NCN Girls’ Basketball/Baseball Blog

Here’s some quick predictions for tomorrow’s quarterfinal games. If I have some time, I may be back with some reasoning behind the picks.

Class AA

No. 1 Mamaroneck 6, No. 8 John Jay 1                            

No. 4 Fox Lane 8, No. 12 Yorktown 5

No. 2 Arlington 8, No. 7 Carmel 6

Class A

No. 1 Lakeland 6, No. 8 Pearl River 1

No. 3 Hen Hud 5, No. 6 Beacon 3

No. 2 Somers 8, No. 7 Eastchester 4

Class B

No. 1 Kennedy 13, No. 8 Pleasantville 2

No. 3 Nanuet 6, No. 6 Briarcliff 4

All opening round games are slated for Saturday with 11 a.m. and 1.p.m. starts. Ossining and New Rochelle take part in the only out-bracket game on Friday at Ossining. Without further ado, let’s get to the predictions for the North County contests.

Class AA

Winner of No. 16 Ossining/No. 17 New Rochelle  at Mamaroneck

Ossining has achieved its goal of making sectionals and getting the squad back on the map. Coach Bill Casey has done quite a job, but if they get past New Ro’, the road ends against the state champs.

Prediction: Mamaroneck 16, Ossining 2

No. 12 Yorktown at No. 5 Saunders

Yorktown had to get the luckiest first round draw, as the five league champs get the 1-5 seeds regardless of record, hence Saunders lands a No. 5 seed after dominating a weak Yonkers league. The Huskers take advantage.

Prediction: Yorktown 7, Saunders 5

No. 9 Suffern at No. 8 John Jay

A rematch of last season’s semifinals in the first round? John Jay really got an unlucky draw. If they somehow get through this game, they’ve got Mamaroneck in the next round. Ouch. Could be Suffern ace Robbie Aviles against….Stephen Green? Is he healthy? He’ll need to be for the Indians to make a game of it — but I think Suffern takes it either way.

Prediction: Suffern 7, John Jay 3

No. 7 Carmel vs. No. 10 Horace Greeley

I think Carmel should roll here fairly easily to set up a date with League I-C foe Arlington. Will they save Mike Volpe for Arlington? I’d say it would be a wise decision. Zack Graczyk should be able to handle the Quakers.

Prediction: Carmel 8, Horace Greeley 3

Class A

No. 14 Tappan Zee at No. 3 Hen Hud

Hendrick Hudson won’t have Mike Tandy pitching and I’m guessing Chris Weiner gets the call. Still, the Sailors should be able to pull this out even without its ace. T.J. Olesczuk (leads the section in homers (9) and RBI (39) and Matt DeSilva stay hot at the plate and Hen Hud moves on.

Prediction: Hen Hud 8, Tappan Zee 4

No. 13 Panas at No. 4 Ardsley

I know Walter Panas has been sliding lately, but they got a favorable first round game with Ardsley, who plays a fairly weak schedule. I’m thinking the Panthers throw ace Ian Cole. Panas is a tough team to figure out. They’ve pulled out some big time wins, but other times they have some head scratcher losses. But I’m going with the rollercoaster ride known as Panas baseball.

Prediction: Walter Panas 7, Ardsley 5

Class B

No. 6 Briarcliff vs. No. 11 Bronxville

It should be smooth sailing for the Bears no matter who they throw. They may save Jordan Sacks for a quarterfinal date with Nanuet. James Lombardi shuts down the Broncos.

Prediction: Briarcliff 9, Bronxville 1

No. 10 Croton-Harmon at No. 7 Albertus Magnus

I think Croton has a chance, and they aren’t going to have the “just happy to be here” attitude. But in the end, the Falcons pull it out.

Prediction: Magnus 6, Croton 4

1) Kennedy Catholic (19-1) — The Gaels locked up the No. 1 seed in the Class B sectionals a long time ago and are primed to repeat as sectional champions.

But as Coach Bob Fletcher always says, baseball is a funny game and you can run into that one pitcher that shuts you down.

Can anyone stop this runaway freight train?

I don’t see it happening. Not even Rye Neck’s Ryan Pennell and his 0.14 ERA could shut them down.

The Gaels have had some close ones of late with two 4-2 wins over John Jay and Putnam Valley. The PV game is somewhat alarming, but I think the Tigers are much better than they have played this season.

2) Lakeland (18-1) — Last season Lakeland was the No. 1 seed and was upset by Ardsley in the quarterfinals. This season, they’re No. 1 again heading into the Class A sectionals.

Will it be déjà vu all over again?

