It took 17 years, but Grand Street Campus and coach Melvin Martinez finally won that elusive PSAL city championship.
The loaded Wolves capped a storybook season by topping George Washington in the finals at MCU Park in Coney Island. They weren’t the only Brooklyn team to have a big year in the PSAL, though. Telecommunications made its first semifinals under coach Ed D’Alessio and James Madison was steady as usual.
Poly Prep also won a championship, its second straight NYSAISAA title, behind ace Andrew Zapata. In the CHSAA, Xaverian took an unexpected fall in the ‘AA’ playoffs, a game short of the final four after entering the postseason as the top seed.
All-Brooklyn baseball Player of the Year: Andrew Zapata, Poly Prep
One of the best high school pitchers New York City has seen in quite some time continued to own the five boroughs this spring. After absorbing his first varsity loss, to Catholic school powerhouse St. Joseph by the Sea early on, Zapata won his final six starts. That included a complete-game, one-hitter for the second straight year in the NYSAISAA championship game.
“I want to get that no-hitter next year,” he joked.
The right-handed flame-thrower, who mixes four pitches so well, is a hot commodity, as top Division I programs Kentucky, St. John’s, Ole Miss, Stanford and Maryland, among others, are actively recruiting him.
With a year at Poly Prep still left, Poly Prep coach Matt Roventini said he’s the best player he’s ever coached, which includes a series of Division I players.
“He’s at another level ability-wise of anybody we’ve had,” the coach said. “He’s a different animal.”
All-Brooklyn baseball Coach of the Year: Melvin Martinez, Grand Street Campus
After 17 years of agonizing playoff defeats, thinking each spring would be the year only for something, anything, to go wrong, Melvin Martinez finally experienced sheer joy.
Martinez led Grand Street to the PSAL Class A championship, 2-1 over George Washington, at MCU Park in Coney Island.
“There are no words to even explain the joy I felt after we got that third out,” Martinez said. “It was 17 years.”
Martinez nearly retired after last year’s semifinals series loss to Tottenville. He ultimately returned, after constant prodding from his players. Therein lies his greatest asset, likability and getting the most out of his kids. Sure, Grand Street was loaded, with plenty of pitching and arguably the city’s top lineup.
He juggled those pieces perfectly. He kept both Ernesto Lopez and Xaverian catcher Kevin Martir happy, mixing and matching the two behind the plate and at third base. He smartly elevated impressive junior second baseman Eli Rodriguez into the two-hole and while few mentioned Gerry Gonzalez as one of the city’s best pitchers, he kept telling his senior how good he was, and Gonzalez ended up pitching Grand Street to that elusive title.
FIRST TEAM
3B Matt Coposio, Poly Prep
The senior outfielder went out with a bang, blasting a two-run homer in Poly Prep’s 4-2 win over Fieldston in the team’s second straight NYSAISAA championship game. Headed to Felician in the fall, Coposio thrived as Poly Prep’s cleanup hitter and his leadership as one of the young team’s two senior starters along with Andrew Doar was invaluable.
SS Jose Cuas, Grand Street Campus
The Maryland-bound shortstop had a down year by his standards, but a big one by everyone else’s. He hit .422 with 32 RBIs – 10 in the postseason – scored 23 runs and stole 15 bases. A 40th-round pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in MLB’s First-Year Player Draft, Cuas should be an impact player for the Terrapins.
P Gerry Gonzalez, Grand Street Campus
Overlooked all spring because of the Wolves potent lineup, he showed his true value in the playoffs, winning three times and pitching Grand Street to its first city championship with a complete-game, four-hitter over defending champion Grand Street in the PSAL Class A final. The LSU-Eunice-bound hurler was also a key weapon in the Wolves’ lineup, a .444 hitter during the regular season with 16 RBIs and 11 runs scored.
3B Eric Kalman, Xaverian
A skilled, disciplined hitter, Kalman got hot late in the season to ensure Xaverian’s winning of CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens. The George Washington-bound senior played a stellar third base and provided excellent leadership for the Clippers.
2B Julian Lanfranco, Xaverian
As coach Lou Piccola said all year, Lanfranco was the sparkplug for a team that struggled offensively at times. The diminutive yet speedy senior always seemed to get on base and cause havoc in key moments for one of the city’s top teams.
3B Ernesto Lopez, Grand Street Campus
The PSAL Class A triple crown winner, the ego-less Lopez final stepped out of the shadows of better known teammates to emerge as Grand Street’s most consistent and valuable performer. His solo homerun in the PSAL Class A championship game proved to be the difference in the Wolves’ 2-1 victory over George Washington and was an apt way for the four-year star to go out, as a winner.
C Kevin Martir, Grand Street Campus
The Xaverian transfer and Maryland signee brought a championship pedigree to Grand Street and was a perfect replacement for graduated star Williams Jerez. After a solid, if unspectacular, regular season, the Maryland-bound catcher/third baseman exploded in the playoffs, hitting a pair of two-run homeruns in the Wolves’ PSAL Class A semifinal sweep of John Adams and drove in the first run in the championship game victory over George Washington.
CF Basael McDonald, Grand Street Campus
An automatic double, and at times triple, when he got aboard, McDonald was the engine for Grand Street’s prolific lineup. He successfully moved over to center field and was a rock in the Wolves’ outfield while batting .550 with a PSAL Class A-leading 37 runs scored and 45 stolen bases. There may not be a better player in the PSAL next spring.
P Ian Miller, Berkeley Carroll
The ACIS-champion Lions’ most valuable player, Miller went 7-2 on the mound with a microscopic ERA of 0.44 and also hit .296 with 22 RBIs and 15 runs scored. Simply put, the standout sophomore is a Division I player in the making, granted he continues to progress.
1B Austin Ruiz, Telecommunications
Already one of the PSAL’s top hitters as a freshman, Ruiz was the backbone to Telecom’s lineup, not only its top power bat but also its most consistent hitter. He drove in a team-high 24 runs and had nine extra-base hits as the Yellow Jackets reached the PSAL Class A semifinals for the first time in coach Ed D’Alessio’s 12-year tenure.
HONORABLE MENTION
CF Andrew Doar, Poly Prep
P Mike Fitzpatrick, James Madison
SS Gabe Hernandez, Xaverian
P Chris Hodgens, New Utrecht
SS Nelson Lopez, Bishop Ford
C/DH Mark Maguire, Bishop Ford
C/OF Josh Palacios, Telecommunications
P John Pena, Xaverian
P Adolfo Perez, Nazareth
P Blaise Scerbo, Xaverian
P A.J. Serrano, Telecommunications
P/SS Anthony Spina, Berkeley Carroll
1B Sal Taormina, Xaverian
P/3B Matt Zalon, James Madison
P Ivan Zeavin-Moss, St. Ann’s