Newsday's top 10 Long Island high school softball team rankings
St. Anthony’s pitcher Nina Vandernoth throws in the last inning of a 7-3 victory over Moore Catholic in the state CHSAA softball finals at Bill Edwards Stadium in Hempstead on Saturday. Credit: Dylan Thiessen
(Previous rankings in parentheses)
1. St. Anthony’s (2)
St. Anthony’s picked up an 8-0 win over St. Mary’s (Lancaster) in the CHSAA state semifinal and earned its sixth consecutive state title with a 7-3 comeback win over Moore Catholic. The Friars (25-5) swept Kellenberg in the NSCHSAA finals to win their ninth straight league title.
2. Oceanside (1)
Oceanside will have gone over a week without game action when it takes the field against Massapequa on Sunday. The Sailors (21-3) took both regular season meetings against Massapequa.
3. Sachem North (3)
Danielle Brennan was rock solid in two wins over Commack, the second of which delivered Sachem North (22-2) its first county title. Isabella Kriklava had a three-run double in the first inning of a 4-3 win over Commack in the Suffolk 'AAA' final.
4 Wantagh (4)
Wantagh won a winner-take-all Game 3 against Seaford in the Class A championship series. Lucy Olore tossed two shutouts, including a perfect game in Game 1. Wantagh (17-6) will face the Suffolk champion in the Long Island championship on June 6.
5. Massapequa (5)
The defending Class AAA champion was shut out last time it played Oceanside, but in the first matchup it lost by just one run. Will Massapequa (17-8) find a way to deliver Oceanside its first loss in over a month?
6. Miller Place (6)
After a 1-0 loss to Kings Park in the winner’s bracket final, Miller Place (19-4) defeated Islip and exploded for nine runs against Kings Park in the Suffolk 'A' final. Can the Panthers repeat their production in Sunday’s winner-take-all rematch?
7. East Islip (10)
Kayla Varga powered East Islip to two wins over Westhampton, the latter of which delivered EI its second straight Suffolk 'AA' title. East Islip (16-5) will look for a second straight Long Island title Saturday.
8. Kings Park (On the cusp)
A 1-0 win over Miller Place on Tuesday gave Kings Park the advantage of entering the Suffolk 'A' final with no postseason losses. Kings Park (18-4) and Miller Place have split their four matchups this season. Kings Park will need a rebound performance on Sunday to claim its first Suffolk title since 2012.
9. Calhoun (On the cusp)
Calhoun will face MacArthur in the Nassau 'AA' championship series beginning on Sunday. Sophia Nicastro helped the Colts (13-12) advance to the final after tossing a no-hitter in Game 3 of the semifinal against Bethpage last week.
10. MacArthur (On the cusp)
MacArthur is making an appearance in its fourth consecutive county final, having lost the two previous. The Generals (12-12) dropped the first game of their semifinal against Mepham before scoring 18 runs over the final two games.
On the cusp: Seaford, Commack, Westhampton, Kellenberg, Carle Place
