60.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Lynbrook Owls continue winning ways
Team undefeated through four conference games
Emergency starting pitcher Will Norris went five innings and shortstop Vin Sharkey homered, tripled and drove in three runs to lead Lynbrook to a 7-5 victory over Valley Stream North in a Conference A-II baseball game at Marion Street Elementary School on Monday afternoon.
Norris, who got the nod on the mound because fellow junior Dan Grossi experienced tightness in his throwing shoulder, allowed four runs—two earned—on seven hits over five innings. Junior Spencer Kirsch worked the last two innings to save it for the Owls, who upped their conference record to 3-0-1.
“Will didn’t know he was pitching until about 30 minutes before the game, but I knew it wouldn’t matter to him,” Lynbrook coach Al Marrazzo said of Norris, who threw 106 pitches. “He gave us a gutty performance.”
Valley Stream North (2-2) starting pitcher Greg Gonzalez also had a gallant effort. He shrugged off two line drives off his right leg in the first inning, including one off the bat of Brian Bilello that bounced out of play for a run-scoring double. Gonzalez kept the Spartans close after they dug a 5-0 deficit by blanking Lynbrook in the third and fourth.
After a three-run first, the Owls padded their lead in the second when Andrew Marks doubled home T.J. Virgona and Sharkey drilled a solo homer to left-center. “Vinny has hit the ball hard all spring,” Marrazzo said of Sharkey, a junior who singled and scored in the first and tripled home two insurance runs in the sixth. “He’s been frustrated by hitting some shots right at people, but the important thing is he’s having solid at-bats.”
The Spartans broke out with four runs in the top of the third to get within one. Kyle Sicarella singled with one out and scored on an error to get them on the board. Freshman Anthony Martelli, who hits fourth in the lineup, laced a two-run double and scored on a double by Nick Baratto.
“We had one big inning where we strung a bunch of hits together,” VSN coach Wally Bachman said. “We have a talented team and need to do that more often.”