“You don’t want to think about last year,” senior catcher Jon Cosenza said. “You just want to go out with a new set of people and have it end differently this year.”

“Last year is last year,” Coach Dennis Robinson added.

But will this year be different?

The team is almost completely different from last year outside of Cosenza, Joe Arena, and a few others. So that may benefit the team in that most of them didn’t experience last season’s heartbreak.

Robinson has been to the sectional finals 12 times in his long tenure. With dominant pitching in Arena and Jon Demarte, a stellar defense, and a capable lineup, he could be making it 13.

3) Carmel (14-6) — A big concern for Coach Bob Shilling is the long layoff between the end of the regular season and their first sectional game. The Rams closed out the season back on May 20, so it will be a week and a half wait before they play Saturday.

Carmel is looking at a seed probably around 7-9, which means they should get a home playoff game — a goal for the team.

With Mike Volpe on the hill, I like Carmel advancing to the quarterfinals. But how the rest of the staff responds will be the difference in how far the Rams will go.

In the opening round, they could be facing a team like…

4) John Jay (14-6) — Jay and Carmel have identical records, so it only makes sense that they could be facing each other Saturday. In my opinion, it would be the game of the first round — keep your fingers crossed.

The Indians are 3-4 in their last seven, including a surprising loss to Tappan Zee. While most teams want to be peaking right now, the Indians seem to be headed in another direction.

Stephen Green has not pitched since May 6. Is his shoulder acting up again?

“We’re just trying to get him ready for sectionals,” Coach Geoff Curtis said. “I probably expect him back on the mound shortly.”

Let’s hope for John Jay’s sake that the left-handed flamethrower is back ASAP, as in Saturday. Not to say John Jay doesn’t have other capable arms in Jared Hirschberg, Lou Ricci, and so on, but they obviously want their ace back for sectionals.

Without him last year, they advanced all the way to the Class AA semifinals. And with him? Time will tell.

5) Somers (15-4) — Dan Zlotnick tweaked his hamstring back on April 10 in a 7-6 loss to Walter Panas. It has taken him some time to get back into a groove and he said that it never hurt his swing, but running the bases has been difficult at times.

“I’ve felt good,” Zlotnick said. “I just take extra care, stretching before games and before every at bat I’ll stretch in the on deck circle.”

The Tuskers will need a fully healthy Zlotnick to make a deep run and have a chance to three-peat as sectional champs.
The Tuskers have changed around their batting order of late, moving James O’Hare from the No. 2 spot to the six hole. Coach Joe Wootten wants to give O’Hare more RBI opportunities with guys like Kyle Woltersdorf (.700 OBP) and Zack Bird (.500 OBP) getting on in front of him. Bird has been batting cleanup with Kevin Watson hitting fifth.

Woltersdorf said the two-time defending sectional champs treated the Mahopac game like it was the first round of sectionals and are carrying that mindset into their final game with Fox Lane on May 26. They have locked up the No. 2 seed and a first round bye.

“We just want one good win after another,” Woltersdorf said. “Hopefully our pitching staff will come through and our bats stay hot, and we’ll hopefully go for that three-peat.”

6) Hendrick Hudson (14-6) — The Sailors locked up the No. 3 seed after defeating Ossining on Tuesday.

But Coach Paul Natale isn’t too concerned with seeding.

“We still have to play and we still have to win,” Natale said.

And the way the Sailors put up runs against Yorktown this past week, I think they can make a deep run as long as their pitching does their part.

Senior Matt DeSilva also thinks they need the bottom of the batting order to contribute to make a deep run.

“We really need those guys to step up and hit the ball,” DeSilva said.

Outside looking in: Walter Panas (9-9) is much better than they’ve played of late. They could easily pull off an upset or two in sectionals. Briarcliff (13-7) has the type of pitching rotation, especially with Jordan Sacks at full strength, which can help them win the close games in sectionals and make a run.

— Mike Sabini contributed to these rankings.

Rank      Class AA      Record      Prev
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Vestal-4     18-1     1.
2.     MacArthur-8     17-1-2     3.
3.     Arlington-1     15-2     5.
4.     Smithtown West-11     17-2     15.
5.     Webster Thomas-5     15-3     2.
6.     Kingston-9     17-3     9.
7.     Auburn-3     15-3     14.
8.     Suffern-1     12-3     18.
9.     Columbia-2     13-3     8.
10.     Connetquot-11     18-4     16.
11.     Mamaroneck-1     13-4-1     10.
12.     Liverpool-3     15-4     4.
13.     Ithaca-4     14-4     17.
14.     Frontier-6     12-4     11.
15.     Newburgh Free Academy-9     14-4     13.
16.     Hilton-5     14-4     NR
17.     Clarence-6     12-4     NR
18.     Commack-11     18-4     NR
19.     East Meadow-8     16-5     NR
20.     Shenendehowa-2     14-6     20.

