High School Softball

Since they didn't make the paper, here's the second team players' capsules:

SECOND TEAM

1. Alexa D’Onofrio, Patchogue-Medford, Sr., P
D’Onofrio was 12-9 with a 1.08 ERA and a school-record 250 strikeouts in 160 innings. She had 10 shutouts, three no-hitters and a perfect game. She walked just 23 batters and hit .369 with 11 RBIs and a home run.
2. Sandy Hawthorne, Hauppauge, Fr., SS
Hawthorne, who set a school record with 45 hits, batted .479/.546/.596 with 18 RBIs, 11 of which came with two outs. She was 8-for-16 in the playoffs and stole 15 bases.
3. Caitlyn Maynes, Miller Place, Jr., P
The League VI pitcher of the year was 15-6 with a 0.97 ERA and 121 strikeouts. She pitched to a 0.86 WHIP and had four shutouts.
4. Kaitlin Meade, Ward Melville, Jr., P
Meade pitched five shutouts and one no-hitter, racking up a 1.34 ERA on her way to a 13-8 record. She struck out 196 batters in 140 innings pitched.
5. Marissa Raimo, Hampton Bays, Sr., C
Raimo hit .474 with six homers and 28 RBIs on the season. Of her 36 hits, 15 were for extra bases. She had 22 runs scored.
6. Jennifer Ranieri, West Islip, Jr., SS
Ranieri led Suffolk County and was second on Long Island in home runs with eight. She hit .456 with 19 RBIs and 25 runs, nabbing seven steals along the way.
7. Chelsea Shea, West Babylon, Sr., P
A three-time All County and two-time League IV pitcher of the year, Shea pitched to a 15-2 record, with 115 strikeouts and a 0.90 ERA (0.58 in the regular season). She batted .343 with 16 RBI and will attend Pace University.
8. Colleen Smith, East Islip, Jr., 1B
Smith batted .531 with four homers, 36 RBIs and 34 runs. She finished with 13 doubles and two triples on her way to a .888 slugging percentage and struck out just seven times on the year. She was 4-for-9 with three RBIs and three runs in the playoffs, and had a .986 fielding percentage.
9. Nicole Capella, William Floyd, Sr., C
The Large School Player of the Year hit .413/.476/.635 with 21 RBIs and two homers. She struck out just three times all season and had a .989 fielding percentage behind the plate.

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

For the second straight season, Olivia Galati was named the state Class AA Player of the Year by the New York State Sportswriters Association.

The St. John the Baptist pitcher went 18-1 and batted .691 to lead the Cougars to their third CHSAA state title in four years.

(left, St. John the Baptist pitcher Olivia Galati delivers to the plate against St. Dominic in Game 2 of the CHSAA finals, photo by Patrick E. McCarthy)

Samantha Giovanniello of Floral Park was also named the state Class A Player of the Year. The freshman pitcher went 20-4-1 with a 0.90 ERA and 243 strikeouts to lead the Knights to their first state title.

Brentwood coach Brian Lynch was named the state Class AA Co-Coach of the Year, along with Cathy Morano of Tottenville (PSAL). And Floral Park coach Dan Sackman was named the Class A Co-Coach of the Year along with Pearl River (Section I) coach Mike Carlacci.

Read on to see the full list of All-state selections:

(right, Floral Park's Corrine Engle, left, and Samantha Giovanniello, right, sandwich catcher Melissa Correa to celebrate their victory over Pearl River (I) in the Class A state final in Waterloo, N.Y., AP Photo)

Continue reading "Galati and Giovanniello Named NYS Players of the Year..." »

Really no changes from last week as new State champs Brentwood stayed hot (obviously) and the other teams were dormant since the LICs ended:

1. St. John the Baptist (27-2 CHSAA)
Olivia Galati, the Gatorade New York State Player of the Year, first dominated the CHSAA regular season. Then she took her act to the CHSAA playoffs, where the only game she lost was a 1-0 defeat to St. Dominic’s, before ultimately winning the crown. The states? More child’s play for the best pitcher on the Island, who made it look easy in each phase of the season as she led her team to a state CHSAA title for the third time in four seasons.

