southampton Expects A Competitive Season With Youthful Squad
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. RHP Daniel McDonnell (Southampton 2025) @christianmcc23 throws a 4-seam, Sinker, Slider, changeup. FB sits between 81-83, top 85. Holds a 92 grade average. A player to watch. @axcessbaseball @TopTierBaseball @SethKenny @TopTier_HQ #TierBoys pic.twitter.com/61emfzbxRL — Top Tier Aviators LI NY (@TopTierAviators) February 13, 2024 It was an up-and-down season for Southampton as they finished 2023 with a 6-14 record. However, the season did end on a high note with a 2-0 victory over Center Moriches. In his fifth season, head coach Zach Epley is confident in his team’s competitiveness and believes they’re a threat this season. “We are playing in a competitive league this ye...
Hills West Coming Off 14-Win Season With Two Playoff Victories
Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Clemson-commit Justin LeGuernic struck out 9 over four hitless innings and showed why he’s one of the top pitching prospects in the region. @GCsports pic.twitter.com/HkALGt2m4H — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 3, 2023 Half Hollow Hills West had a much improved season in 2023 going 14-10 and securing two victories in the playoffs. In 2022, the Colts were disappointed in their 7-11 season including missing out on the postseason. Head coach Tom Migliozzi, who has held the manager position for 31 years, was able to turn the tide and hopes to continue the same success in 2024. Migliozzi’s team added playoff experience following the 2023 postseason. His two leaders this season ar...
Saturday College Recap (3/2) Powered by Orlin & Cohen
by Mike Merolle With the stormy weather to start the weekend, there were postponements of games for our slate of baseball. There were no Saturday matchups for the local Division-II and Division-III schools due to rain. However, there was more Division-I action. Division-I: Stony Brook 5 — Virginia Tech 11 Stony Brook visited Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia on Saturday for an early-season matchup. The Seawolves fell short after losing 11-5 despite a decent amount of offense coming from their end. Freshman Erik Paulsen notched three hits including his first collegiate home run. Last week, Paulsen provided a large impact on the mound in their 5-2 upset victory over the reigning NCAA baseball champs LSU. This week, he made his best effort at the plate providing big hits with 2 RBIs. S...
Smithtown West Aims To Build On 15-Win Season
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Smithtown West is coming off of an impressive 2023 season going 15-7 and making a strong playoff run with two wins. The team is returning 13 players in 2024. Head coach Al Nucci is excited about what this year’s group brings to the table. “Many of them competed at a high level and were major contributors in 2023,” Nucci told Axcess Baseball. “Having had success last year and understanding the grind of a varsity season, I expect them all to be more confident, exhibit more leadership, and bring an intense atmosphere to our daily practices.” Some key fielders returning for their senior season are Jason Zeller (16 runs, 10 RBIs), Chris Theofield, and Connor Catania (11 inn...
Comsewogue Eyeing Playoff Redemption In 2024 Led by 8 College Commits
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Comsewogue 3, East Hampton 2 WP: Carson mccaffrey Kevin Schnupp: 1-3 HR Joe Perri 2-3 2 Singles Matt Nowlan throw out at plate to win game pic.twitter.com/i13tMOM2cn — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 24, 2023 It was a playoff season in 2023 for Comsewogue as the team finished 11-9 in their league but 0-2 in the playoffs. East Hampton officially ended their season after defeating Comsewogue in the loser’s bracket elimination game. Head coach Joe Caltagirone is entering his eighth season as the Comsewogue manager and will look for an improving year in 2024. Caltagirone is returning 11 seniors this year. As of now, eight of them are committed to playing college...
Saturday College Recap (2/24) Powered by Orlin & Cohen
By Mike Merolle A dramatic upset win for LIU over Miami, a mercy-ruled game, and hot win streaks highlight Saturday’s NCAA baseball. Division-I LIU 4 — Miami 2 First collegiate hit? How about a game-deciding ninth-inning homer at Miami? @NoahSorensen13 pic.twitter.com/b921ncfHxq — LIU Baseball (@LIU_Baseball) February 25, 2024 It was a stunning ninth inning for the LIU Sharks as Noah Sorensen broke the tie with a solo home run. The Sharks defeated Miami in an upset 4-2 win on Saturday at Alex Rodriguez Park in Coral Gables, Fla. for their first victory of the season. It was a pitcher duel for most of the game. On the bump for LIU was Dominic Pieto who pitched five innings striking out three and allowing two earned runs on four hits. For the Hurricanes, Rafe Schlesinger (Sachem East 20...
Bay Shore Aims To Make Playoffs In 2024
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’ season preview series. Jordan Drago gets out of the second inning with his third strikeout of the game pic.twitter.com/cxhi7AkLmV — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 21, 2023 The 2023 season didn’t end as expected for Bay Shore as the team finished the season with a 6-14 record. This season, the team is running with a smaller group after graduating 14 seniors last year. Head coach Chris Schiro is looking to get the team back in the playoffs in his third season managing Bay Shore. “Last year we saw some growth from our younger players. We had some unfortunate injuries losing three pitchers early on and two key defensive/offensive pieces for several games later in the season,” Schiro tol...
Smithtown East Plans To Go Back To Their Winning Ways In 2024
by Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Smithtown East took a step back in 2023, missing the playoffs with a record of 5-14. In 2022, however, Smithtown East was the Suffolk Conference II champions and reached the Suffolk County Class AA Finals. In his third season as head coach, Robert Christensen looks to flip the script this season. “Every season is a fresh start where we have to bring the lessons learned from the previous season to a new group of guys,” Christensen told Axcess Baseball. “Anytime a season ends, you reflect on how the season was, what worked well and [what] didn’t work, what do we need to get better, who graduated, and who can step in to help us the following season.” From the past two ye...
Eastport-South Manor Returns 16 Players, Headlined by 2-Time All-County Catcher
By Mike Merolle Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s season preview series. Eastport-South Manor 4, Westhampton Beach 3 WP: Cole Johnson (CG, 6 H, 6 Ks, 1 BB) Tristan Gatchalian game-tying HR Ayden Deslauriers scored go-ahead run on wild pitch ESM improves to 8-6 overall (6-6 league play) pic.twitter.com/zZ1RkuqL9e — Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 28, 2023 After finishing last season with a record of 11-11, Eastport-South Manor is focused on improvement in 2024. Their season came to an end after losing to Sayville and Mount Sinai in the playoffs. Head coach Jim McGowan will look for more in his 10th season as the Eastport-South Manor head coach. McGowan is excited for the return of 16 players from last year’s playoff team. Senior D...