Class A     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Lakeland-1     14-1     1.
2.     Pittsford Sutherland-5     17-2     3.
3.     Maine-Endwell-4     14-3     2.
4.     Lansingburgh-2     18-2     4.
5.     Clarke-8     15-2-1     5.
6.     Hauppauge-11     19-3     7.
7.     Albion-6     16-1     9.
8.     Cornwall-9     15-3     8.
9.     John Glenn-11     20-1     11.
10.     Island Trees-8     14-4-2     13.
11.     Syracuse CBA-3     12-4     NR
12.     Victor-5     15-5     NR
13.     Red Hook-9     13-3     12.
14.     Hendrick Hudson-1     11-5     14.
15.     Grand Island-6     12-5     NR
16.     Iroquois-6     13-5     17.
17.     Miller Place-11     16-4     18.
18.     Camden-3     12-3     NR
19.     Malone-10     8-4     NR
20.     Burnt Hills-2     8-13     NR

Class B     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Somers JFK-1     15-1     1.
2.     Chatham-2     21-1     3.
3.     Granville-2     17-1     2.
4.     Windsor-4     17-1     5.
5.     Cold Spring Harbor-8     17-2     4.
6.     Dunkirk-6     18-3     8.
7.     Wayland-Cohocton-5     13-3     12.
8.     Westhill-3     15-2     17.
9.     Ogdensburg-10     9-1     6.
10.     Plattsburgh-7     9-1     19.
11.     Southampton-11     15-6     10.
12.     Nanuet-1     13-2-1     11.
13.     East Aurora-6     15-2     16.
14.     Bath-5     12-2     NR
15.     Beekmantown-7     10-2     9.
16.     Holland Patent-3     14-5     14.
17.     Pine Plains9     12-4     13.
18.     Dobbs Ferry-1     13-1     NR
19.     Dryden-4     14-4     NR
20.     Southold/Greenport-11     15-6     NR

Class C     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Keio-1     12-1     1.
2.     Ticonderoga-7     11-0     3.
3.     Oakfield-Alabama-5     16-2     5.
4.     Fort Plain-2     17-2     6.
5.     Little Falls-3     15-2     2.
6.     Brushton-Moira-10     9-1     9.
7.     Elmira Heights Edison-4     17-2     4.
8.     Candor-4     14-2     7.
9.     Canisteo-Greenwood-5     13-1     11.
10.     Tuxedo-9     12-2     14.
11.     Frewsburg-6     14-4     8.
12.     Frankfort-Schuyler-3     16-4     10.
13.     Duanesburg-2     15-5     NR
14.     Newfield-4     16-3     16.
15.     Pierson/Bridgehampton-11     13-8     17.
16.     Blind Brook-1     9-4     13.
17.     Norwood-Norfolk-10     9-5     NR
18.     Cattaraugus-Little Valley-6     13-5     15.
19.     Oyster Bay-8     10-9     18.
20.     Port Jefferson-11     10-11     19.

Class D     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Bolivar-Richburg-5     14-1     1.
2.     Schroon Lake-7     11-0     5.
3.     South Kortright-4     12-0     9.
4.     Harrisville-10     13-2     4.
5.     Fort Ann-2     12-2     6.
6.     Indian Lake/Long Lake-7     9-0     7.
7.     Hamilton-3     14-3     3.
8.     S.S. Seward-9     15-5     10.
9.     Jefferson-4     12-1     NR
10.     Chateaugay-10     9-1     11.
11.     Arkport-5     11-1     14.
12.     North Collins-6     11-3     8.
13.     Hancock-4     13-4     NR
14.     Pine Valley-6     13-4     15.
15.     Afton-4     11-5     2.
16.     New York Mills-3     15-5     13.
17.     Geneva DeSales-5     15-5     NR
18.     Clifton-Fine-10     9-2     NR
19.     West Valley-6     11-4     NR
20.     Smithtown Christian-11     6-13     NR

Rankings as of noon, Tuesday

1) Kennedy Catholic (15-1) — Nothing new going on for the defending champs. The Gaels outscored the opposition 30-9 this past week.

On Saturday they defeated Brewster 10-4 in the Christopher Caiazzo Memorial Game behind Tom Baroni, who struck out six in a complete game effort.

Joe Smith has yet to return to the lineup, but J.T. Flanagan continues to rake with two more RBIs against Brewster.

Kennedy will receive a test and playoff tune-up when they take on John Jay Sunday at home.

