Ward Melville 4, Longwood 3: Ryan Sims and Dan Iannotti each went 2-for-3 for Ward Melville in a league opener shortened to six innings by darkness. Matt DeRosa pitched a four-hitter with seven strikeouts for Ward Melville. WP – DeRosa. LP – Spilman. HR – L 1 (Hanson). Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 30 Mar 2001:
Longwood 9, Ward Melville 7: Phil Picciano scored on an RBI double by Alex Bardeguez in the bottom of the fourth inning to give Longwood a 8-0 lead. Bardeguez went 2-for-4. WP – Spilberg. LP – Iannotti.
Monday
Longwood 10, Ward Melville 8: Dave Lagala’s RBI single in the top of the eighth inning scored Jimmy Coleman to give Longwood a 7-6 lead. Longwood tacked on three more runs in the inning. WP – Vandewalle. LP – Iannotti. April 4
Longwood 1, Patchogue-Medford 0: Dave Lagala’s two-out RBI single in the top of the seventh won it. David Wood tossed a two-hit shutout and struck out eight. April 6
Longwood 4, Patchogue-Medford 3: Jimmy Coleman’s single drove in John McVey with the winning run in the bottom of the eighth for Longwood in League I. Patchogue’s David Johnson hit a three-run double in the seventh to tie the score at 3. April 10
Longwood 4, Patchogue-Medford 3: Bryan Hansen went 3-for-3, including a two-run single in the first inning that gave Longwood a 2- 0 lead in League I. Mike Brillante’s two-run single in the fourth made it 4-0. Ryan Spilberg scattered seven hits, walked three and struck out six to earn the win. –Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 11 Apr 2001:
Longwood 15, Brentwood 4: Tim Nese went 4-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs, and Dylan Vandewalle went 2-for-2 for Longwood (8- 3). Bryan Hansen hit a three-run homer in the first. Brentwood is 2- 6. WP – Nese. LP – Kruger. HR – L: Hansen, Picciano, Nese. April 15
Longwood 5, Sachem 3: Phil Picciano’s two-run single sparked a five-run fifth inning for Longwood in League I. David Wood went 2- for-3 with an RBI and Timmy Nese gave up six hits in 6 1/3 innings and struck out five for Longwood (6-2). Sachem is 3-2. April 19
Sachem 13, Longwood 1: Mike Parisi had a four-hitter, struck out nine and walked two to help Sachem coach Bill Batewell to his 400th win yesterday in a League I game. Tommy Bobka (three RBIs) hit a two- run homer to spark an eight-run sixth for Sachem. Drew Adler 3-for-5 with three RBIs for Sachem (4-2). Longwoodis 6-3. April 20
Longwood 7, Brentwood 4: Bryan Hansen went 3-for-3 with two homers and three RBIs to lead Longwood in a League I game. Phil Picciano went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer in the third inning, and David Wood followed with a solo homer. Wood pitched a five-hitter with 14 strikeouts for Longwood (7-3). Brentwood is 2-5. – Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 24 Apr 2001
Longwood 15, Brentwood 4: Tim Nese went 4-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs, and Dylan Vandewalle went 2-for-2 for Longwood (8- 3). Bryan Hansen hit a three-run homer in the first. Brentwood is 2- 6. WP – Nese. LP – Kruger. HR – L: Hansen, Picciano, Nese. – Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 25 Apr 2001
Longwood 11, Brentwood 2: Mike Brillante was 3-for-4 with four RBIs, including a three-run homer in the top of third inning for Longwood (9-3). Phil Picciano added four hits. Brentwood is 2-7. WP – Spilberg. LP-Shrouder. HR – L: Vandewalle, Brillante. April 27
Longwood 5, Lindenhurst 1: Dave Wood hit a grand slam to break a tie at 1 in the bottom of the fifth inning for Longwood. Wood also went the distance, giving up one unearned run on three hits with 13 strikeouts. WP – Wood. LP – Schame. HR – Lo: Wood. May 1
Longwood 8, Floyd 1: David Wood pitched a one-hitter with 11 strikeouts and a walk to lead Longwood. Wood went 2-for-2 with two RBIs, and Alex Bardeguez 2-for-4 with three RBIs for Longwood (10- 3). Floyd is 3-13. WP – Wood. LP – Pominski. May 8
Longwood 17, Floyd 4: David Wood went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer, four runs and five RBIs for Longwood. Dave Lagala went 2-for- 2 with a two-run homer and four RBIs and Bryan Hansen 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs for Longwood (11-3). Floyd is 3-14. WP – Nese. LP – Adams. HR – L: Hansen, Wood, Lagala; F: Borail. May 9
