VSC falls short of playoffs

It was an up-and-down season on the diamond at Valley Stream Central. The Eagles had big expectations when the season commenced, however, a pair of three-game sweeps at the hands of Plainview-JFK and MacArthur put Central in a position where it needed to win five of its last six games to earn a playoff berth.

After sweeping three from Port Washington, the Eagles fell just short when they dropped a heartbreaking 6-5 decision to Baldwin in the middle game of a three-game set with the Bruins. Central broke a 4-4 tie with a run in the top of the ninth inning, but Baldwin benefitted from a bad hop single in the bottom of the inning to earn the win, and bring the Eagles’ playoff chances to a halt.

Central also had a chance to close the game out in the bottom of the seventh, but the Bruins got a clutch two-out single to tie the game. Junior Dan Egan, who got out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the eighth, was the hard luck loser.  

Central coach Frank Alesia knows that narrow defeats and bad luck were far too common in 2014 for the Eagles. “We were in position to win some big games, but something always went wrong,” Alesia said. “We played strong teams like Plainview and MacArthur real well, but just didn’t get the bounces when we needed them. We were very high on this team, so not making the playoffs was disappointing.”

One of the big losses came in the opening game of the series with MacArthur. Central junior Joe Picillo was outstanding on the mound, but he was pitching against the county’s top hurler Adam Heidenfelder. The latter carried a no-hitter through 6 2/3 innings and struck out a school-record 18 batters to lead the Generals to 2-0 win.

Picillo was spot-on when he faced Plainview JFK, but the Eagles couldn’t come up with a timely hit in a 1-0 loss. He received run support in a 5-3 complete-game win over an East Meadow team that has advanced to the county semifinals.

Juniors Vito Friscia, Elijah Tavarez and Mike Ciullo give reason for Alesia to believe 2015 will be a big season. Friscia, who earned All-County recognition, was pitched around by most teams. He drew 14 walks and led the team in RBI. His defense behind the plate shut down opponent’s running games. 

Tavarez was a pleasant surprise for Alesia. After a relatively slow start with the bat, the fleet-footed shortstop caught fire, and was one of the toughest outs in the lineup. Tavarez pitched well in victories over Port Washington and Baldwin. 

Ciullo was the team’s most consistent hitter. Batting behind Friscia, Ciullo hit .402, led the team in hits and slugging percentage, and was second in RBI. Senior Angel Acevedo, the team’s third baseman, took the ball and pitched a complete game in the opening game of the Port Washington series.