2) Lakeland (15-1) — Having such a young team can be looked at as a positive and as a negative in ways come sectional time. They obviously lack that big game experience, but the youthful bunch has already proven that they can play and they’re not ranked No. 1 in the state for nothing.

“They’re just so young they don’t know what’s going on,” Coach Dennis Robinson said of the team’s mindset heading into sectionals.

And maybe that’s a good thing.

The Hornets should close out the rest of the season with three wins against the likes of Peekskill (twice) and Beacon.

After last season’s quarterfinal loss to Ardsley after receiving the No. 1 seed, the Hornets are most likely going to be the No. 1 seed again.

Senior catcher Jon Cosenza said the key to postseason success is just getting better every day.

“We want to make some noise in sectionals,” Cosenza said. “We have something special here, so we’re looking to capitalize on it.”

3) Carmel (13-6) — The last two seasons Carmel received a low seed and had to play an out-bracket game in the Class AA sectionals. Two years ago it didn’t matter that they had to play an extra game; they still went all the way to the sectional finals.

But Coach Bob Shilling doesn’t want to have to go through that again. He wants a home playoff game for his squad and he believes they’re in position to get a top 10 seed.

“We don’t want to go that route anymore,” Shilling said.

One thing that worries Shilling is a long layoff. After their final regular season game May 20 with Mount Vernon, they will have to wait at least a week for sectionals to begin.

“Baseball’s a game of momentum, so I’m a little concerned about that,” Shilling said of the layoff. “Hopefully we can just keep getting better.”

With sectionals looming, Graczyk believes the Rams just need to keep on playing like they’ve been playing.

“We’re just going to see how far the season can take us,” Graczyk said, “and keep on pitching, keep on playing good defense, and getting the timely hits.”

4) John Jay (12-4) — Alan Filauro had always pitched when he was younger. But when he got to the high school level he had to make a choice to be a pitcher or a catcher.

He obviously chose the latter and it’s worked out pretty well for him to say the least.

But lately the Indians have used Filauro to close out games. Filauro’s first game closing was May 6 when he recorded two Ks in an 8-5 win over Greeley. Coach Geoff Curtis estimates that his fastball is up around 90 mph.

“It’s a tremendous tool to be able to go get a guy that’s going to throw strikes, be able to hit spots, and bring the kind of velocity that he can,” Curtis said.

“He’s strong enough that he’s not put at too big of a disadvantage by catching six innings and pitching one,” he added. “Fortunately, the games get spread out enough that if he doesn’t have to do it every single game, so it’s something that we can utilize.”

With two games with Tappan Zee and a much anticipated showdown with Kennedy on Sunday, Curtis wants to make sure they finish strong and correct any bad habits at the plate or mechanics on the mound.

“I think we’ve established the kind of team that we can be and now it’s time to go about being that team,” Curtis said. “You want to make sure you finish strong and make sure you win the games you’re supposed to win. At this point, we’ve made the playoffs; it’s time for fine tuning and getting ready.”

5) Somers (10-4) — Somers defeated Nyack 16-5 Saturday. So you’re thinking, OK, so what? They committed an alarming six errors in the game.

Coach Joe Wootten kept saying they had to improve their defensive execution. If they haven’t done that by now, could it be an early exit in sectionals?

Kyle Woltersdorf continued his hot hitting against Nyack with a homer and two RBIs. James O’Hare had four RBIs and Dan Zlotnick added three.

6) Hendrick Hudson (11-6) — Hen Hud has put up plenty of runs this season, but they have had trouble in games against the oppositions’ ace. Joe Arena and Jon Demarte of Lakeland shut them down, and Panas’ ace Ian Cole shut them out.

“We’re not waiting on the ball,” Coach Paul Natale said of the problem at the plate. “They think these kids are throwing harder than they actually are and their hands are way out in front of their body and that’s what’s going on really.”

They’ll have to figure this issue out quickly. When you get to sectionals you’re obviously going to be up against an ace in every game.

The Sailors close out the season with two with Yorktown and one with Ossining.

Outside looking in: I’ve slept on a young Yorktown (10-7) squad this season. The Huskers will make plenty of noise next year and will get to prove how far they have come this season when they take on Hen Hud this week. After a red hot start Walter Panas (8-8) has been stuck in a rut of late. We’ll see if they can correct that before post-season play begins. Mahopac (6-10) needs to turn things around quickly if they want to be sectional bound.

Mahopac and Alec Petrone will look to get back on track Saturday in the Tantalos Tourney.