Longwood 5, Smithtown 0: Tim Nese tossed a one-hitter, struck out 11 and walked six to lead Longwood in League I. The only hit Nese surrendered was a two-out, first-inning single. David Wood went 2- for-3 with a two run-homer and three RBIs and Mike Brillante had a two-run single for Longwood (14-3). Smithtown is 12-5. May 16
Longwood 3, Smithtown 2: Ryan Spilberg pitched a complete game, scattering six hits and striking out four as Longwood (15-3) clinched the League I championship. Bryan Hansen‘s two-out, two-run double in the top of the seventh erased a 2-1 deficit. Phil Picciano was 3-for- 3 with an RBI for Longwood. – May 18
Longwood 10, Huntington 0: David Wood allowed two hits and struck out nine in six innings for No. 4 Longwood in a Suffolk Class A first- round playoff. Dylan Vandewalle (2-for-3, three runs) led off the bottom of the first with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly by Bryan Hansen (2-for-3, three runs, 6 RBIs) to give Longwood a 1-0 lead. Hansen’s three-run homer highlighted a five-run fifth for Longwood (18-4). No. 13 Huntington is 11-10. May 25
Longwood 15, Commack 8: David Wood’s bases-loaded triple and Bryan Hansen‘s RBI single highlighted a five-run first inning for No. 4 Longwood in a Class A quarterfinal. Hansen and Wood each had two-run doubles in an eight-run third for Longwood. Hansen went 4-for-5 with a double, a homer and six RBIs and Wood went 2-for-2 with five RBIs. Alex Bardeguez went 3-for-4 for Longwood (19-4). No. 5 Commack is 16- 6. – May 26
Longwood Ousts Connetquot: [SUFFOLK Edition]
Gregg Sarra. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 31 May 2001
Different day, new weather pattern with no rain in sight and a chance to finally move into the county Class A baseball final. They resumed the Connetquot-Longwood Class A playoff game yesterday.
The biggest difference came in the way of the lightning. It didn’t come from the sky, but from the left arm of Longwood junior David Wood.
The indefatigable Wood, who threw 35 pitches in two innings Tuesday before the game was suspended because of lightning, returned to Ronkonkoma to finish what he started .
Wood fired a three-hit masterpiece and struck out six as Longwood downed Connetquot, 4-0, before 733 fans in a Suffolk Class A semifinal baseball game.
“We were up 2-0 and in a better situation than they were coming back,” Longwood coach John Davide Jr. said. “Connetquot is a classy program and he [coach Bob Ambrosini] does a great job. It was a whole different set of circumstances today. Anything could have happened.”
It was the 13th win in a row for No. 4 Longwood (19-3), which won the state Class A championship in 1998 in Davide’s rookie year as a coach. The Lions will meet No. 3 Deer Park for the Class A championship today at the PAL Complex in Holbrook at 4 p.m. Top- seeded Connetquot finished 20-2.
Ambrosini elected to use pitcher Chris Wakefield with runners at second and third and two outs in the top of the third inning when the game resumed. Wakefield walked Jim Coleman before he got Alex Bardequez to ground out to end the threat.
The momentum could have swung the Thunderbirds’ way after escaping that jam. But Wood (7-2) made sure that wasn’t the case. Wood needed four pitches to retire the side in the third.
“He threw 35 pitches on Tuesday and we weren’t sure if he’d be able to pitch,” Davide said. “We decided to go with him after he warmed up and said he felt fine.”
Wood went with Longwood athletic trainer Michelle Dorn to therapy after the suspended game Tuesday and did some icing, stretching and massage to help decrease soreness and swelling after his two innings of work.
“I’m sure the kid [Wood] wanted the ball,” Ambrosini said. “You want those type of kids; he’s a competitor. We never really tested him. He was in total control.”
Longwood scored a run in the fourth and fifth innings to take a 4- 0 lead. In the fourth, Dylan Vandewalle singled, stole second and scored with two outs on a Bryan Hansen single.
Hansen had a monstrous, one-out triple in the sixth inning but was stranded at third base.
“It was absolutely the furthest ball he’s hit all year,” Davide said. “It would have been out of any park.”
The lefty-swinging Hansen, who has a county-leading eight home runs, was 3-for-4 with one RBI.
“It’s not a surprise that the scouts like this kid,” Davide said. “They come to practices to watch him hit. He’s a big-time prospect.”
And the underclassman Wood is following in his footsteps.
