Nassau County Athletes Of The Week: Massapequa International Softball

MASSAPEQUA, NY — When Massapequa International lost 3-2 to Toms River, NJ, it was the end of the road for an all-star team that had come together on May 23, gelled quickly and rolled to a state championship. While their journey ended short of the Little League World Series, Coach Joe Sollitto said he was quite proud of the team in an interview Friday.

The run to Bristol, CT featured a journey back from the brink of elimination in state playoffs and another near-comeback in regionals that saw Massapequa come from behind to keep their world series hopes alive. In the end, however, Toms River was able to hold them off Wednesday and punch their ticket to the world series Thursday.

This season was the latest in a post-COVID boom period that has seen four little league state championships, two state titles at the 8-to-10 level, and a 2023 Little League World Series title for the south shore powerhouse.

Friday, Sollitto said part of that dominance is attributable to the sisterhood around the program, which sees former players, parents and coaches coming back to show the current team the ropes.

“It’s the softball sisterhood. The former players are heavily involved with the current teams,” Sollitto said. “Just a complete culture. Everybody’s all-in, and everybody supports each other. It’s not a one-and-done experience if you play on the Massapequa International team, and I expect my players to help out future teams as well.”

Sollitto said most of Massapequa International’s practices are focused on situations, rather than fundamentals like catching fly balls and fielding grounders. That situational excellence, Sollitto said, allows for the team to adapt to whatever the game throws at them.

This season, that meant playing several games on the brink of elimination, both in state and regional playoffs. When they were up against the wall, however, Massapequa International’s coaching staff didn’t have to deliver much in the way of a motivational speech. The next steps, Sollitto said, were already clear.

“There wasn’t much to tell them, our team has been here before. We were down to our final loss in the states, had to play a double-header, and wound up winning three-in-a-row. So, this was very familiar territory, no motivational speeches or pep talks needed to happen.”

As for this year’s team, Sollitto said he was very proud of the effort regardless of where the season ended.

“When you play Massapequa International softball, the standard is a state championship, and we did that.”

When asked how he addressed the team when they fell to Toms River, Sollitto said it was something that he had tried to prepare the team for. Even if they had made it to the LLWS in Greenville, SC, their season was going to end one day.

“The reality was, the ride was going to stop one day, it was either going to be in Greenville or in Bristol, and in either situation I was very proud of the team,” Sollitto said. “They shouldn't hang their heads, they should be happy that it happened rather than sad that it’s over. This is a lifetime memory; there is no tournament next weekend.”

While Sollitto is leaving little league with his daughter, Milla, who aged out this year, the outgoing coach said he expects the big wins to continue into the future in Massapequa. Not only is there a strong infrastructure in the village surrounding the game, but there’s the added boost of having appeared on ESPN. That kind of exposure, Sollitto said, usually leads to some boosts for programs like Massapequa International.

“For anyone who plays softball, the process began yesterday, for next year,” Sollitto said.