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08/03/2015 12:00 AMThis spring, the North Haven baseball team proved that struggles at the end of the regular season don’t mean much when you stay focused and believe you’ll play your best under the shining spotlight of the postseason.
Bob DeMayo’s squad burst out of the gates by winning 10 of its first 13 games to have both the Oronoque Division title and a Class L State Tournament berth sewn up by early May. However, the Indians then hit a skid in which they dropped six of seven, after which they were no-hit by Shelton in the SCC Tournament. Consequently, North Haven had virtually no momentum entering the state bracket, but what the Indians did have was athletes who were acutely aware they were starting with a clean slate, as well as a coach who reinforced that notion. What happened next will forever be cemented in North Haven athletic lore.
The Indians performed at their peak in the Class L tourney and motored through the bracket by winning all five contests, capping the run with a 3-2 triumph versus East Lyme at Palmer Field in Middletown on June 13. When the dust settled, the Indians finished the year with 16 victories, Coach DeMayo recorded career win 856 in his 57th season, and together they earned North Haven’s fifth state championship in program history.
“Our defense did a super job, our pitchers hung in to the end, and we got runs when we needed them. We had what it takes to be a state champion. These kids did it and we believed they could do it,” said DeMayo, who was named the New Haven Register’s All-Area and All-State Coach of the Year after missing the 2014 season with a torn quad tendon. “Every time something like this happens, it’s a special moment and, certainly in my career, this is one of the top moments. You see a group of kids develop to the extent that they come up with five wins a in a row and to do what they did while showing the class they showed was definitely one of the most special moments in my life.”
North Haven’s success was spearheaded by a pair of special senior captains in catcher Nick Proto and center fielder/pitcher Richie DePalma, who DeMayo praised for their exemplary leadership countless times throughout the season. Proto batted .411 on 35 hits that included nine in the State Tournament. For the season, he scored 20 runs, drove in 21, recorded seven doubles with four triples, and homered in the states win over Hand. Proto also proved an excellent defensive backstop with both his arm and the mitt. Proto sealed a spot on the All-Oronoque squad, the Register’s All-Area Team, and the Coaches’ All-State Team. He also played in the Senior Select All-Star Game and was named the Indians’ Most Valuable Player.
“I consider him one of the premier catchers in the state, both offensively and defensively,” said DeMayo. “He has great natural ability and, if he continues improving, I can see him going far in the baseball world.”
Fellow captain DePalma posted four wins and three saves on the mound and no save was bigger than when he buckled East Lyme’s Miles Coe on a wicked curveball with the tying and winning runs on base for the last out of the state final. DePalma also batted .348 to go with four doubles, 14 runs, and 17 RBI.
“Richie is an outstanding outfielder and a kid who loves to play the game,” said DeMayo. “The kids play better when they’re around him and see him perform in key situations. He’s a real pressure performer.”
DePalma was presented with North Haven’s Sportsmanship Award and both he and fellow senior Mike Kurk came away with the DeMayo Scholarship with Kurk additionally earning an All-Oronoque bid, plus the Indians’ Most Improved Player Award. Kurk posted a 1.80 earned-run average and won eight ballgames, including three in the state tourney as he bested Masuk in the first round (7-3), Windsor in the semis (7-2), and East Lyme for the title game on short rest. Kurk also played first base and finished with a .341 batting average that included one homer, eight doubles, and 20 RBI.
“Mike came from not even knowing if he would do any pitching [due to tendinitis] to become our stopper and go-to kid,” DeMayo said. “Mike worked out of trouble just about every game and did it without an overpowering fastball or curveball. He did it with his presence on the mound, changing his speed and locations, and a lot of heart.”
Meanwhile, another senior made his mark in pitcher/outfielder Dominic Fusco, who won two games and saved two others, including a masterful complete game performance in a 4-1 victory versus Hand in the state quarterfinals. At the plate, Fusco hit .352 with 11 runs and 14 RBI. He received the team’s John Calamita Scholarship.
“Dom had a great second half with key hits all over the place and came through big-time when we were pitching-depleted and playing our third game in three days against Hand,” said DeMayo. “His development in the second half was great.”
Fellow senior Hunter Iacobelli, the squad’s second baseman, also earned a distinction in the No ‘I’ in Team Award. Iacobelli hit .267, scored 15 runs, and drove in eight with five of those RBI coming in states. Iacobelli’s RBI ground-out in the state final plated the Indians’ third run, which proved the difference in the victory.
“Hunter was in a slump and so I talked to him and told him he had to shape up. I’m not saying my words had anything to do with it, but from that point on, he turned it around,” DeMayo said. “Hunter came through with clutch hits as our No. 9 batter in the tournament and made a great stabbing catch in the East Lyme game that took away a two-base hit.”
North Haven’s other seniors were pitcher Erik Esposito, who went the distance on the hill when the Indians routed Middletown 12-3 in the Class L second round; as well as pitcher/designated hitter Steve Rife, and outfielder Louis Masselli.
Next year’s senior captains next year will be shortstop Giovanni Torres and left fielder Mike DeRosa. Torres hit .291 with 19 walks, three doubles, 15 runs, and 12 RBI as North Haven’s leadoff hitter and played his way to a spot in the Junior Select All-Star Game. DeRosa also competed in that contest and batted .337, including eight hits in states, to complement his 22 runs and 12 RBI. DeRosa, who won the team’s Rocky Ruggerio Award, also made two of the campaign’s most critical plays in the state championship game by blasting a two-run homer that gave the Indians the lead for good in the second inning, after which he threw out Alex Tryon attempting to score from third on a fly ball to left field in the sixth.
“Giovanni is one of the top shortstops in the SCC. He has a tremendous work ethic and is a kid who you love to sit and talk with. He will do an exceptional job as a captain,” DeMayo said. “Mike is a kid who the ball just jumps off his bat and for him to him to make those two key plays in the same game in the state final was absolutely unbelievable.”
The Indians other juniors were Joe Ireland (outfielder), Kyle Scafariello (infielder), Geno Giano (infielder), Chris Tullo (first baseman), and Joe Balzano (pitcher/first baseman).
North Haven sophomore class featured Dominic Onofrio (third baseman), CJ Somma (outfielder), Preston Young (pitcher), Alphonse Fusco (second baseman), and Brendan Clark (pitcher/third baseman).
DeMayo’s coaching staff consisted of varsity assistants Muchie Dagliere and Ray Degnan (pitching coach), in addition to JV coach Justin Falcon and freshman coach Mike Proto.