MacArthur stops Kennedy in semis

Kennedy’s offense had the very chances many teams don’t get against No. 2 MacArthur. In fact, that the Cougars had the bases loaded three times in the first game of their best-of-three Nassau Class AA baseball semifinal series on May 22 an impressive feat in itself considering the Generals had allowed one run or fewer 14 times in their first 20 games. But every time Kennedy (17-6 overall) pushed, MacArthur’s pitchers pushed back a little harder in the 3-1 victory.

The very next day, the Generals completed the sweep of the series with a 14-3 win. “The second game, we let it get away,” Cougars coach Eric Passman said. “They hit, they pitched, they scored some runs. They’re a very good team.”

The missed opportunities in the opener were undoubtedly the turning point. No. 3 Kennedy even did something few Generals’ opponents had accomplished in chasing the starting pitcher, Frank Ziegler, from the game. “You can pick and choose which one was the killer,” Passman said of the three bases loaded situations. “When you play MacArthur you’ve got to be on your game. You can’t have errors and you can’t make mistakes.”

Senior pitcher Jordan Boyer was on the hard-luck side of the game despite limiting MacArthur to just five hits and two earned runs. He struck out eight in pitching a complete game. “They scratched together two runs and scored the third on an error,” Passman said. “Jordan kept us in the game.”

The Cougars lone run came via the long ball off the bat of senior Noah Shulman. Named an All-County honoree for the third time in four varsity seasons, he ended his Kennedy career with another impressive campaign, batting .425 with five home runs and 26 runs batted in. Shulman batted over .400 for the third time. Senior David Leiderman also earned All-County honors, leading the team with a .609 average and posting at least two hits in 15 of the team’s 23 games. He also had just five strikeouts in a conference loaded with strong pitching.

In advancing to the semifinals for the second time in three seasons, perhaps the biggest key for Kennedy wasn’t the lofty statistics many players posted but the way the entire team jelled as a unit. “They were the best teammates,” Passman said. “They liked each other, pulled for each other and the results showed. To get to the semifinals and navigate this many difficult teams is tough.”