Derek Mateo and Edwin Diaz help St. Mary's start strong in dominant win over LuHi
St. Mary's Derek Mateo crushes a two-run single to the outfield against Long Island Lutheran in the Corey's Promise baseball tournament on Tuesday at the Moriches Athletic Complex. Credit: George A Faella
The St. Mary’s baseball team is determined to have a more successful season, and they’ve already gotten started.
The Gaels defeated Long Island Lutheran, 8-1, Tuesday in their non-league season opener, played as part of the Corey’s Promise tournament at the Moriches Complex.
“It feels great to get a win today,” junior catcher Ryan Ortega said. “There was a great atmosphere in this park.”
Last season, St. Mary’s finished 3-11, and 0-11 in the NSCHSAA.
“The last two years, our team was fairly young, and I think that took a toll on our record,” coach Chris Estrada said. “With a strong group of upperclassmen now, I think we’ve transitioned to better play overall, and hopefully, a better record. That all started today.”
Derek Mateo went 2-for-4 with three RBIs and Edwin Diaz went 1-for-2 with two RBIs.
The Gaels scored their first run of the season in dramatic fashion. Rigo Mercedes walked to lead off the first inning and stole second, third, and home to give St. Mary's a 1-0 lead. Samuel Hernandez's RBI single in the fourth drove in Joshua Huerta as part of a three-run inning that put the Gaels ahead 4-0.
“The first couple of innings were slow,” Estrada said. “But when we finally got out of that funk, we were able to extend our lead.”
Estrada continued: “LuHi switched their pitcher [to Troy Vigilis] and he was bringing high-velocity balls and throwing pretty hard. We were able to take advantage of that change and start executing on offense, start getting a lot of contact with the bat.”
Estrada said he was proud of Ortega’s performance on the field, especially defensively.
“He really set the tone for us,” Estrada said. “Every time LuHi tried to steal, he was able to get them out, and that helped the rest of the team’s energy.”
Ortega is confident that this season will end differently for the Gaels.
“We’re locked in,” Ortega said. “This year’s different, everybody should look out for us.”
