Consistent Rams on win streak

When the 2016 baseball season got under way at West Hempstead, head coach Kevin Cloughessy preached the importance of limiting mistakes and remaining poised when things don’t go as planned. While errors would be inevitable, Cloughessy wanted his team to focus on putting misplays in the past.

Thus far, the Rams have bought into the philosophy, and the results on the field have been pretty positive. After dropping the first two games, West Hempstead (8-4 overall, 7-3 in Nassau Countywide) has won eight of its past 10 contests, and is riding a four-game winning streak.

The Rams closed out a perfect four-win week with a 10-4 victory over visiting Elmont. Junior Matt Arasmo went the distance on the mound, and went 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI. Ryan Sandberg went 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBI.

Cloughessy likes the improvements his team has made. “The defense has been pretty strong, and we’ve played consistently,” Cloughessy said. “We’ve had a few setbacks, but I’m happy with the progress. We’ve really been two teams. When we pitch well, we make the plays in the field. When we’re not throwing strikes, things aren’t going as well for us. We’ve been aggressive at the plate and on the bases, and that’s been a real positive.”

Being assertive has paid off in big spots for the Rams. None bigger than when Oyster Bay, a perennial power, made the trip to West Hempstead. Sandberg pitched a gem, striking out 13 batters, walking one, and yielding just two hits as the Rams knocked off the Baymen 2-1. 

After Sandberg scored on a wild pitch to tie the game at 1-1, senior Ray Close’s squeeze bunt brought home junior Dylan Suffa with the go-ahead run in the bottom of the third. Sandberg shut the door on Oyster Bay the rest of the way. 

“That was a big win for us against a quality opponent,” Cloughessy said. “We didn’t play real well when we played the crossover games against Conference BC to start the season. Ryan mixed up his pitches real well, and we caught them off guard with the squeeze play. We executed the play really well.”

Arasmo, who is 3-0 with three complete games, gave up three hits in the first inning of a 3-2 win against Lawrence, and then held the Golden Tornadoes hitless the rest of the way. The Rams again used strong fundamentals to win the game. After Close singled to tie the game, Arasmo gave himself up and brought home Carl Frisch with a ground ball.  

Sandberg was dominant when the Rams hosted Westbury. The senior right-hander struck out a career-high 15 batters and scattered four hits to lead West Hempstead to a 7-1 victory. Early on in the season, Sandberg went 3-for-5 and knocked in four runs, Close was 3-for-4, and Arasmo went all seven in an 8-2 win at Malverne.

The Rams will host Elmont next Tuesday, May 3, at 4:30 p.m.