This Saturday is probably the most prestigious tournament in Section 1 baseball, the Christopher Dean Tantalos Memorial Tournament, which is named for a former Mahopac baseball player that died in June of 2000 after returning home from a tryout with the Florida Marlins.

Tantalos was a star pitcher that was a big part of leading the Indians to two sectional championships (1996 and ‘97), while also guiding them to the state finals.

The tournament this year is unique in that the two first round match-ups are big league games with Mahopac squaring off against rival Carmel and John Jay taking on defending tournament champ Fox Lane.

Let’s break down the match-ups:

Mahopac vs. Carmel: Carmel just defeated Mahopac (5-7) for the second time this season last Monday behind a one-hit masterpiece from ace Mike Volpe (right). I’m guessing Volpe will be on the hill again, most likely against Nick Iuni, again.

The Rams (9-6) and Indians both don’t need much inspiration for this game.

“We get very wild when they come over here or we go over there,” Volpe said of the rivalry. “It’s been going on ever since Mr. Shilling was here, 25 years. It’s great to play in this and get extra motivated to beat them.”

“[We want to] shut them out again,” he added. “Absolutely.”

Mahopac has been downright struggling at the plate lately besides a 16-0 blowout of lowly Gorton this past Wednesday. If this tournament can’t inspire them to get going, I’m not sure what will. I expect the Indians’ bats will wake up in this game and feed off the home crowd/inspiration of the Tantalos tourney, but it still won’t be enough.

Carmel takes it behind another inspired effort from Volpe.

Prediction: Carmel 5, Mahopac 3

John Jay vs. Fox Lane: John Jay (11-3) is coming off a defeating late inning 10-7 loss to Horace Greeley on Wednesday. They’ll be greatly tested in this tournament after winning eight straight (against mostly subpar competition) before the loss to the Quakers.

The Indians handed the Foxes (10-1) their only loss of the season thus far in an 11-7 slugfest back on April 29 behind a combined pitching effort from Louis Ricci and Jared Hirschberg.

Stephen Green hasn’t pitched since May 6, so I’m guessing he’ll be on the hill for the Indians in the league match-up.

I think Jay and Ray Maggi (right) pull it out and hand Fox Lane their second loss in this one.

Prediction: John Jay 10, Fox Lane 6

Championship: Carmel vs. John Jay

Louis Ricci went 7 innings against Horace Greely Wednesday, so I doubt he’ll be available besides maybe a relief inning or two.

With Zack Graczyk (right) also pitching this past Wednesday the Rams will be forced to go to their No. 3 starter with maybe Graczyk available in relief.

So it looks like it’ll be either Jared Hirchsberg or Dean Lambert for John Jay vs. Carmel’s Ian Anderson or Evan Hoffman.

Translation: It should be a high scoring affair with the teams No. 3 or 4 starters going.

And John Jay usually excels in slugfests, but I think Carmel pulls this one out.

Prediction: Carmel 10, John Jay 8

Consolation: Mahopac vs. Fox Lane

Prediction: Fox Lane 8, Mahopac 5

Rankings as of noon, Tuesday

1) Kennedy Catholic (12-1) — The loss of Joe Smith to injury was somewhat of a concern at first.

But all that alarm has been quickly put to rest with the way J.T. Flanagan has been playing. The left-hander has a sweet stroke and added four more RBIs in the two wins over Briarcliff.

“He’s really stepped up,” Coach Bob Fletcher said. “He’s been hitting the ball really hard, being aggressive. I think he’s hitting almost .500 for us now.”

And Smith is due back very soon, most likely this week according to Fletcher.

After the loss to Roy C. Ketcham back on May 2, the Gaels were given a reminder of how important execution is, no matter how good you are. Fletcher said they missed some bunts that they should have put in play. He also added they didn’t get timely hitting.

“Those are the kind of games that are going to be in sectionals,” Fletcher said.

Senior catcher Anthony Corona said they made some baserunning mistakes, admitting he made one himself, and it cost them.

“We now realize whenever we have the opportunity, we have to take it and play small ball,” Corona said. “It was tough to swallow, but we came back and won the last three, and hopefully we’ll continue and keep going from here.”

Luis Gonzalez had four RBIs in a 12-1 win over Arlington B Monday.

2) Lakeland (12-1) — Lakeland, who is ranked No. 1 in the state in Class A, responded from their first loss of the season with two big wins (3-0, 8-3) over state ranked Walter Panas.

The pitching was, as usual, dominant. Jon Demarte kept his sensational sophomore season going with a one-hitter in a complete game 12 strikeout effort Monday. He also added three RBI and a home run. Joe Arena went the distance May 6 for the shutout, while striking out eight and scattering four hits.