Deer Park 5, Sachem 3: Senior Tim Layden (11-0) allowed two infield hits and struck out eight in five innings as the Falcons erased a 3-1 second-inning deficit. Deer Park (22-2) used a four-run third inning to key the comeback victory.
Falcons leftfielder Bobby Nekola doubled to lead off the third and scored on Layden’s two-out double to centerfield to make it 3-2. Jesse Bebbino was intentionally walked before shortstop Mike Pagliuca reached on an infield error to load the bases.
John Auletta doubled to right-centerfield on the next pitch to clear the bases for the 5-3 lead. Then it was up to the lefthanded Layden to finish the job. No.7 Sachem (17-6) got a leadoff single from Matt Rickert, who was thrown out at second on a fielder’s choice. Drew Adler was then picked off first base for the second out before Layden induced a game-ending flyout.
Sachem starter Ron Hamilton (7-1), who did not allow a hit in the last three innings and finished with five strikeouts, suffered his first loss.
“The lightning which caused the suspension really helped us,” Deer Park coach Carmine Argenziano said. “It was all going Sachem’s way on Tuesday. We had a chance to regroup and get Timmy another day of rest.”
Now they’ll play for the title.
Wood Leads Longwood to Title / Ignores injury as Lions take Class A crown: [SUFFOLK Edition]
Gregg Sarra. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 01 June 2001
You definitely can’t take the wood out of Longwood. David Wood that is. The junior designated hitter/pitcher had everything to do with Longwood‘s surge into the Suffolk Class A baseball playoffs.
He was the dominant pitcher a team needs in a single-elimination format. And he had the sweet swing that helped deliver the Class A championship yesterday when he stroked a one-out, two-run triple to give Longwood a two-run lead in the fourth inning of its 4-2 victory over Deer Park before 1,033 fans at the PAL Complex in Holbrook.
It was the 14th win in a row for No.4 Longwood (20-3), which plays the Oceanside-East Meadow winner in a state Class A Southeast Regional/Long Island Championship Monday at Hofstra at 4 p.m.
Wood was the winning pitcher in Wednesday’s semifinal victory over top-seeded Connetquot, but he suffered a painful hip pointer sliding into second base. He refused to sit out yesterday’s game, and spent four hours Wednesday night at Longwood Physical Therapy with team trainer Michele Dorn getting treatment.
He was able to DH yesterday, and came through with the clutch triple, which made it 2-0, a double and a walk.
“He’s about as tough as they come,” said Longwood coach John Davide Jr., who the led Lions to their second county title in four years. “I know he was hurting pretty bad-but he wasn’t going to miss this game for anything.”
Wood launched a 1-and-1 pitch from Deer Park starter Jesse Bebbino deep into the right-centerfield gap to break up the scoreless tie in the fourth. He then lined a one-out double in the sixth and scored on Jim Coleman’s two-out double to give the Lions a 4-2 advantage.
“I just had to ignore the pain and concentrate on the game,” Wood said. “This is just great.”
For three innings, Bebbino and Longwood senior lefthander Tim Nese matched zeros. Nese would go on to strike out nine and finish with a four-hitter. Bebbino also struck out nine.
No.3 Deer Park (22-3) cut the 3-0 deficit to 3-2 in its half of the fourth inning. Mike Pagliuca’s double was the key hit, setting up a second and third situation with none out. But after the fourth, Nese (7-0) shut down Deer Park.
“I mixed it up well and kept them off balance,” said Nese, who finished with a flourish by striking out the side in the seventh. “The defense came up big when I needed it.”
Davide was particularly impressed by the way Nese got stronger in the last three innings, when he allowed one hit, one walk and struck out five.
“He had some adrenalin pumping in the seventh because he was just mowing them down,” Davide said. “We’ve peaked at just the right time.”
Deer Park coach Carmine Argenziano was ejected in the top of the seventh after he argued a close call at first base. It was only the second time in a highly successful 27-year coaching career that he was tossed from a game.
“This is an emotional game and every call is important,” said Argenziano, who felt the ejection was not justified. “We didn’t agree with the call and I contested it. I guess he didn’t like my tone-but I never disrespected him. He said the runner was safe because it was a tie at the base. I hoped it would fire up the team and get us going- but it didn’t.”
And Longwood will move on.
Longwood Sells the Drama / Defending champ Oceanside nipped in ‘A’ title game:
Mark La Monica. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, [Long Island, N.Y]. 05 June 2001
It was a game unlike a lot of others, the kind where both teams deserve to win and neither deserves to lose.
