Sam Muniz sparks Absegami as Braves rally past rival Oakcrest, win fourth straight

By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
MAYS LANDING — Whenever Absegami and Oakcrest get together on the baseball diamond, you might want to bring a sandwich, a couple bottles of water — maybe check to see if the babysitter can stay an extra hour. This rivalry traditionally sees high-scoring games with a lot of action, pitching changes, plays at the plate — you name it. And it’s likely going to take the better part of three hours.
Friday’s installment was no different, as visiting Absegami fell behind 5-1 after just three innings, but then rallied for four runs in the top of the fourth inning and six more in the sixth to take an 11-5 lead. The Braves had to hold off a late rally by the Falcons, however, before nailing down an 11-8 victory. Absegami improved to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in the Cape-Atlantic League National Conference and now trails only first-place Mainland.

“Even last year, I think they put four or five on us in the first inning and we came back and won. Anytime we play against our rival, it’s always going to be something like this. Really proud of the way the guys responded when they were down 4-0 in the first, to fight back, claw back and eventually break through later in the game. When I talked to them (after the game) I told them how proud I was of how they reacted after the first inning. We have a very senior-heavy group that is experienced and they know it’s a long game. We just kept clawing back,” said Absegami first-year coach Mike DeCicco, who is taking over for longtime skipper Brian Wastell. “I’ve learned a ton from Brian Wastell, and that’s one thing — never think the game is over. I’m always waiting to get that 21st out. When it’s over, then you can finally exhale.”
Oakcrest (2-4, 1-4) finally was in a close ballgame. Through the Falcons’ first five games the closest scoring margin, whether it was a win or loss, was nine runs.
“That’s kind of how a lot of our games (against Absegami) have gone, high scoring, back-and-forth, a lot of offense. For us, it’s kind of new this season. We’ve either been beaten down or beating up on people, so it was nice to be in a competitive game. We came out on the wrong side, but my feeling toward this is great. I feel really good about it because this is the first time we fell behind and responded. It was good to see that we didn’t just buckle and fold. It felt good to finally feel like we were playing baseball,” said Falcons coach Sean Olson. “We’ve had five or six freshmen see action in our first six games, so that’s a lot of young guys. The flip side is, everyone else is pretty much a senior. We sprinkle in a sophomore or junior here or there, but we’re primarily all seniors and freshmen out there.”
The big blow for the Braves came in the top of the fourth, when Sam Muniz laced a three-run triple just inside the third base bag that chased home Sam Daggers, Billy Wheatley and Adrian Ramos as Absegami tied the game, 5-5. In the sixth, Muniz — the No. 7 batter for the Braves — came up big again, roping an RBI double to right-center field that gave the Braves the lead for good. Omar Hernandez followed with a run-scoring single to make it 7-5 and one batter later pinch runner J.J. Payne scored on a wild pitch. Absegami loaded the bases and both Kevin Snyder and Shane Nanek raced home on a wild pitch as the lead reached 10-5.
“I was just looking to get a base hit, that’s all I was thinking about, just get a hit for my team,” Muniz said of his game-tying triple. “I think all of us did a good job and the coaching staff has been preaching just one batter at a time. If we execute, we’re going to score some runs. We have great team chemistry going on and I feel like that helps a lot, with us trusting each other on the field. It’s nice to get a little pride going on. (Oakcrest) is a good team that can hit the ball, so our main focus was to just rely on our defense to get the outs, just trust each other.”

“I feel like we’ve always had that underdog mentality and we’re forming a brotherhood here. We’re all playing for each other and we have a whole bunch of energy,” Wheatley added. “Once we get going, we’re like a freight train and we keep getting energy. They always give us a really hard time. It’s always tough against them. In the first game of the year (a 10-1 loss to Vineland), we didn’t put up anything, but that sparked a fire in us. We’ve just been doing our best.”
Oakcrest wasn’t done, however, as the Falcons scored a pair of runs in the sixth on an RBI single by Drew Robinson and a sacrifice fly from Connor Loveland, then tacked on a run in the seventh on an RBI groundout from Alec Rodriguez before Ramos, on in relief, was able to close the door. Muniz finished with four RBIs and Daggers and Nanek each reached base five times for Absegami.
“Across the board we talk about winning the freebie war. Giving up those free bases, whether it’s walks, errors or passed balls — or even just giving up extra bases on those long throws from the outfield, or anywhere that’s unnecessary — that’s a huge focus of ours, limiting those free bases we give up,” Olson said. “On the days we swing the bat, we’re in games. We just have to tighten things up. This is only game No. 6 and we’re progressing. I wish we could have come out on the other side of it, but there’s progress being made, for sure.”
It seems to be a seamless transition for the Braves from Wastell to DeCicco, so far, at least. The Braves have won four straight since that season-opening loss to Vineland, but have some tough tests looming in Ocean City, Cedar Creek and Mainland next week.
“It’s been good. We have a good chemistry with coach DeCicco, we’ve known him for a number of years so it hasn’t been a tough transition. We have a lot of trust in him,” Muniz said.
“I’m very lucky. Between what Brian has built, and having double-digit seniors, guys who I coached when they were freshmen and having success then,” DeCicco added. “The first day of practice the guys were saying it just felt like a continuation, and that’s a major compliment to Brian and the program that he’s put together.”
What’s next: Absegami is scheduled to host Wildwood Catholic on Saturday at 11 a.m., weather permitting. Oakcrest is set to host Cumberland on Saturday at 10 a.m.
Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays