SUNY Old Westbury enters the 2017 season as the only team in the Skyline Conference with eight consecutive 20-win seasons after finishing the 2016 campaign with its ninth-straight conference championship appearance.
Now entering his seventh season at the helm, head coach Rod Stephan’s Panthers were voted the Skyline Conference’s preseason favorite to win this year’s conference championship. The Panthers received three of a possible 10 first-place votes by the league’s head coaches.
Leading the charge in 2017 will be a handful of all-conference selections in returning seniors Tommy Ziegen(Glen Cove, NY / Glen Cove HS), Michael Cardino (Massapequa, NY / Massapequa HS), Kevin Lao (Floral Park, NY / Floral Park Memorial HS), and juniors Jesse Russo (Westbury, NY / W.T. Clarke HS) and Dean Sheridan (Huntington, NY / St. Anthony’s HS).
The Panthers return six starters on offense, two starting pitchers and three relief pitchers with a total of 14 lettermen returning from last year’s club. Stephan sports a 28-man roster, which includes 11 seniors, nine juniors, three sophomores and five freshmen. Stephan appointed Ziegen, Lao, along with Russo and classmates Michael Gismondi (East Meadow, NY / W.T. Clarke HS) and Louis Sileno (Dix Hills, NY / Half Hollow Hills East HS) as his 2017 captains.
Here is a look position-by-position at the 2017 Panthers:
Catchers: Old Westbury features a pair of veterans in Sileno and senior Carlos Balmaceda (Brooklyn, NY / Archbishop Molloy HS) behind the plate. Sileno started in 22 of his 25 games played in his first season as a Panther to hit .250. Balmaceda appeared in 23 games a year ago, starting in 17, to hit .276. Freshman Nicholas Balfe(Dix Hills, NY / North Babylon HS) is another viable option behind the dish.
Infield : Ziegen returns as the anchor in the Old Westbury infield after starting in 120 of the Panthers’ 122 games at shortstop over the past three seasons. The Old Westbury ironman was also the lone Panther to see action in all 41 games while leading the nation in triples (10) and triples per game (0.24). He also ranked among the NCAA Division III leaders in stolen bases (25th, 26) and stolen bases per game (26th, 0.63). The two-time all-region selection set career-highs a season ago in batting average (.348), slugging percentage (.614), on-base percentage (.395), hits (55), home runs (4), RBI (42), runs (44), doubles (10), triples and stolen bases (26).
Russo lived up to the hype in his first season as a Panther and was named all-conference after batting a team-leading .399 with 61 hits, 40 runs, 24 RBI. Slotted as the Panthers everyday second baseman in 2017, Russo ranked 25th in the nation with 26 stolen bases in 2016.
Cardino produced a career year to earn all-region and all-conference honors at third base. The career .301 hitter set career-highs in 2016 in batting average (.340), hits (35), doubles (9), RBI (23) and slugging percentage (.476). Cardino is an experienced third baseman that will look to punish opposing pitchers at the bottom of the lineup.
Senior Jesse Matos (Huntington, NY / John Glenn HS), a 2015 member of the conference championship team, sat out the 2016 season and will contribute as a utility infielder that will provide depth at second base, shortstop and third base.
Sheridan (.368 BA), a two-time all-conference selection at first base, is a threat in the middle of the lineup that saw him set career-highs in hits (49), RBI (34), runs (32), doubles (6), triples (4), stolen bases (14) and fielding percentage (.989). Gismondi made 10 appearances at the position a season ago and provides the lineup with an option from the left side of the plate. Jon Dastagirzada (Queens, NY / Queens HS of Teachings) will look for at-bats behind a veteran first-base core.
Outfield: Old Westbury’s outfield will be anchored by Lao, who garnered all-region and all-conference honors in just his first season as a Panther. Lao is a skilled hitter who ranked 23rd in the nation in triples (6) and 36th in slugging percentage (.698). He projects as the team’s left fielder and No. 4 hitter after generating a .353 batting average with seven home runs, 34 RBI, 33 runs and 11 stolen bases.
Right field will be occupied by another all-conference selection in senior Paul Rapoli (Yonkers, NY / Burke Catholic HS). Rapoli batted .336 with 26 RBI, 24 runs scored and 15 extra-base hits to slug .513 a season ago. He will be a threat at the bottom of the lineup.
