With an eye toward the start of the Section II baseball season, here is a look at the Big 10.
Albany Falcons
Head coach: Joey DiPiazza
Returning all-stars: Michael Hughes (senior IF/P), Patrick Landers (senior OF/P), Justin Harris (senior C), Jevonte Osterhout (junior IF), Stephen Richards (junior IF), Jake Valentine (senior OF/P), Justin Nowak (senior IF/OF)
Outlook: Shaker High School graduate DiPiazza is hoping to guide the Falcons to loftier heights after finishing second in the Big 10 last year. I think on paper we have one of the better teams in the section. We just have to go out and execute the fundamentals of the game, he said.
Pitching will be a key for Albany this year, as Hughes and Landers return to anchor the staff. `I think we have one of the best pitching staffs in the section but we need a team effort to get this (winning the league title) done,` said DiPiazza.
Amsterdam Rugged Rams
Returning all-stars: Sean Whitty (senior C/P), Jose Ramirez (senior IF), Dan McNamara (senior IB/OF/P), Mike Cranker (senior 1B/P)
Outlook: The Rugged Rams are looking for a better finish after dropping into the middle of the Big 10 pack last year. Whitty was a first-team all-star pitcher, while Ramirez and McNamara earned second-team all-star nods for their work in the field.
Bishop Gibbons Golden Knights
Head coach: Dwight Doepel
Returning all-stars: Ryan Maxwell (junior SS), Charlie Bouchard (senior OF)
Outlook: Doepel is still trying to grow the Gibbons baseball program. `This is the first year that we’ve had a junior varsity program,` said Doepel. `I’m hoping that we improve over our 0-16 season (last year), but it’s a tough league.`
Bishop Maginn Golden Griffins
Head coach: Mike Grasso
Returning all-stars: Chris Jeffers (junior IF/P), Andrew Butler (senior IB/P), Davante Buie (sophomore OF/P), Ryan Gaffney (senior IF/P), Dylan Tully (junior IF/P)
Outlook: Grasso will have one of the most experienced pitching staffs in the league with Jeffers, Butler and Gaffney anchoring the rotation. `That’s the one thing about the Big 10 ` there’s more teams with more pitching,` said Grasso. `It’s going to be a challenge day in and day out to step up and get things done offensively.`
Catholic Central Crusaders
Head coach: Greg Hansen
Returning all-stars: Rory Sweeney (junior P/IF), Bradley Adams (freshman IF/OF), Jack Lerioux (freshman IF/OF), Brice McMahon (junior IF/OF)
Outlook: The Crusaders finished in the lower portion of the Big 10 standings last year, but with four players earning honorable mentions for the all-league team, Hansen has hope they can move up the ranks this year. `We’re a very young team with a lot of potential,` he said. `The future looks like it could be bright.`
CBA Brothers
Head coach: Dave Doemel
Returning all-stars: Chris Sand (senior 1B), Josh Lewyckyj (senior SS), Dave Russo (senior C)
Outlook: With eight seniors returning from last year’s team, Doemel said he’s optimistic that the Brothers can challenge for the league title. `We’re searching for pitching right now because Billy Creighton broke his hand during basketball season, but we’ve got a lot of hitters returning,` he said. `We’ve proven that we can hit the ball well. What it all comes down to is how well we can pitch the ball.`
Sand and Lewyckyj head up CBA’s offense. Sand batted a team-best .491 last year with four home runs and 29 RBI, while Lewyckyj batted .439 with 16 RBI.
LaSalle Cadets
Head coach: Jesse Braverman
Returning all-stars: Kyle Charron (senior P/IF), Lukas Bridenbeck (senior C/OF), Will Remillard (junior C/OF), Scott Morrissey (senior OF/P)
Outlook: Last year’s Class AA Sectional champions graduated several key players, but the pitching staff is still formidable with Charron leading the Cadets. `We really like our team this year,` said Braverman. `We lost several talented players from our team, but we also brought up several talented players from our JV team.`
Schenectady Patriots
Head coach: John Isabella
Returning all-stars: Dante Schaffer (senior IF/P), Ryan Zielinski (senior IF/P)
Outlook: The Patriots are hoping the experience they gained last year will help them in 2009. `I’m excited about (the season) because these four seniors (Schaffer, Zielinski, Alex Jurczynski and Nick Ottati) have experience, which we didn’t have last year,` said Isabella. `I think we’ll be more solid on the (pitcher’s) mound, which is something we weren’t last year.`
Troy Flying Horses
Head coach: Curtis Nobles
Returning all-stars: Anibal Maldonado (junior OF), Iziah McCowan (junior P), Mason Duncan (junior OF), Andrew Christie (senior OF)
Outlook: The Flying Horses are another team hoping to be in the mix for a Big 10 title, thanks to an experienced pitching staff led by McCowan. `It’s vital at any level, from modified to the major leagues,` said Nobles. `With an experienced staff, we like our chances with everyone that we put on the hill.“