74.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Sailing into the semifinals
Oceanside sweeps Plainview-JFK
After winning the Conference AA-I baseball title and earning a bye to the Nassau Class AA playoff quarterfinals, third-seeded Oceanside ran on all cylinders in last week’s best-of-three series against No. 6 Plainview-JFK.
The Sailors came out swinging for a second straight game and junior Michael Russ pitched a gem as they completed a sweep of the Hawks with a 7-0 road win May 19. Junior Eric Mandel went 3-for-4, including a two-run double, and scored twice, while senior Brian Ellis and sophomores Brian Lau and Francis Rapp added key run-scoring hits to lead the offense.
“This was probably the best game we’ve played all year,” coach Andy Morris said after Oceanside won its eighth in a row and improved to 16-5. “We hit the ball hard and [Mike] Russ had great stuff,” he added. “We’re excited about advancing and playing MacArthur.”
Russ took the mound in the bottom of the first with a 2-0 lead and didn’t need any additional support. He allowed just two singles — both runners were erased on double plays — one walk and struck out nine on the way to his sixth win this spring. “Mike’s been good all year but I don’t think he’s pitched that well since the opener,” Morris said. “He didn’t fall behind anyone and really kept them guessing.”
The Sailors, after scoring five times in the bottom of the first in their 9-4 victory in the opening game of the series May 16, put up two in their first at-bat in Game 2. Mandel blasted a Stephen Stafford pitch over the fence in left-center that was mistakenly ruled a ground-rule double, but he would score on a fielder’s choice grounder by Ellis. The latter then stole second and raced home on a Lau double.
“The kids put in so much work in the batting cage,” Morris said. “They’ve been very effective early in games. Even the assistant coach on Plainview asked me if we hit every game.”
As senior Erik Kondak did in Game 1, Russ came out and retired the Hawks in order after the Sailors drew first blood. “It’s nice when you get runs and your pitcher follows by shutting the other team down,” Morris said.
