Wantagh keeps the ball rolling

Wantagh’s baseball team opened the Nassau Class A playoffs with a bang last Saturday.

The seventh-seeded Warriors defeated Valley Stream South, 8-2, on a combined three-hitter tossed by Will O’Brien, John Fitzgerald and Brendan Haas. The convincing victory set up a Monday showdown after press time at second-seeded Division in the second game of Wantagh’s four-team double-elimination bracket to determine a semifinalst.

Wantagh rolled into the playoffs with a 14-4 regular season mark in Conference A-II and finished just behind Division in the standings after dropping a doubleheader to its area rival on May 7. Longtime head coach Keith Sachs said Wantagh and Division are among the highest ranked teams in the state and it’s unfortunate only one will be able to advance to the semifinals.

“A game that should be taking place in the county final takes place in the second game,” Sachs said of Wantagh and Division being matched up so early. “It is what it is.”

Wantagh’s strong pitching led starters Will O’Brien, Jimmy Joyce and Bobby Hegarty have keyed the Warriors’ strong season. Number one starter O’Brien picked up his seventh win of the season in Saturday’s playoff opener with Joyce and Hegarty entering the postseason with four victories each on the mound. Hass has also been stellar as a relief pitcher out of the bullpen.

“With our pitching we just need to throw strikes and manufacture runs,” said Sachs. ‘We don’t need a lot of runs to win.”

Wantagh has been getting offensive production from the top three hitters in the lineup, Anthony D’Onofrio, Fitzgerald and Joyce. D’Onofrio and Fitzgerald both registered two hits and scored two runs in Wantagh’s playoff win Saturday. Joyce doubled home the winning run in a 5-4 win against Division on May 2 that at the time put the Warriors at 12-1 on the season.

“Our first three guys in the order have been seeing the ball very well,” said Sachs. “They have been very consistent.”

Sachs said if Wantagh can reach the best-of-three semifinals the pitching depth will come more into play, but reaching that stage will be a challenge. In addition to Division and Valley Stream South, the Warriors’ bracket also features Conference I opponent Garden City.

“We are probably in the toughest bracket in the state,” said Sachs. “We’re capable of winning a state championship or losing in the county quarterfinals.”

Milestone Victory
With a 7-2 win against Plainedge on May 9, Sachs earned his 400th career win as Wantagh baseball coach. Sachs, who is also Wantagh football coach, has guided the Warriors to the playoffs in each of his 22 seasons including a state championship in 1998 and Long Island title in 2010. Reflecting on the accomplishment, Sachs said what matters to him most are the more than two decades of friendships he has fostered with the many alums supporting the program.

“It means I have great relationships with so many great players who have come through here,” Sachs said. “It’s a great program.”