By Joseph Staszewski
The magical season for Molloy may come without star power and a year after it would have been a storybook ending.
A year ago, the Stanners were playing their first season without legendary Coach Jack Curran, who died in March 2013. Molloy was loaded with three Division I players and pitchers and looking to honor their late coach with a city title.
The Stanners finished second in the Brooklyn/Queens division and their playoff run ended abruptly in the CHSAA Class AA championship tournament.
Molloy returned a talented and veteran roster but with a lot of question marks this season. Stalwarts Chris Piteo (Maine), Greg Boyle (Hofstra) and Donovan Armas (Villanova) are now all off at college. Senior ace Anthony Catinella, headed to Molloy College, has now emerged as the face of the team, but much of its success can be attributed to what the Stanners have done as a unit.
“They really developed and matured,” Molloy Coach Brad Lyons said. “They come out now with the expectation of winning.”
Molloy captured the Brooklyn/Queens division title and is the second-seeded team in the playoffs after a 4-3 loss to St. Joseph by the Sea Saturday. The Stanners, because of their pitching and their ability to hit up and down the lineup, are a serious contender to take home the CHSAA crown. Molloy is a much different team now than when the year started.
“I thought that if we had the pitching and we got some timely hitting, this is what they could be,” Lyons said. “They are a very good group.”
Vin Moss, Logan Conroy and Dylan Lanigan combined for four hits and a run scored against Sea. Molloy’s first and second hitters, Nick Morici and Liam Slattery, had two hits apiece.
“One through nine can hit,” outfielder Michael Rossi said. “Everyone is good. Nobody stands out or anything, but everyone is solid.”
Sure, last year would have been screenplay-worthy had Molloy ridden its stars to the title, but sometimes moments like this sneak up on you. The Stanners are looking to make their run when we least expected it. There is plenty of work to be done, but this may be Molloy’s best chance in recent years to reclaim the top spot it held many times in the CHSAA.
“The one or two seed really doesn’t matter,” Rossi said. “The seven or eight seed is going to play either one. We have our aces going out, so we are pretty confident we can make a run.”