Junior David Hawley (Freeport, NY / Southside HS), a transfer from Nassau Community College, will occupy center field and provides a left-handed bat near the top of the order.
Sophomore Gianni Carbone (Ronkonkoma, NY / Santa Fe Catholic HS), played the 2015 season at Dutchess Community College. He is a presence in the middle of the lineup at 6-foot-5, and will serve as the designated hitter while seeing time in right field.
Juniors Tyler Roberts (Howard Beach, NY / Archbishop Molloy HS) and Liam Slattery (Floral Park, NY / Archbishop Molloy HS), along with freshman Nick Cordeo (Ronkonkoma, NY / Sachem North HS) will serve in reserve roles in the Old Westbury outfield. Roberts is coming off a season that saw him set career-highs in nearly every statistical category as a left-handed bat. Slattery is a Division II transfer who played in 50 games during his two seasons at Mercy College. As a freshman, he ranked 40th in the nation with 19 stolen bases.
Pitchers: Old Westbury features an 11-man pitching staff that will look to build off a season that saw them rank 21st in the nation with a conference-leading 3.38 ERA in 2016. The Panthers also led the conference in wins (26), earned runs (120), strikeouts (307) and innings pitched (319.2). Old Westbury held opposing batters to a .241 average while posting nine shutouts with 12 complete-game efforts.
Junior Adam Heidenfelder (Wantagh, NY / General Douglas MacArthur HS) will lead Old Westbury after arriving on campus with two seasons of experience at Hofstra University. The right hander logged 71.2 innings of work in 35-career appearances to accumulate 70 strikeouts at the Division I level.
Junior Christian Tessitore (Baldwin, NY / Kellenberg HS) brings two seasons of Division II experience from Dowling College to the staff. The right-handed transfer appeared in 16 games to fan 18 batters in 24.2 career innings.
Returning into increased roles on 2017 will be senior righties Trey Pizzutello (Stamford, CT / Stamford HS),Daniel Aguilo (Elmont, NY / Elmont Memorial HS) and Preston Zanon (Yorktown, NY / Yorktown HS). Pizzutello (4-2, 4.66 ERA) proved that he’s not afraid to pitch, walking just six batters while striking out 32 in 38.2 innings. Aguilo (6-3, 3.59) led the team with four complete games and was second on the squad in strikeouts (55) and innings pitched (57.2), and tied for the team lead with six wins. Zanon did not pitch last year and made nine starts as a third baseman and designated hitter to hit .300 in 19 games.
Vinny Negri (Commack, NY / Commack HS) spent his freshman year at Suffolk County Community College, where he posted a 3.48 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 20.2 innings. He will see time as a spot starter and will look carve a relief role in his first season at Old Westbury.
Senior Ryan Mordecai (Patterson, NY / Carmel HS) will be relied on to close out games in 2017. He recorded two saves, held batters to a .226 average, and fanned 19 batters in 15 innings in his first season at Old Westbury.
Also joining the staff is righty James English (Smithtown, NY / Smithtown HS), a senior transfer from Division II Flagler College, who will see late-inning work out of the bullpen.
Rounding out the bullpen is sophomore Christian Ramkissoon (East Meadow, NY / W.T. Clarke HS), and freshmen Jason Espinal (Bellport, NY / Brentwood HS), Steven Tellerias (Santo Domingo, DR / Central Islip HS). Tellerias will serve as the lone lefty on staff.
Schedule
Old Westbury opens the 2017 slate on Sunday (Feb. 19) when they travel to Stevens for a non-conference showdown. The Panthers return home March 11 for non-league action against Lehman after starting the season with a seven-game road trip.
In total, Old Westbury will play 18 of its 40-game regular-season schedule in front of its home fans, while 10 are slated for Skyline Conference matchups.
The Panthers will host Maritime, United States Merchant Marine Academy, Farmingdale State, Purchase and St. Joseph’s (Brooklyn) as part of the league schedule. Old Westbury will hit the road for conference tilts at Yeshiva, Mount Saint Mary, St. Joseph’s (L.I.) and Mount Saint Vincent.
Old Westbury’s quest for a second Skyline Conference Championship in three seasons will begin May 3.
