Bay Ridge

No Five-Peat: Poly Prep upset in Ivy Prep League baseball quarterfinals

May 18, 2015 By Rob Abruzzese Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Chris Cannizzaro went down swinging as Hackley School ended Poly Prep's hopes for a five-peat on Saturday.
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Poly Prep’s incredible run of four consecutive Ivy Prep League championships is officially over after the Blue Devils lost 5-3 to Hackley in the quarterfinals round of the New York State Association of Independent Schools playoffs in Bay Ridge on Saturday.

“I really can’t believe it — I feel like we did everything possible in our power, we just didn’t have enough fire,” said Poly Prep’s starting pitcher Dylan Martinelli. “We play every game like it’s going to be our last. This game we just didn’t come out and show it.”

Poly Prep fell into a 4-0 hole in the second inning, and without Daniel Bakst, who left the game early after a play at third base, the Blue Devils couldn’t find the offense to come back.

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It was the second good start of the season by Hackley starter George Santangelo against Poly. Santangelo pitched a complete game and allowed just three runs on five hits, 11 strikeouts and four walks.

“We came out flat and Hackley’s pitcher pitched a great game,” said shortstop Anthony Prato. “He’s pitched two great games against us; he’s a great pitcher.”

Poly Prep nearly managed a comeback after manager Matt Roventini was ejected in the sixth inning — a move that fired up his team. With two outs, the Blue Devils scored a pair of runs when Tyler Wincig and Travis Zurita each walked with the bases loaded to make it 4-2. Santangelo escaped the inning without giving up a big hit.

Pat DeMarco made it 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning when he drove in Prato on a double. With the tying run at the plate and Storz on deck, Santangelo got Chris Cannizzaro to strikeout to end the game.

Afterward, Poly Prep’s players said they didn’t take Hackley lightly, but a couple admitted that a looming semifinals game against Dalton — which had previously beaten them twice during the regular season — was on their mind.

“In the locker room, we were definitely looking ahead to the next game,” Prato said. “We wanted payback against Dalton, but we couldn’t overlook Hackley, and we knew that, but we came up short.”

Storz, Poly Prep’s ace starting pitcher, said afterward that the team was likely saving him to pitch in that semifinals game, which is why he wasn’t on the mound against Hackley. He quickly brushed second thoughts aside, though, and said the team needs to start focusing on next season.

“It really feels bad,” Storz said. “There is no worse feeling than coming off a championship, having high hopes, and then coming up short. We just need to look at the bigger picture and come back stronger.”


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