Bucks’ bats staying hot; Six players made All-Star team

The Shelter Island Bucks went 2-1 in Hamptons Collegiate Baseball competition this week, lifting their record to 12-15-2 on the season.

On July 4, starting pitcher Patrick Webler (Southern Connecticut) tossed a complete game and catcher Cal Christofi (Yale) went three for three with two RBIs to lead the Bucks to a 15-1 victory over the Sag Harbor Whalers at Mashashimuet Park. It was Shelter Island’s first victory in five games against the Whalers this season.

On July 5, the Bucks coasted to a 11-2 victory over the Riverhead Tomcats at Fiske Field. After falling behind 1-0, the Bucks took the lead in the bottom of the first inning, when first baseman Adam Volpi (Holy Cross) slammed his league-leading 12th home run of the season.

Volpi needs to hit just one more homer in the final twelve games to tie the HCBL single-season record of 13 home runs set by Westhampton’s Aaron Ping in 2016.

Centerfielder Mike Nyisztor (Rutgers) led the offensive attack with three hits in three at bats. With a .354 batting average and 21 runs batted in, Nyizstor continues to rank among the league leaders in hitting and RBI. Mike Casaleggio (Marist) slammed his first home run of the season in the 5-run fifth inning as the Bucks earned their fifth victory in six games.

On July 7, the Bucks fell to the Tomcats 9-2 at Veterans Park in Riverhead. The loss dropped the Bucks back to sixth place in the HCBL, one game behind the North Fork Ospreys for the final playoff spot.

Six members of the Bucks were tapped to play for the Blue Team in the HCBL All-Star Game at Baseball Heaven in Yaphank on July 9. Volpi, Nyisztor, Casaleggio and pitcher Joseph Quintal (Fordham), who leads the league with 38 strikeouts in 32 innings, started the game for the Blue Team. Catcher Cal Christofori and pitcher Jalen Wade (Cincinnati) were also named to the team.