In a game that would end one team’s season and put the other into the state final four tournament, defending state champion Oceanside and 1998 champ Longwood yesterday staged one of the finest high school baseball games you could ever come across.
In the type of game that is supposed to decide a championship, both teams played flawless defense and rode the dominating arms of their starting pitchers.
In the end, Longwood emerged with a 2-0 victory in nine innings in the state Class A Southeast Regional/Long Island Championship before 500-plus fans at Hofstra.
“Unbelievable,” Longwood starter David Wood said. “I’ve never been in anything like that before. I was just hoping I could stick through it.”
Wood, a junior lefthander pitching on a full four days rest, carried a one-hitter through 7 2/3 innings. After Oceanside’s Jon Kourie poked a ball in the hole between shortstop and third base with two out in the bottom of the second, Wood retired the next 18 batters he faced. Only two balls reached the outfield in that span, both flyballs to rightfielder Tim Nese.
Wood gave up a total of four hits, walked none and struck out eight. Dom DiDomenico was the only Oceanside player yesterday that could confirm the existence of second base against Wood.
Oceanside righthander Nick Conte, a senior throwing on two days rest, matched Wood the entire way, surrendering one hit and five walks, two intentional, and struck out 12 through eight scoreless innings.
“I’m sitting on the bench over here and if I could get any closer to the field, I would have,” Longwood coach John Davide said. “It was like a movie. You’re sitting on the edge of your seat.”
Even the finest screenwriters in all the land could not have scripted a more dramatic way for a team to earn its second trip to the state tournament in Davide’s four years as coach.
First baseman Bryan Hansen, hitless in three previous at-bats, stroked an opposite-field double down the leftfield line to lead off the top of the ninth. Conte then retired Phil Picciano and intentionally walked Wood, bringing Mike Brillante to the plate.
Brillante, who ripped two shots for outs earlier in the game, lined a single to left-center to score Hansen with the decisive run. Wood went to third on Brillante’s hit and scored on a wild pitch for the 2-0 lead.
“Bryan’s been our clutch player,” Davide said. “If anybody was going to get a big hit, it was going to be him. The Major League draft is [today], and I’m hoping to get a phone call from his dad around 2 o’clock.”
Several scouts in the stands yesterday believe Hansen’s bat, glove and footwork at first base could earn him that phone call. “It’s been crazy hitting for the scouts every day, but I hope it works out,” Hansen said. “I’ve always wanted to play baseball. That’s my life.”
Either way, Hansen will continue playing high school ball for at least one more game. Longwood (21-4) rides a 15-game winning streak into in Saturday’s state semifinal at 10 a.m. at Murnane Field in Utica. Ketcham (Section I) will play the winner of today’s Union- Endicott (Section IV)-Kingston (IX) game tomorrow to decide Longwood‘s next opponent.
Oceanside (22-6) threatened in the bottom of the ninth as DiDomenico and C.J. China singled with one out. Wood got Billy Weitzman to fly to right, just the third outfield putout of the game for Longwood. Wood then struck out catcher Brendan Harrigan looking on a big, sweeping curveball.
Longwood‘s Brillante reached third base with one out in the fifth, but was stranded when Brendan Springstubb made a diving stop up the first base line and Conte struck out Pete Biscardi.
“It could have gone either way,” Hansen said of the thriller. “Our hitting came at the right time.”
HIGH SCHOOLS / STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS / Longwood Rallies, Then Falls: [NASSAU AND SUFFOLK Edition]
Gregg Sarra. STAFF CORRESPONDENT. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 10 June 2001:
Utica-Before yesterday, no one could solve the pitching of Longwood‘s David Wood. The junior lefty spun two playoff shutouts and didn’t allow a run in 23 consecutive innings.
Then Wood met Union-Endicott (Section IV), perhaps the hottest- hitting team in any classification of the state tournament. The Tigers had scorched two previous tourney opponents with 30 runs and 36 hits.
Union-Endicott greeted Wood with a three-run, three- hit first inning, watched Longwood tie it up and then sent the Lions packing with a three-run sixth, earning a 7-3 victory in a state Class A baseball semifinal before 433 fans at Murnane Field. The loss ended Longwood‘s winning streak at 15 games.
“They were a disciplined team and didn’t swing at any bad pitches,” said Wood, who earned Suffolk’s League I MVP award. “They were everything advertised. I hope they win it all.”