2. Brentwood (24-4, League I)
The new Class AA champs rode ace Nicole Flint (one hit in 14 innings, including a perfect game in the semi-finals) all the way to the state title. A tremendous team with excellent defense, especially in the outfield and at third base, fantastic bats (see: Vanessa Acosta) and, of course, great pitching. Brentwood is a perfectly rounded team, and the State AA title resides in Suffolk once again because of it.

3. Bay Shore (22-5 League II)
4. West Babylon (22-3, League IV)
5. East Islip (21-4, League III)
6. St. Anthony’s (15-4, CHSAA)
7. Eastport-South Manor (18-3, League V)
8. Sayville (19-7, League V)
9. Hauppauge (23-6, League V)
10. Hampton Bays (20-5, League VIII)

Athlete of the Week Nominees:

Nicole Flint, Brentwood
The ace of the new Class AA state champs, Flint pitched a perfect game (her third of the season) to win the state semi-finals and then threw a one-hitter to clinch the state title. That's just ONE hit in 14 innings.

- Cody Derespina

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

Within an instant, the runs came.

After battling Pearl River through five scoreless innings, Floral Park unleashed five hits in the sixth inning en route to a 4-0 victory over the Pirates in today’s Class A state championship game at Waterloo High School.

It’s the first softball state championship for the Knights, who finish the season 23-4.

Freshman Sam Giovanniello tossed a one-hitter and struck out 12. She also went 3-for-4 at the plate, with a single, double and triple.

Centerfielder Lindsay Trifon (single) scored the first run of the game in the sixth inning on Giovanniello’s double off Pirates’ starting pitcher Katie O’Flynn. The next batter, catcher Melissa Correa, cracked a single to right field, scoring Giovanniello. After Ericka Re's sacrifice bunt moved Correa to second, Rachel Battle laced a single to center field to bring home the runner.

Pearl River's pitching change midway through the inning didn't faze the Knights, either. Allison Bostrom hit a two-out double off reliever Kaitlin Dinet to score Battle, giving Floral Park a 4-0 lead.

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

A little bit of luck, lots of skill and even more team chemistry was all Brentwood needed.

Thanks to Nicole Flint's one-hitter -- and several defensive lapses -- the Indians defeated Fairport, 4-1, to win their first Class AA state championship in school history today at Waterloo High School.

With her team up 1-0 in the fifth (courtesy of an infield error), third baseman Kristen Flint ripped a single to right centerfield to score Hillary Genova.

Two infield errors by the Red Raiders (25-3) resulted in two more runs for the Indians (24-4).

Fairport's lone run was scored in the top of the sixth on a Stacy Kuwick home run over the centerfield fence.

But the Red Raiders failed to score again, as Nicole Flint -- who lost her bid for a consecutive perfect game in the fourth inning -- retired the last four batters of the game in order.

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

The runner caught Sara Yackel off guard, but the Floral Park third baseman’s instincts quickly took over.

“I did not think she was going to third at all,” Yackel said. “It surprised me because I knew we could get her out. So I yelled for the ball and it was a great throw to my glove.”

With one out in the top of the seventh, Franklin Academy’s Abby Premo ripped a double just inside the right field line. But she got greedy and tried to stretch her base hit into a triple.

Yackel, however, was waiting for her.

Second baseman Ericke Re timed a perfect cutoff throw to third base and Yackel tagged out the sliding Premo to end the Huskies’ threat, as Floral Park defeated Franklin Academy (X), 1-0, in today’s state Class A semifinal.

The umpire raced over to check Yackel’s glove for the ball and the junior waved the greenish rubber ball with glee.

“I knew we had her,” said Yackel, who immediately pumped her fist after the play.
“We knew we could do it. We were hoping our defense would tighten up. And as soon as we got that out, I knew we had it.”

Melissa Correa batted in Sam Giovanniello, who tripled, in the bottom of the fourth to provide the lone run of the game."

Freshman pitcher Sam Giovanniello pitched a near flawless game, giving up just sone hit while striking out 11.

“She was on her game,” Floral Park coach Dan Sackman said.

The Knights will face either Victor (Section V) or Pearl River (Section I) in the final at 3:30pm.

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

Nicole Flint tried to clear her mind as best she could.

But those around her – her Brentwood teammates, her coaches and the Indians fans -- could feel what was on the horizon.

