The Our Lady of the Snows Intermediate boys’ baseball team finished the regular season 12-2 and headed into the playoffs with high expectations.
In their opening-round playoff game, they faced off against a very good St. Luke’s team. St. Luke’s jumped out to a quick 2-1 lead in the first inning and a led 3-1 after three. But as has been the case all year, Snows hung tough with strong pitching and solid defense. The boys eventually tied the score at 3 in the fourth inning on an RBI single off the bat of Anthony Civitano, who later in the inning stole home to tie the score.
Snows offense was now energized and scored seven additional runs over the final three innings. The St. Luke’s players were not going to go away quietly, though, and loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning with their cleanup hitter coming to the plate. He hit a drive to left center that had extra bases written all over it until Ray Potestio, Snows centerfielder, made a diving grab of the liner to not only end the threat but give Snows a 10-4 win.
Frank Sadicario recorded the win going the distance, allowing six hits while striking out eight. OLS’ offensive highlights were provided by Jay Hausdorf, Kevin Salcedo and Sadicario, all of whom doubled. Jonathan Dupuy singled twice and Brian Kelleher, Brian Biscotti and Ray Potestio all chipped in singles.
In Snows’ second playoff game, the players faced a strong Mount Carmel team with the winner becoming the Queens Sectional winner for 2003. Again Snows fell behind early, 4-0, but the damage could have been much worse had starting pitcher Ray Potestio not picked off two runners in the first inning.
One more time the boys from Snows showed the heart and determination of champions as they began to fight back and get back into the game. Snows scored one in the third inning and two in the fourth to make the score 4-3. The comeback was made possible due to the strong relief pitching of Jeremy Hausdorf, who threw three scoreless innings while his teammates fought for runs.
In the bottom of the fifth, Snows offense erupted for six runs and they took a 9-4 lead. Frank Sadicario took the ball and looked to close out the game for OLS. As was the case all year, he did not disappoint, striking out five of the six batters he faced. Snows had a 10-4 victory and is the 2003 CYO Queens Sectional winner.
