Valley Stream South occupies top spot

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Valley Stream South celebrated its eighth victory in nine games to remain in the driver’s seat in Nassau Conference VII softball, defeating Friends Academy, 19-6, behind perfect days at the plate from senior shortstop Ysabela Quinones and the junior battery of pitcher Sarah Rizzo and catcher Trinity Smiley on April 27.
Quinones and Rizzo both went 4-for-4 and scored four times, with Rizzo driving in five runs, and Smiley went 3-for-3 with four runs and four RBIs to lead the Falcons, who upped their winning streak to six straight and their record to 9-2.
“We’ve been putting up a lot of runs,” VSS coach Demetri Adrahtas said. “It’s nice we control our own destiny to win the conference since we were able to beat the two teams closest to us, Lawrence and Valley Stream Central, the first time around.”
Quinones has been impossible to keep off the bases, Adrahtas said, and has a resume that includes an All-County selection last spring and two All-Conference seasons. She’s a five-year starter who leads off and has reached base in all but four of 60 plate appearances.
“Ysabela is such an exciting player to watch and the best player in our conference,” Adrahtas said. “She flies all over the bases and makes diving stops in the field.”

Smiley is another fifth-year varsity player and one of the more talented catchers in the county, Adrahtas said. She’s the team’s cleanup batter, hits bombs on occasion and is always looking to erase opposing baserunners. “Trinity has a cannon arm and nobody can run on her,” Adrahtas said. “Once she throws someone out in a game, it takes away the threat. It’s wild how good she is behind the plate. She can make really strong throws from her knees.”
Rizzo has handled the majority of the pitching as of late and has five wins. Senior Alyssa Fazal has four victories. Rizzo also plays first base and is among the team’s leading hitters. She did it all April 13 to lead an 11-3 victory over Valley Stream Central, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs with the stick and striking out seven in the circle. “Sarah’s a smart hitter and hard-throwing pitcher,” Adrahtas said. “Some opponents just can’t catch up to the speed.”
Seventh-grader Julie Candelario hits second in the lineup and starts at third base. “She plays travel ball and has great swing mechanics,” Adrahtas said of Candelario, who could be the next shortstop in the program following Quinones’ graduation. “She’s been smoking the ball all over the place.”
Senior Elizabeth Traill plays first base when Rizzo pitches, and patrols center field when Fazal throws. Junior Christina Barkolas plays center when Traill doesn’t, and slides to right field otherwise. Senior Kaitlyn VanEtten starts at second base, and junior Alexee Peets and sophomore Kaleilah Martin contribute in the outfield.
South visits Central this Friday for a 5 p.m. start at Firemen’s Field. The Falcons then close with home games against Malverne and Westbury on May 9 and 10, respectively.