Glen Cove wins seasons finale

After a rough season where the win column for the Glen Cove baseball team remained at a constant zero, the Big Red found retribution in taking the final game of a three-game set with South Side and the penultimate matchup of the season in a thrilling 4-3 fashion on May 4.

Junior Michael Capobianco started the game for the Big Red and pitched well for six full innings until eventually handing over the reigns. Capobianco has probably been the most productive pitcher for Glen Cove this year, and with another year of varsity left on his belt, he will look to continue to improve and be the top starter for this ball club going forward.

“He probably pitched the best for us all year long. He’s just pitched in bad luck,” head coach Jon Dolecki said. “He has a really good breaking pitch. It’s his first year pitching on varsity and he’s pitched very well against some good teams.”

Capobianco eventually handed the reigns over to Brian Shannon, who pitched the top half of the seventh inning, keeping the game tied at 3-3.

With the top of the order coming up and the last half inning of the season upon them, Glen Cove was looking for a little walk-off magic. Sophomore Anthony Rant worked a leadoff walk before Robert Rizzo moved him over to third with a single. With men on the corners, Dolecki gave Rizzo the sign to steal second. Shortly thereafter, Chris Capobianco put the barrel on the ball and belted a walk off RBI single to give the Big Red the victory.

With their season now in the books, Dolecki and his crew of returning ballplayers are eyeballing 2018 as a redemption year.

One bright spot on the year was Rant, a sophomore that showed promise pitching regularly for the club. 

“He definitely will be one of our starters next year,” Dolecki said. “He pitched a really good game against Plainedge this year. He went the full 7 innings and really kept us in the game against a good ball club.”

Junior Cameron Fillippone, another candidate vying for a set rotational spot next year, is tall, left-handed pitcher that adds an interesting aspect to his game. “He throws a knuckleball as his off-speed pitch,” Dolecki said. Only having one other pitcher in all of his years coaching throw a knuckleball, Dolecki was candid when asked how much control he has while throwing it and responded with a chuckle: “About as much as a knuckleball pitcher would,” he said.

Dolecki also added that Jared Venegas and Robert McCarthy were two solid relief pitchers that will be returning to throw strikes and get them out of a few pinches in the coming season.

The focus going into the offseason for this club is about offense. The pitching, more or less, is set. The offense remains the big question mark. However, Dolecki and his crew will work diligently in the offseason to bring offense to the light and make it a strength going forward for this young Big Red team.