A big series with Hendrick Hudson, who the Hornets beat 4-3 back on April 8 in the final of the Hen Hud tourney, looms this week.

3) Carmel (9-5) — Last season, the Rams only won two games in League I-C. This year, they’ve easily topped that with six, defeating each team in the league at least once for the first time in a few years according to Coach Bob Shilling.

“We’re hitting in the clutch, we’re playing good baseball right now,” Shilling said. “We’ve struggled in our league the last 3-4 years. Not that we’re a bad team, our league is just tough. So I’m very happy for these guys. Hopefully all the hard work is paying off right now.”

Carmel will take on Mahopac again Saturday in the opening round of the Tantalos Tournament. Mike Volpe is hoping he gets the ball again after dominating the Indians Monday.

“[We want to] shut them out again,” Volpe said. “Absolutely.”

It doesn’t take much for the Rams to get up for Mahopac.

“We get very wild when they come over here or we go over there,” Volpe said. “It’s great to play in this and get extra motivated to beat them.”

4) John Jay (10-2) — The Indians beat up on Arlington B, Yonkers, and Horace Greeley this past week.

Are games like these really preparing John Jay for sectionals?

We’ll see what the Indians are made of when they participate in the Tantalos Tournament Saturday.  They take on Fox Lane, and then either Carmel or Mahopac.

Check out a solid story by ace freelancer Chuck Slater on Anthony Iacomini on Page S7.

Iacomini hit another home run Monday and had two RBI in a 14-2 win over Yonkers. Stephen Green added three RBI, while Mike Filice had two.

5) Somers (8-3) — I’ve been trying to see the Tuskers play Mahopac for a month now, but it’s been rained out both times. Somebody doesn’t want to see these teams play for some reason.

Somers finally got a game in Monday, downing Tappan Zee, 8-5. Jack Pasalides tossed four innings of no-hit ball. Big Kyle Woltersdorf went 3 for 4 with a home run and four RBI. Zack Bird added two RBI.

The Tuskers will be tested this week by a very tough Fox Lane squad.

6) Hendrick Hudson (10-3) — I don’t like to admit when I’m wrong, but the Sailors should have been in the Top Six all season.

They’re ranked No. 12 in the state in Class A, and have been in every game. They won the Nyack Tournament on Saturday by defeating Nyack, 12-4. T.J. Olesczuk got the win in the championship game and had a huge tournament, going 7 for 8 with five RBI and a home run.

The Sailors series with Lakeland this week is sure to be a classic. Mike Tandy vs. either Jon Demarte or Joe Arena in a pitchers duel? Who wouldn’t want to see that?

Outside looking in: Mahopac (4-7) has really struggled lately to put up runs. They’ll need to find themselves at the plate and I think the Tantalos Tournament this weekend is a perfect opportunity to do that in round three with Carmel. Walter Panas (8-7) has been slipping of late, but dropping two games to Lakeland is nothing to hang your head about. I say they get back on track this week against Yorktown and Lourdes.

Kennedy topped host Briarcliff, 9-1, sweeping the season series after winning 7-2 Wednesday.

Rich Lennox (above) got the win for the Gaels, going six innings and recording 13 of 18 outs via the ground ball.

Mark Palmer had a two run double and three RBIs, while J.T. Flanagan socked a two-RBI single in the second. Anthony Corona jacked a home run to left center and Luis Gonzalez, Brendan Dowd, and Brian Scarano added an RBI each.

Briarcliff’s Jordan Sacks made his return to the mound after an injury and had some trouble finding the strike zone. He went 3.2 innings and struck out four. Dan Gillet was solid in relief, going the rest of the way, while only allowing one earned run.

Tim Orr had the lone RBI for the Bears.

Rank      Class AA      Record      Prev
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Vestal-4     13-1     2.
2.     MacArthur-8     10-0-1     1.
3.     Commack-11     14-2     3.
4.     Kingston-9     13-1     10.
5.     Liverpool-3     12-2     12.
6.     Orchard Park-6     10-1     6.
7.     Webster Thomas-5     10-2     7.
8.     Suffern-1     8-2     NR
9.     Massapequa-8     11-2     NR
10.     Arlington-1     11-2     9.
11.     Newburgh Free Academy-9     11-1     5.
12.     Rush-Henrietta-5     10-2     16.
13.     Ward Melville-11     11-4     NR
14.     Mamaroneck-1     6-3-2     4.
15.     Horseheads-4     10-3     13.
16.     Columbia-2     9-3     NR
17.     Smithtown West-11     14-1     11.
18.     Connetquot-11     13-3     8.
19.     Clarence-6     6-3     15.
20.     Albany-2     9-4     NR

