Vikings sail for more success

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North Shore’s baseball team, having enjoyed continued success as defending conference champions over the past five seasons, and amassing a 19-5 record a year ago, looks to reset after graduating a massive senior class.

This reset button, however, can be promisingly quick as coach Scott Lineman attempts to shift his team’s playing style to the strengths of its up-and-coming varsity players.

“We’ve enjoyed a lot of success in the past as last year we won our fifth straight league championship,” Lineman said.

Leading the way for North Shore in last year’s title run were All-County seniors Nick Lucchese, a shortstop now playing for St. Thomas of Aquinas, and Francis Dromm, a lefty pitcher who is working off the rubber for SUNY Oswego. 

Lineman went on to discuss the differences between strengths of his teams in years past and this upcoming season. “In the past, we’ve been more of a “small ball’ type of team. A lot of bunting, hitting and running, and stealing bases offensively; we were more of a pitching and defensive team. However, I think the team we have right now can be one of the better hitting teams we’ve had in the past few years.”

However, although more focus is being put on the offense this spring, there is still great talent to be found on the mound. Returning senior Kenny Belanger, a lefty starting pitcher, is the ace of the rotation. Last season, Belanger amassed an impressive 1.30 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 19 innings. Sophomore David Aufiero, who has developed into a 4-pitch starter will also get a nod in the starting rotation.

Joe Livoti, the only other returning senior, was held in high regard by Lineman for his ability to be effective at multiple positions. “He’s going to do a lot for us defensively, and we expect him to have a lot of important at-bats for us,” Lineman said.

A big part of the offense last year was then-sophomore starting catcher Anthony Carleo, who was batting .429 before sustaining a hip injury that ended his season. Carleo looks to regain last season’s form as he will look to bat for a high average and lead the team in RBI’s while batting from the middle of that lineup once more.

After Carleo had to succumb to his season-ending injury, Lineman decided to call up two freshman last year to help replace his productivity. Those two were Dan Livoti, a catcher and starting pitcher, and Matt Lewin, a center fielder who Lineman expects to lead off this season.

When asked about if he will completely abandon the small-ball mentality, Lineman highlighted two players who will be a throwback to year’s past with their ability to hit for contact, bunt, and steal bases. Sean Hehn and Jake Walton, both juniors, are being looked to heavily.

“Both of them are extremely important to this club,” Lineman said. “If they play to their potential this year, we can win a lot of games.”

Lineman also lauded his assistant coach, Rob Gates, for his ability to direct the pitching staff successfully and mentally prepare his guys for the season ahead. Lineman is confident that, although with one of the conference’s youngest teams, this team is ready to compete once more, this time with a new look.