By Sean Reilly
The afternoon was full of high-pressure baseball, which was just the way that Michael Buonagura and his 5 Star National NY 2026/27 teammates enjoy it.
The Long Island-based 5 Star was the No. 4 seed in the four-team playoffs at the 16U Super Top 25 Showcase on Wednesday at Diamond Nation.
Each of the playoff teams went 2-0 in pool games on Tuesday, after initially qualifying for the event with their performance in previous tournaments this summer at ‘The Nation.’
5 Star opened the playoffs with a matchup against top-seeded Top Level Athletics.
After the 1:50 play clock expired in the fifth inning, the game went to the bases-loaded with one out tiebreaker in the sixth. 5 Star scored in the top of the sixth, and then turned a double play in the bottom of the inning to win, 4-3.
Paired against third-seeded Clubhouse 2027 Evoshield in the final, 5 Star scored the tying run in the top of the seventh, and when the game went to the tiebreaker in the eighth, scored in its half before denying Clubhouse in the bottom of the frame to gain another 4-3 victory for the championship.
“That was intense,” said Buonagura, who was selected tournament MVP. “There was a lot of pressure. You have to execute in that situation, and we did all the right things.”
Buonagura, who plays at Centereach High School, hit safely in three of four tournament games, with four RBI.
His biggest contribution, however, may have been his relief pitching in the semifinals against Top Level, when he earned the win by throwing 3⅔ innings of one-hit scoreless relief. All of that came after he hit an RBI triple with two out in the third for a 3-3 tie.
5 Star scored the go-ahead run in the tiebreaker sixth, when Chris Ragona drew an RBI walk on a full count.
In the bottom of the inning, the game ended quickly when second baseman Brody Tellier caught a line drive and stepped on the base for an unassisted double play.
Up next was the championship against the Connecticut-based Clubhouse 2027 Evoshield, which beat second-seeded Team Francisco Notorious 9 Select 16U by a 3-1 score in the other semifinal.
5 Star took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Sam Matvya doubled to the right field corner with one out, and he scored on a Reese Smith double to the fence in center with two out.
Clubhouse went ahead with two runs in the bottom of the second. After Ryan Holmes walked with two out, Frankie Juliano followed with a home run over the left field fence on Field 1.
5 Star tied in the top of the third. Chase Braun was safe at first after a force at second. He stole second, moved to third when Tellier grounded out to third, and scored on Matvya’s single up the middle.
Clubhouse went up 3-2 with another two-out run in the third. Wells Cunningham was safe on a fielder’s choice after a force at second resulted in the second out. He stole second, and scored when Owen Widger doubled to center.
The score held until the top of the seventh. Tyler Groblewski led off for 5 Star with a single to center, moved to second on a ground out, and scored on Aidan Dobrie’s double to center.
Michael Buonagura of 5 Star National NY was named 16U Top 25 Showcase Most Valuable Player.
Dobrie, who relieved starter Gary Zwicker in the fifth, was perfect in that inning and also pitched 1-2-3 frames in the sixth and seventh.
When the game went to the tiebreaker format in the eighth, 5 Star scored when Matvya drove in a run via a fielder’s choice ground out to shortstop which scored Ragona from third.
In the bottom of the inning, the lefty Dobrie concluded his perfect pitching stint by getting a fly out to left and ground out to shortstop to secure the title.
The win concluded a great summer at Diamond Nation for 5 Star, which qualified for the Top 25 Showcase with a 4-0 showing at the Garden State Invitational in July.
Wednesday’s playoff berth would not have happened without the two pool wins on Tuesday, when 5 Star scored twice in the sixth and once in the bottom of the seventh for a 3-2 win over the TCS Blackhawks 16U Black, which was followed by a 10-3 triumph over Showtime Philadelphia, in which a nine-run fifth erased a 3-1 deficit.
“It was a great team effort,” Buonagura said. “It was awesome. It was a good experience against very good competition. We faced very good arms, and everyone was throwing 80-plus. We played very good teams and played well.”