Class A     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Lakeland-1     10-0     1.
2.     Pittsford Sutherland-5     10-1     3.
3.     Lansingburgh-2     12-1     4.
4.     Clarke-8     11-1     8.
5.     Maine-Endwell-4     10-2     6.
6.     Ichabod Crane-2     9-1     7.
7.     Hauppauge-11     13-3     NR
8.     Island Trees-8     11-3-1     2.
9.     John Glenn-11     15-1     NR
10.     Cornwall-9     10-3     16.
11.     New Hartford-3     11-3     10.
12.     Hendrick Hudson-1     7-2     14.
13.     Victor-5     11-3     18.
14.     Grand Island-6     8-3     17.
15.     Red Hook-9     9-1     11.
16.     Albion-6     10-1     19.
17.     Miller Place-11     12-3     9.
18.     Walter Panas-1     8-3     NR
19.     Rocky Point-11     12-3     12.
20.     Lake Shore-6     5-3     NR

Class B     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Granville-2     13-0     2.
2.     Kennedy-1     9-1     1.
3.     Chatham-2     13-1     3.
4.     Wellsville-5     11-1     4.
5.     Cold Spring Harbor-8     12-1     6.
6.     Windsor-4     11-1     8.
7.     Westhill-3     7-0     13.
8.     Ogdensburg-10     6-0     10.
9.     Holland Patent-3     12-2     5.
10.     Southampton-11     10-4     7.
11.     Dunkirk-6     11-3     11.
12.     Saranac-7     5-1     12.
13.     Dobbs Ferry-1     8-1     NR
14.     East Aurora-6     11-1     17.
15.     Beekmantown-7     5-1     NR
16.     Hastings-1     8-2     9.
17.     Center Moriches-11     12-3     NR
18.     Chenango Forks-4     10-4     18,
19.     Pine Plains9     8-3     NR
20.     Wayland-Cohocton-5     7-4     NR

Class C     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Candor-4     9-1     3.
2.     Maple Hill-2     9-1     4.
3.     Keio-1     8-1     1.
4.     Little Falls-3     11-1     2.
5.     Fort Plain-2     7-1     6.
6.     Ticonderoga-7     6-0     9.
7.     Elmira Heights Edison-4     11-1     7.
8.     Oakfield-Alabama-5     10-2     5.
9.     Brushton-Moira-10     4-0     13.
10.     Frewsburg-6     9-3     17.
11.     Frankfort-Schuyler-3     12-2     NR
12.     Blind Brook-1     8-2     8.
13.     Canisteo-Greenwood-5     7-1     15.
14.     Cattaraugus-Little Valley-6     10-2     NR
15.     Tuxedo-9     7-2     19.
16.     Oyster Bay-8     8-6     10.
17.     Pierson/Bridgehampton-11     9-6     NR
18.     Port Jefferson-11     10-7     18.
19.     Newfield-4     9-1     20.
20.     Norwood-Norfolk-10     4-4     NR

Class D     Record
=====     ====================     =====     =====
1.     Crown Point-7     6-0     3.
2.     Bolivar-Richburg-5     8-1     2.
3.     Chateaugay-10     4-0     4.
4.     Afton-4     10-2     1.
5.     Hamilton-3     9-1     7.
6.     Harrisville-10     8-1     NR
7.     Fort Ann-2     5-2     5.
8.     S.S. Seward-9     11-4     NR
9.     North Collins-6     5-2     9.
10.     South Kortright-4     6-0     NR
11.     New York Mills-3     7-3     NR
12.     Andover-5     6-1     NR
13.     Clifton-Fine-10     6-1     15.
14.     Pine Valley-6     7-3     11.
15.     Heuvelton-10     4-2     12.

— Lakeland is now No. 1 in the state in Class A, but that may change after the loss to Lourdes this past Monday.

— I’m a little surprised to see Hen Hud at No. 12 in Class A. Don’t get me wrong, they’re a very good team, but I think that’s a little high for them.

— Walter Panas moves into the state ranks at No. 18, which is interesting, while Somers drops out. One of Panas’ losses to Beacon was never recorded, so they had 4 losses at the time of this rankings. Now they sit at 8-5, so I figure they’ll be dropping out by the next rankings.

— Kennedy dropped to No. 2 in B behind Granville after losing to Ketcham. I don’t see how Kennedy still isn’t No. 1. But the good thing for them is that two of the top 3 teams in the state, Granville (1) and Chatham (3), both hail from Section 2, so only one of those teams will be in the state tournament.

Rankings are as of noon, Tuesday.

1) Kennedy Catholic (9-1) — So, the Gaels are human.

