He’s the staff ace for the third straight season, will bat second and play first base when he’s not on the mound. Clearly, McKee/Staten Island Tech will go as far as Ryan Mannello can take them.
“Ryan is the hands-down leader, he’s the guy the young players look to help them along,” MSIT coach Mike Grippo said of Mannello, who went 7-1 last year with a 0.95 ERA and won his first outing over Curtis, going seven shutout innings and striking out four. “They will look to Ryan’s poise, presence, confidence. Ryan is ready for it. He’s been going out there since his freshman year. He’s a battle-tested kid.”
The rotation after Mannello didn’t pitch a single inning in the PSAL last year. It includes junior right-hander Steven Ippolito and 6-foot-2 sophomore Paquale Montermarano. Neither is overpowering, but both feature moving fastballs and exceptional off-speed stuff.
“I’m focused on the young pitching staff, how they come along,” said Grippo, who has led the Seagulls to consecutive second-place finishes in Staten Island A. “So far; so good. They’re making good strikes.”
The lineup will rely on experience – the top four are returning players in third baseman-turned-shortstop David Kelter, Mannello, four-year start Frank Cautela (second base) and right fielder-turned-center fielder Scott Barnickel (13 RBIs, 11 runs scored last year).
The pitching staff is deep and the lineup experienced. It’s not just about the playoffs at New Dorp this year.
“With this team we have the capabilities to go a little deeper into the playoffs,” New Dorp coach Ray Smith said. “I’m excited about this year’s team. Our exepctations are a little higher.”
Smith has a four-man starting rotation of Danny Karasinski, Chris Fawcett, Nick Wilton and Michael Campanella with each getting one start apiece so far in four games – all wins. Karasinski, a 6-foot-4 right-hander, is the clear-cut ace after winning three games a year ago while Fawcett is with the varsity for a third straight year and Wilton, a 6-foot-3 senior, is finally academically eligible. Karasinski throws the hardest of the four as he tops out in the mid 80’s. But the Central Cougars should be a solid defensive club, especially with the middle infield of Steven Kuczera and Gerald Montanez.
“My shortstop and second baseman are as good as anybody’s,” Smith said.
The two are also important to New Dorp’s offense, Kuczera in the second spot and Montanez behind him. Third baseman Matt Domina, the quarterback on the football team, bats cleanup and he already has six RBIs.
With two wins apiece over Susan Wagner and Port Richmond, New Dorp is off to a fine start. It will be put to the test Friday when defending city champion Tottenville pays a visit.
“We want to compete with them, we want to give them a run for their money,” Smith said. “We’re just looking for resepct and I think this team will earn it.”
John Sce’s preseason fears have already been realized in a pair of losses to New Dorp by a combined six runs. Port Richmon
d has pitched extremely well, allowing nine runs, but has mustered just one.
“Our season is going to depend on how well we hit,” he said. “We expect to be in every game, but as our hitting goes, so will go our season.”
Sce is confident the lineup will produce eventually, though it lost productive hitter Matt Ayers, Cliff Brantley and David Carreonto to graduation. Junior Thomas Curry, the staff ace and shortstop, will hit third, four-year player Chris Osorio is dangerous, three-year starter Michael Violetta in center field bats at the top of the order and Sce has infielder/pitcher Dominique Caldwell near the bottom of the order for length purposes.
“It starts with those four guys,” Sce said.
Curry, Jose Sierra and Caldwell form a solid 1-2-3 on the mound. A JV call-up last spring, Sierra pitched Port Richmond into the playoffs while Curry was hurt. Curry, a junior right-hander is now healthy and features a fastball in the low 80’swith a good breaking ball while Sierra can get it up into the mid 80’s and Caldwell relies on control and keeping opposing hitters off balance.
Curtis has a slew of seniors bent on improving last year’s 4-14 league mark. The list includes first baseman/ace Brendan McCue, second baseman Andrew Rios, left fielder Adam Bilak and third baseman Joseph Prendergass.
Susan Wagner failed to reach the playoffs after dropping a play-in game against Port Richmond, but could be back in the postseason despite a number of key losses to graduation thanks to a deep pitching staff. Seniors George Tabone, Peter Fazio and Dominick Deliberti lead that group and infielder Caesar Brito is a key to the lineup along with Tabone and sophomore catcher Michael Bernstein.
Petrides hopes to climb out of the Staten Island A cellar with an experienced group of seniors headed up by southpaw ace Justin Dragonetti, catcher Carmine Sperto and outfielder David Carles. New coach Charles Hoffman hopes to guide the Panthers to the playoffs after they finished at the bottom of the division the last four years.
