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Ray Curren – Elm City News
May 31, 2008 - I guess 2008 was the season of the usual suspects in the SCC baseball world, which makes it hard tom find too many intriguing storylines, but you won‘t hear anyone at Guilford, Amity, Xavier, and Branford complaining.. Those four teams rolled to division titles - and although the Falcons and Hornets were dumped early in the state and SCC tournaments - dominated the conference.
There are many critics (with me occasionally being one of them) of the way the SCC schedules, with teams playing non-division opponents twice and never seeing certain teams for years at a time. However, the intent of what the SCC is trying to do was very obvious in the 2008 baseball season.
Teams that struggled last season, like Foran, Lyman Hall and East Haven, were able to rebound and easily qualify for the state tournament, while it seemed every team had meaningful games at the end of the season. But, in the end, the teams we thought would be at the top - for the most part - were. So, without further ado, here are the Elm City postseason awards for 2008.
Player of the Year
Winner: Jason Esposito, Amity - Guilford‘s Will Jolin was the preseason pick, but when injuries limited him this season, Esposito stepped right into the void, hitting nearly .450 with eight home runs. He was also Amity‘s closer and didn‘t give up an earned run until the SCC finals. Esposito also led Amity through some tough times and into their sixth straight SCC final as well as another deep run in the Class LL Tournament.
2) Tom Coughlin, Xavier - There were actually a few choices for the Falcons, who - like Amity - had a fairly potent lineup, but Coughlin‘s consistent pitching was the reason why it was rather easy for Xavier to win the Quinnipiac Division this season, despite their struggles in the postseason.
3) Conor Kinary, Notre Dame - Kinary, just a sophomore, made a late charge with eight hits in two games in the SCC Tournament. He was also the main reason behind the Green Knights‘ late season charge that culminated in their first SCC title since 2001. Unfortunately, the state tournament lasted just one game for ND, but Kinary will be back for the next two years.
Coach of the Year Winner: Pete Civitello, Guilford - Civitello actually finished behind Amity‘s Sal Coppola last year in this award, but he had much more adversity to deal with in 2008 than he had to in 2007. Will Jolin, expected to lead the Indians, has been in and out with injuries, while shortstop Sam Greenburg also missed the first two weeks of the campaign. Still, all the Indians did was finish 18-2, although they failed to defend their SCC crown.
2) Todd Williams, Foran - We knew the Lions would be better than 5-15 this season, but they‘ve beena lot better, and as of the weekend, still had a shot to take the Class M crown. Williams got plenty of help from some young talent, and seemed to get much better as the season progressed.
3) Brad Chernovetz, Career - The Panthers stumbled a little bit out of the gate, but were one of the most dangerous teams in the SCC by the end of the season. Chernovetz‘s squad has taken major strides in the last few season, and they may be able to cap it off with a Class S title this weekend.
Stories of the Year Winner: Death of Ed Marocco- It was a tragic story that takes top honors this season, as the long-time Shelton coach died of a heart attack just two weeks into the 2008 season. Marocco was a fixture on and off the field in Shelton, and his death cast a pall over the SCC. Marocco‘s Gaels recovered to make the SCC Tournament and did beat Notre Dame in the Class LL tournament, but were eliminated the next day.
2) Notre Dame, SCC champs - It wasn‘t as big a surprise as some people made it out to be, the Green Knights were probably the hottest team in the SCC heading into the postseason. However, any time a No. 6 (and last) seed wins the conference, it’s a story. Plus, they went through Xavier, Branford, and Amity to do it, three teams that they were 0-6 against in the regular season.
3) Prep and North Haven miss the tourney - It‘s been a long time since either of these programs missed the state tournament, let alone both of them. It was just a tough season for the Jesuits, who won only two games, despite being in plenty of the games. Meanwhile, the Indians got off to a decent start, but just couldn’t score, being shut out in five consecutive games down the stretch.
Team of the Year Winner: Xavier - The postseason takes a little bit of a shine off, but it shouldn’t completely obliterate what the Falcons were able to accomplish all season long. Xavier was rumored to be one of the top teams in the SCC, but sometimes word from Middletown can be a little slow and inaccurate.
2) Notre Dame - The Knights probably could have started to put it on cruise control, especially with no home field to speak of and a rocky start to the season. But they got their pitching staff in order, won a bunch of games down the stretch, and rode their momentum all the way to the SCC title.
3) Amity - Even though they took a little bit of a step backward, you can‘t take the Spartans completely off this list. With a completely revamped pitching staff, Amity still managed to win 16 regular season contests and make a deep run in the Class LL tournament. They‘ve also been to the SCC final six consecutive seasons. Ridiculous.
Games of the Year Winner: Amity 15, Guilford 10, April 2 - We were expecting a pitchers‘ duel on Opening Day, but we got the exact opposite. Will Jolin was staked to a big early lead, and it appeared like it was game over, but Jolin‘s shoulder acted up, and the Spartans pounced to post a big comeback victory. Guilford would later avenge the loss, but the message was clear: Amity wasn‘t going anywhere.
2) Hand 5, Jonathan Law 4 (12); April 9-May 6 - This game was so good, it had to be played over two days. With the teams tied in the 11th inning on April 9, the game was called because of darkness and finished when the teams met a second time a month later. Hand not only won the first game, but won the second as well on May 6, propelling them into the states.
3) Notre Dame 10, Amity 8, May 24 (SCC championship) - The Green Knights ran off to an 8-1 lead, but had to hold on for dear life when Amity stormed back to within 10-8. In fact, it looked like - with their pitching depleted - that the Knights might not be able to hold Amity off, but they did, and wrote their names into SCC history.
Honorable mention) Derby 4, North Haven 3 (15), April 11-15 - It looked like this game might propel Derby to the state tournament for a while, and it perhaps summed up North Haven’s season. Because the game was played over the course of five days, North Haven’s Steve Vermiglio was able to pitch the entire 15 innings, and all he ended up with was - a loss. Sometimes, that’s just the way it goes.
Best team to start 2008
Winner: Notre Dame - The SCC champs lose plenty, but they also return two of their top pitchers and the MVP of the SCC tournament, Conor Kinary. Another year of seasoning should also help T.J. Shea, and there appears to be no reason why the Green Knights shouldn‘t be back in the thick of the race come this time next season.
2) Cheshire - Maybe two years too late for the people voting in the state poll, but the Rams return most of the core of a team that was as hot as any at the end of the season. If they can finally get off to a decent start, they may actually be able to challenge in the Housatonic Division and in the SCC Tournament.
3) West Haven - The Westies had their struggled this season, but junior Tom Lawrence showed he might be the best returning pitcher in the SCC come 2009. He‘ll also have a lot of seniors behind him, and that could bode well for a nice run.
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