I know this is a cliché, but maybe a loss will be good for them. And it wasn’t like they lost to a pushover, as Roy C. Ketcham and the rest of League I-C are all as tough as nails. Dating back to last season, they had won 17 games in a row with their last loss coming May 23 of last year to Pearl River.

After scoring 83 runs in their previous five games, Kennedy’s powerful offense was held to a two spot by Ketcham. They mustered eight hits, but it looks like they couldn’t come through with runners in scoring position and two errors (two unearned runs) didn’t help either.

Should they be worried? I don’t think so. They had three losses last season. If anything, it’ll serve as a wake up call and show them they still have things to work on, no matter how good they are.

They’ll look to rebound this week with a big League III-A rivalry series with Briarcliff. I say they get back on track.

2) Lakeland (10-1) — Did I put the North County jinx on Lakeland by bringing up the word undefeated? Both previously unbeaten North County squads fell within a few days of each other. Lakeland lost to Our Lady of Lourdes, 8-3, Monday.

But just like with Kennedy, one loss is nothing to get alarmed about. It’s baseball — on any given day even the best of teams can have an off day and lose.

And with the pitching staff Lakeland has, I think they’ll just pick right up where they left off.

“All my pitchers, they throw to spots,” Coach Dennis Robinson said. “We don’t throw the ball down the middle of the plate.”

Jon Demarte sure was hitting those spots Saturday in the Hornets Sorrentino Game victory, which was their first win in the game in seven years. With Demarte and Joey Arena, two super sophs, Lakeland is in good hands for quite some time.

And senior catcher Jon Cosenza said they have more than just pitching.

“We’re very sure handed in the field,” he said. “We’ve got players stepping into other positions that they weren’t at originally Everyone’s really doing what they have to do. The hitting’s coming along now. We’re going to be very, very dangerous.”

3) Carmel (6-4) — After winning three in a row, the Rams fell in two 9-8 losses to Arlington this past week.

In their last four games the run differential has been a total of seven runs. That’s how competitive League I-C is. Every game seems to be close and down to the wire. Sure makes for great baseball.

Carmel has two tough ones with a Ketcham squad that knocked off Kennedy this week. Then they renew their rivalry with Mahopac Monday. I personally can’t wait for this one after the first game where Carmel came from behind in the final inning with a game winning hit from Ryan Shilling.

“All I have to do is write in the names on the lineup card and they’re ready to go,” Coach Bob Shilling said of playing Mahopac in Joe Lombardi’s column this week.

Don’t miss this one, you’ll regret it.

4) John Jay (7-2) — Jay picked up an 11-7 win over a very tough Fox Lane squad on April 29.

Indians No. 2 starter Louis Ricci (three RBI against Foxes) has somewhat struggled on the mound. He got tagged for nine hits and six earned runs against Fox Lane. Jared Hirschberg, however, has been solid and allowed no runs (two hits) in three innings of relief.

Now we know Jay can hit. Pitching will be what will make or break Jay come sectionals.

Kyle Clemmenson, Mike Filice, and Ray Maggi each had two RBIs in the win over the Foxes.

5) Mahopac (4-5) — A three game losing streak drops the Indians down a notch.

The Indians surrendered a 4-0 lead on Monday to Arlington, falling 5-4. To get out to a comfortable lead with ace Nick Iuni on the hill, and squander it, has to be defeating. I shouldn’t use the word comfortable, as no lead is safe in I-C.

The ’Pac faces a tough week with Arlington, Somers, and Carmel on tap. We’ll see what the Indians are made of now.

6) Somers (7-3) — The Tuskers padded their stats with two decisive wins (22-1, 13-1) over Yonkers this past week.

Zack Bird led the Tuskers at the plate with a home run and six RBIs in the two wins. Henry Ruhlandt went 6 for 6 with five RBIs.

Dan Zlotnick is also back in the batting order for the two-time defending Class A champs.

The Tuskers will take on Mahopac Saturday in what should be a strong sign of how far they have come this season.

Outside looking in: Hen Hud (8-2) swept both Beacon and Peekskill and continue to play well. They’ll take on a much improved Ossining squad this week. Walter Panas (8-5) suffered a 9-8 loss to Brewster Monday after blowing out the Bears Saturday (13-2). This is an exciting team to watch. I’m going to proclaim them the “Cardiac Kids” because you never know what you’re going to get. They’ve split four league series so far this season with Brewster, Ossining, Hen Hud, and Beacon. Looks like I put the hex on Briarcliff (8-3) after saying they were top contenders in Class B. They lost to Croton-Harmon and Hackley this past week.