“I tried not to think about it because that’s when you ruin it,” Flint said with a smile. “I just wanted to limit their hits. I wanted to make sure I didn’t give them anything good.”

The senior pitcher did just that, tossing a perfect game -- her second in three games – as Brentwood cruised to a 7-0 victory over North Rockland (Section I) in today’s state Class AA semifinal at Waterloo High School.

The Indians (23-4) will face either Columbia (Section II) or Fairport (Section V) in the championship game at 1:30p.m.

Shaakira Samad jumpstarted the Indians’ offense cracking a two-run double to right centerfield in the second to give them a 2-0 lead. But they didn’t stop there.

They tacked on five more runs in the fifth on a two-run single by Kristen Flint, an infield RBI single by Colleen Rivers and a two-run double by Erica Edwards.

Brentwood’s defense was just as impressive.

Shortstop Hillary Genova’s diving catch robbed leadoff batter Samantha Welsh of a base hit to the start the game. Three innings later, Welsh was robbed again on Vikki Castillo’s running catch toward the left field line.

And centerfielder Alexa Santiago caught the last two outs of the game on pop-ups right in front of the outfield fence.

“They were really big,” Flint, who pitched a perfect game in the Suffolk County finals against Bay Shore, said of her teammates. “This is a whole new team. We’re not giving up any errors. We’re playing like the team other people should be intimidated by.”

(Brentwood pitcher Nicole Flint delivers against Bay Shore during Game 1 of the Suffolk Class AA finals, photo by Frank Koester)

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

The state playoffs are a little less than 12 hours away...

...and Long Island has just two chances to bring home a title...

Brentwood will face North Rockland (Section I) -- now 24-1 -- in the Class AA semifinal on Field 4 at 9a at Waterloo HS...

If the Indians win, they'll advance to the state championship game against either Columbia (20-6) (Section II) or Fairport (24-2) (Section V) at 1:30p on Field 1.

...Floral Park takes on Franklin Academy (Section X) in the Class A semifinal at 11a on Field 2...

...Should the Knights get by the 20-1 Lady Huskies, they'll play either Victor (27-2) from Section V or Pearl River (24-1) from Section I in the final at 330p on Field 1.

(above, Floral Park's Lindsay Trifon gives pitcher Samantha Giovanniello a big hug after their win over Seaford in Game 3 of the Nassau Class A finals, photo by Richard Slattery)

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

Expect next week's poll to look A LOT different, folks...

For those of you headed up to Waterloo -- I'll see you there!

(above, The Brentwood girls show off their Class AA championship plaque after defeating Long Beach, 3-2, in 11 innings at Stotzky Memorial Park in Riverhead, photo by Joseph D. Sullivan)

Continue reading "State Rankings...as of 6.6" »

Discuss Brentwood's and Floral Park's chances in the state Class AA and A softball Final Fours in a special High School Softball Live chat with Kimberley A. Martin and Cody Derespina at 8 o'clock on Thursday night.

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN

Just when you think things can't get any better for Olivia Galati...

...The Hofstra-bound senior, who led the Cougars to their third state CHSAA title in four years, was named the state Gatorade Player of the Year today -- adding another accolade to her ever-growing list of softball accomplishments...

"Coach [Brianne Herr] called me while I was in the car and said, 'It's official, baby! You're the Gatorade Player of the Year,'" said Galati, who was returning from a three-day orientation at Hofstra. "My mouth dropped and I screamed."

Behind Galati -- who threw three perfect games, posted 13 shutouts, one no-hitter and struck out 260 batters this season -- SJB finished 27-2.

And now she's in the running to be named the national player of the year later this month...

...But Galati says she isn't focused on that...

(above, Galati gets ready to wind-up against St. Dominic in Game 2 of CHSAA final, photo by Patrick E. McCarthy)

Continue reading "Galati Wins Gatorade New York State POY Award..." »

1. St. John the Baptist (27-2 CHSAA)
Olivia Galati first dominated the CHSAA regular season. Then she took her act to the CHSAA playoffs, where the only game she lost was a 1-0 defeat to St. Dominic’s, before ultimately winning the crown. The states? More child’s play for the best pitcher on the Island, who made it look easy in each phase of the season as she led her team to a State AA title for the third time in four seasons.

Continue reading "The Suffolk Scene: 5/9 Top Ten" »