After the surprising first inning in which Wood allowed three unearned runs, he gave up two hits and one run in the next four. He retired 12 of 14 batters as the Lions (22-5) clawed their way back into the game. “[Wood] does a nice job with his breaking pitches and tries to get the batter into those deep counts,” Union-Endicott coach Ed Folli said. “He’s very smooth. We’ve been running on pitchers all season -but not against him.”
Union-Endicott (22-4) took the lead for good in the fourth. Chris Herrick singled, moved to second on a wild pitch and went to third on a groundout. He scored on Wood’s third wild pitch to break a 3-3 tie.
“[Catcher Peter Biscardi] wasn’t getting his legs down to block the low pitches and the balls were deflecting off his shin guards,” Longwood coach John Davide Jr. said. “He’s been doing a great job for us back there all season. He had trouble today. But without him we wouldn’t be here. The catcher’s spot was a big question mark for us and he stepped in and did a super job.”
In the sixth, centerfielder Dylan Vandewalle-who had slipped and fallen in the first inning, turning a sure out into an RBI triple- misjudged a routine fly into a one-out double that put runners on second and third. Union-Endicott went on to score three runs, one when leftfielder Mike Brillante dropped a fly ball.
Longwood took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first after Vandewalle reached on an infield error and moved to third on Tim Nese’s single. First baseman Bryan Hansen, who was drafted in the sixth round by the Philadelphia Phillies, launched a long fly ball that centerfielder Jamie Renfro ran down. The sacrifice fly was Hansen’s 38th RBI of the season.
In the fourth, Wood tripled off the right-centerfield wall and Brillante and Alex Bardeguez contributed RBI singles as the Lions scored twice to tie the score at 3. “I wasn’t too concerned when we fell two runs behind because we have the makeup and the character to come back,” Davide said. “We just didn’t play the defense we’ve played all season.”
The Longwood defense was questionable throughout. The Lions committed three errors, misplayed two other fly balls into hits, threw four wild pitches and had a passed ball.
“We’ve had better days,” said Davide, who has guided the Lions to the state tournament in two of his four years. “We proved we could play with anyone and that’s why we were here.”
Clutch, Savvy Wood Earns Gibson Award: [NASSAU AND SUFFOLK Edition]
Gregg Sarra. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 14 June 2001:
No one around the Longwood baseball team is naive enough to expect next season to be as smooth as this one was. The loss of 12 seniors will make that a difficult task. But the team still will have reason to dream, thanks to the return of dominant lefthander David Wood.
With a clutch hit or a fabulous pitching performance, Wood came through time after time to help the Lions earn Longwood‘s second Long Island Class A title in four years.
He finished with a 10-3 record, including two playoff shutouts, and 0.87 ERA in earning the Suffolk League I MVP award. He struck out 15 batters in one game and 13 in another.
For his efforts, the 6-2, 180-pound junior was named the recipient of the fifth Paul Gibson Award – presented to Suffolk’s top pitcher – at the Suffolk Baseball Coaches Association All-County dinner last night at Polish Hall in Riverhead. The other finalists for the award were Sachem senior Ron Hamilton (9-1) and East Islip freshman Brian Johnson (10-1).
“He is an extremely competitive player with the leadership qualities and the resolve to help us win the big games,” Longwood coach John Davide Jr. said. “David was a key to our success. He came through all the time. He was able to overcome some pressure situations and lead us into the state championships. Dave had such poise and control all the time, and that set him apart from the competition.”
After Sachem won two of three against Longwood in a pivotal League I series, the Lions ripped off 14 straight wins on their way to a state semifinal appearance.
Wood tossed 23 consecutive scoreless innings in the playoffs, a school record. He fired a 4-0 shutout over top-seeded Connetquot in the Suffolk semifinals and showed great stamina in a 2-0, nine- inning complete-game win over Oceanside to claim the Long Island title.
“Sometimes you have to raise the bar and pick up your level of play to compete,” Wood said. “When the game is on the line, I want the ball.”
Wood, who batted .492, found comfort in pressure situations. He liked the challenge of both ends of the hitter-pitcher confrontation.
“He’s all about composure,” his father, Dave Wood, said. “I’ve never seen him get nervous or shook up over anything.”
Longwood first baseman Bryan Hansen was selected in the sixth round by Philadelphia…Deer Park lefthander Tim Layden was selected in the 16th round by Tampa Bay…Briarcliffe College righthander Jeffrey Muessig (Mount Sinai) was chosen by Oakland in the 20th round…St. Francis pitcher Jason Fardella, a one-time standout at Archbishop Molloy, was selected in the 11th round by Colorado…Former Xaverian standout Billy Ryan was taken in the 19th round by Detroit. – Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 06 June 2001:
