They turned it around, and took off.
Not too long ago, the Xaverian High School baseball team was struggling, managing only an under-.500 record with just a few weeks left in the season. The team knew something had to change — quickly.
Fast forward to May 17. Xaverian wrapped up the regular season with a 12–5 victory over St. Edmund, and clinched the Brooklyn-Queens title as well, capping a turnaround that has the squad practically bursting with confidence.
“We started off slow, and we just kept telling them [that] it’s not how you start,” said Xaverian coach Frank Del George. “It’s how you finish, and we finished on top. They did a great job. They pulled themselves together. We won 11 out of the last 13 games, and that put us right where we wanted to be.”
Xaverian led St. Edmund by just one run after the first two innings, but the Clippers’ bats erupted in the third. Junior center fielder Jared Lerner and senior first baseman Xavier Vargas each hit triples, sparking a five-run rally that padded the squad’s lead. The Eagles refused to fold, however, scoring two runs in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit to four.
That was as close as St. Edmund would get. Xaverian scored six more runs in the last four innings, while St. Edmund was only able to plate three more. The loss eliminated St. Edmund from playoff contention.
Lerner, Vargas, and junior right fielder Thomas Papadoulos combined to knock out seven hits, score a total of eight runs, and drive in another five.
“I started off a lot of rallies when I got on base,” said Lerner, who had two hits and three runs scored. “(Papadoulos) and I are the fastest two on the team, so getting on base and stealing bases is the way we have to win games.”
Xaverian’s offense stole the show, but the Clippers pitching did its job down the stretch as well. Senior starter Pedro Fortoso, and relievers Joseph D’Amato, Shamus Connolly and Derek Lugewicz — all juniors — gave up eight hits, but only five runs, and kept the Eagles hitters at bay.
Xaverian won in convincing fashion, but their coach said there was still room for improvement.
“I thought we hit the ball pretty well today, but our defense was a little shoddy,” Del George said. “Our pitching was so-so — could be a lot better — but our offense was the key to the game.”
Despite whatever issues they had earlier on in this season or during this game, the Xaverian squad feels good about its chances heading into the playoffs.
“We started off really slow, like 2-3, but then we won 11 of 13, so if we get hot at the right time then hopefully we’ll bring it to the playoffs,” Papadoulos said.
