Bay Ridge Prep baseball goes back-to-back

Varsity Baseball Squad Grabs Second Straight PSAA Title

May 26, 2015 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

The Bay Ridge Prep Tigers were crowned champions of the PSAA for the second straight year last Wednesday at Coney Island’s MCU Park. Photo courtesy of Jon Veleas/Bay Ridge Prep

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Stellar pitching by Jacob Bassil, clutch defense from John Walsh and Brandon Warnock and timely hitting and base-running by Gabriel Bassil and Max Poret kept the Private School Athletic Association varsity baseball championship in the hands of the Bay Ridge Prep Tigers for a second consecutive season.

Jacob Bassil, a junior, fired a two-hit shutout with eight strikeouts in the title-clinching 6-0 blanking of Manhattan’s Grace Church School last Wednesday afternoon at Coney Island’s MCU Park, highlighting a campaign that saw the Tigers earn their first-ever trip to the New York State Association of Independent Schools Baseball Tournament.

“This team is made up of grounded and focused players who understood the impact of every game and took every game as though as if it was our last,” said BRP head baseball coach and athletic director Tony Campbell.

“We are making a name for ourselves and are building a legacy where players, students, families and friends are here to support us and be part of our success,” added Campbell, a former pro basketball player who won an NBA title as a member of the 1987-88 Los Angeles Lakers.

Senior Gabriel Bassil had a homer and three RBIs and Poret drove in a run with a first-inning sacrifice fly to go with three stolen bases and a run scored for Prep.

GCS made a few runs at the Tigers, most notably in the fourth and sixth innings, when Walsh, roaming the vast expanse of left field on the Brooklyn Cyclones’ home field, killed a couple of potential rallies by making a pair of deep, running catches with men on base.

Warnock got the Tigers out of a two-out bases-loaded jam in the fifth by snagging a grounder up the middle and stepping on the bag to deny Grace of at least two runs.

“It was the continuation of a great season from last year,” noted Campbell, who has been at the helm of BRP Athletics since arriving at the school in 2007.

Before the big game, several Tigers were honored by the PSAA.

Jack Baker, Gabriel Bassil, Jacob Bassil, who was also named championship game MVP, and Warnock were all named to the league’s All-Conference Team for the 2015 regular season.

Also, Poret received honorable mention from the league for his efforts in helping BRP make it back-to-back championships.