Clarke topped in L.I. title game

A few well-placed balls in the infield went a long way for Bayport-Blue Point in the Class A Long Island Baseball Championship game against Clarke at Farmingdale State College on June 3.

The Phantoms, the champions from Suffolk County — and ultimately New York State — had one ball leave the infield but pushed across four runs in the fifth inning to defeat the Nassau County champion Rams, 4-1. “They executed and got one or two breaks,” said Clarke coach Tom Abruscato, whose team went 22-6 overall.

The execution of hits came in the form of a pair of bunts — including a suicide squeeze that plated a run — and an infield single along with an error on Clarke’s behalf. It was enough for Bayport-Blue Point pitcher Jack Piekos, who didn’t rack up his normally high number of strikeouts — eight after averaging nearly 14 per game — but still made the runs stand up. “We did a good job and put the ball in play pretty well,” Abruscato said. “We had runners in scoring position in three different innings and didn’t get the big hit.”

Senior All-County honoree Jesse Russo drove in one of Clarke’s three All-State players, senior John Fogarty, with a single in the sixth. Fogarty capped his Rams’ career with a hefty .470 batting average, four home runs, 39 runs batted and 18 stolen bases this season. Russo swiped 17 bases and was followed closely by senior Joe Fusco, also an All-State honoree. Fusco tied for the Nassau lead in home runs during the regular season (seven) and piled up 36 RBI with a .405 batting average. The final All-State member for Clarke is senior Matt Seelinger, who scattered eight hits and struck out six against the Phantoms. He moved up in the rotation after a 4-1 mark as a junior and led the county in wins (10) as   a senior.

“His mechanics are very solid,” Abruscato said. “We knew he was capable with the knuckle-drop. The improvement was in his mechanics and poise. He maintained his composure.”

Junior designated hitter Mike Gismondi earned All-Conference honors after batting .320 with three homers and 32 RBI.

“To win the county championship we really had to concentrate on closing out games and treating the seventh inning as the first,” Abruscato said of the Rams’ growth from the start of the season. “There were some playoff games we would have lost if they were earlier in the year. They were much-improved in that area.”