RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Jaspers fourth year head baseball coach Kevin
Leighton, the 2009 MAAC Coach of the Year, has received six more commitments
from student-athletes who will attend Manhattan College
next fall. Julian De La Rosa (Staten Island, N.Y./Lawrenceville School),
Erik Luksis (Wappingers Falls, N.Y./John Jay
High School), Joe Rock (Carmel, N.Y./Kennedy Catholic), Eddie Spitaletta (Hackensack, N.J./Paramus Catholic), Anthony Vega (Patchogue,
N.Y./Patchogue-Medford High School) and Ryan Wallner (Pleasant Valley,
N.Y./Arlington) complete the incoming recruiting class for 2009-10.
Leighton also received National Letters of Intent from Nick Camastro
(LaGrangeville, N.Y./Arlington), Mike Gonzalez (Miami,
Fla./Christopher Columbus), Kyle Murphy
(Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) and John Soldinger (Bayshore,
N.Y./Bayshore) during the NCAA's early signing period last fall.
De La Rosa,
a 5'11” 180 lb. infielder from Staten Island, played three years at Bishop Ford High School in Brooklyn under head coach Mike
Hanrahan and played his final year at Lawrenceville
School in New Jersey for Champ Atlee. While at Bishop
Ford, De La Rosa hit above .370 in each of his three seasons, and served as the
team captain in 2007 & 2008. In his last season at Bishop Ford De La Rosa
led the team in batting average, RBI and hits as he earned All-Brooklyn and
All-CHSAA (Catholic High School Athletic Association) honors. This past season
at Lawrenceville, De La Rosa hit .363 with three home runs and helped his team
to the 2009 NJISAA Division A State Championship.
“Julian
comes from an athletic background,” said Leighton. “He is a strong kid and we
are excited that he will be joining us next year. Julian will bring depth to
our infield spots.”
Luksis, a 6'1” 195 lb. left-handed pitcher, played two years of varsity
ball at John Jay High School
under head coach Tom O'Hare. The senior co-captain pitched a no-hitter on April
17 helping John Jay to a 4-0 victory over Carmel.
As a junior, Luksis helped guide John Jay to a 17-8 record as he earned two
wins and notched 16 strikeouts over 17.2 innings of action.
“We are very excited that Erik has made the decision to become a Jasper
next year,” said Leighton. “He is a quality left-handed pitcher who can help us
on the mound right away. Erik has shown an above average fastball with good
movement and control, along with a very good breaking ball as his out pitch.”
Rock, an
outfielder from Kennedy Catholic, has played three years at the varsity level
under head coach Bob Fletcher. As a sophomore Rock appeared in 20 games, hit
.360, drove in 10 runs and recorded four doubles. In Rock's junior campaign, he
posted a .339 batting average in 30 games, while registering 13 RBI and 33
hits, including two doubles, two triples and two home runs. He helped Kennedy
to a 27-3 overall record and 11-1 conference mark leading to a New York State
Class B Championship.
“Joe is a
true competitor who brings speed and a strong arm to our outfield.
Additionally, he is an exceptional student who plans to study engineering,”
said Leighton.
Spitaletta,
an outfielder for Paramus Catholic, lettered two years under head coach Scott
Luna. In 2008, Spitaletta batted .520 and knocked in 29 runs as he received
Bergen Record NNJIL First Team All-League and All-County honors. In his final
season at Paramus Catholic Spitaletta is hitting above .500. Prior to Paramus
Catholic, he played at Don Bosco Prep during the 2007 season where he finished
the year batting .520 to earn All-County and All-League recognition.
“Eddie
comes to us from a strong summer program in the World Yacht Clippers. He is a
speedy, athletic outfielder who has a strong arm and has shown the ability to
swing the bat. I think that Eddie will fit in nicely and will add depth to our
outfield next year,” said Leighton.
Vega, a
6'0” 190 lb. outfielder from Patchogue, N.Y., lettered at Patchogue-Medford High
School under head coach Tony Frascogna. During
his senior campaign, Anthony hit .348, stole 12 bases and posted a .488 on-base
percentage.
“Anthony is
the type of kid that we love to have in our program. He is a tough kid who
works extremely hard. Anthony is an exceptional student. On the field, he
brings a lot of speed and a left handed bat to our team,” stated Leighton.
Wallner, a
5'10” 185 lb. catcher, started three years at the varsity level under head
coach Al Hammell at Arlington
High School. As a
sophomore, Wallner was named Arlington's Offensive Player of the Year as he hit
.429 for the season and posted a .569 on-base percentage and .508 slugging
mark. He helped guide Arlington
to the 2007 New York State Section I Championship. Wallner, an All-League
selection in 2008, hit .335 and registered a .457 slugging percentage. Wallner
has been a member of the Student Athletic Council at Arlington as a junior and senior, and is also
a member of the Scholastic Honor Society.
“Ryan is a
tough kid who we are excited to have join our program,” said Leighton. “He is a
solid defensive catcher with a good bat.”
Manhattan returns 21 letter winners from the
2009 squad which won the program's second consecutive MAAC Regular-Season
Championship. The Jaspers finished the campaign 35-18, tying a program record
in wins.
