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05/22/2022 12:00 AMWith two wins last week, the North Haven baseball team not only clinched a postseason berth, the Nighthawks also claimed the SCC Oronoque Division title. Head Coach Bob DeMayo said that his team found its stride at the end of the regular season and is hoping that North Haven can continue its momentum into the playoffs.
North Haven solidified its place in the Class L State Tournament by earning an 11-1 victory versus Shelton in its first game of the week. After dropping a contest to North Branford, the Nighthawks rebounded with a 9-7 win over West Haven to take the Oronoque crown.
North Haven, which went 4-2 in the division, has an overall record of 9-11 as the team enters postseason play this week.
North Haven scored 2 runs in the first inning, 1 run in the second, and then plated 6 runs in the third on its way to defeating Shelton by an 11-1 score in 5 innings at DeMayo Ballfield on May 17. Junior Jack Martineau tossed a complete game for the Nighthawks, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 2 walks to go with 7 strikeouts in 5 innings pitched.
Senior captain Owen Pincince went 3-for-4 with a run scored and 3 RBI to lead the North Haven offense. Senior captain Mike Anquillare went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI; while senior Ty Rooney was 2-for-3 with 2 runs, a double, and an RBI.
Junior Steven Vincent went 1-for-2 with 2 walks, a run, and an RBI; senior Sal Giaimo was 1-for-3 with a walk, a run, and an RBI; and junior Tyler Harger went 1-for-3 with a walk and 2 runs. Senior Shaun Murray drew 2 walks to go with a run scored and 2 RBI; senior Derek Novicki drew a walk, scored 2 runs, and drove home a run; senior Anthony Acampora went 1-for-2 with a run; and junior Noah Greco scored a run to round out a balanced attack for North Haven.
Coach DeMayo and his players knew that there was a lot at stake in the Shelton game. DeMayo felt proud to see the Nighthawks power through and punch their state tourney ticket with the victory.
“It was a tough fight. The kids battled in a game we had to win,” DeMayo said. “We’ve had the ability. Our backs have been against the wall. Things started to click, and Shelton was a big win. We had to win it.”
North Haven’s win over Shelton marked the team’s fourth victory in six games at the time—a stretch that came on the heels of a three-game losing streak. Coach DeMayo said that the leadership of senior captains Pincince and Anquillare has been key in terms of helping the Nighthawks stay strong this spring.
“The two captains have been phenomenal all year. They came into their own. Their batting averages are great. The rest of the team fell in line over the last couple of games,” said DeMayo. “We’ve had hitting all over the lineup. The defense is playing better. We just put it together.”
The day after Shelton win, North Haven took a 7-2 home loss to North Branford on May 18. The following day, the Nighthawks hit the road to West Haven and claimed a 9-7 victory against the Blue Devils to clinch the Oronoque Division crown and qualify for the SCC Tournament. The game was moved to West Haven due to inclement weather, although the Nighthawks were still the home team.
West Haven scored the first run of the game, but North Haven knocked in a run to tie the score after the opening inning. After allowing 4 runs in the top of the second, the Nighthawks came back with a 5-spot to grab a 6-5 advantage. With the game tied 7-7 in the bottom of the sixth, North Haven pushed across a pair of runs to take a 9-7 lead and then kept the Blue Devils off the board in the seventh to come away with the victory and the division title.
Coach DeMayo said that winning the Oronoque was a major accomplishment for everyone on North Haven’s roster. After battling each day throughout the season, DeMayo and his players felt elated to see all of that hard work pay off.
“For the kids, for me, for the coaching staff—it meant everything,” DeMayo said. “We worked our butts off, and it seemed like anytime we got something going, we made an error or came up short. All of a sudden, things started flowing. They knew they had to win the Shelton game, and they knew they had to win the West Haven game. It was like a metamorphosis of hope for our kids.”
Along with the captains, Coach DeMayo said that North Haven’s pitching staff has played a major role in the Nighthawks’ recent success with the team have now won five of its last seven contests. North Haven’s staff features senior Alex Bauman, along with juniors Antonio Fusco, Martineau, and Harger, the latter of whom is also North Haven’s catcher.
DeMayo was pleased to see the Nighthawks’ hurlers get into a groove as the year unfolded and play a big part in helping the team reach the postseason.
From hitters to pitchers, Coach DeMayo equated the growth of everyone on this year’s squad to climbing Mount Everest. After winning their first two games by large margins, DeMayo said that the Nighthawks started swinging out of their shoes. However, once everyone settled down, North Haven began to play quality baseball on a consistent basis and was able to lock up its postseason spot.
North Haven has the No. 8 seed in the SCC Tournament and played a quarterfinal game at top-seeded Xavier on May 23 (after press time). If the Nighthawks won, they faced the winner of No. 4 Lyman Hall and No. 5 Hand in the semifinals on May 24 (after press time).
The SCC final takes place at Piurek Field at West Haven High School on Thursday, May 26 at 6 p.m.
As North Haven opens play in SCCs, Coach DeMayo realizes that there are plenty of people who don’t expect his team to knock out the top squads in the conference. However, after seeing the Nighthawks make progress throughout the season, DeMayo believes that they have the ability to surprise a few people during the playoffs.
“I don’t think anyone expects us to beat teams like Xavier and Prep, the big schools,” DeMayo said. “But I think we can.”