Big moments keep painting the corners of life for Massapequa catcher Ryan Huksloot.
He played in the Little League World Series in 2022 and was called up to the Chiefs varsity for playoffs as a 10th grader last year, where he won a Long Island championship with the baseball powerhouse.
“That’s what everybody plays for,” the 16-year-old told The Post.
“Those moments where they can thrive under that pressure.”
And thrive he has. Huksloot is the first player from that Massapequa Coast Little League team — they are still the first from Long Island to make Williamsport since the 1970s — who reached blue and gold’s varsity.
Diamonds in the rough
A trio of his MCLL pals who stuck with baseball — Mike Clark, Mike Castellano, and Lucas Mininni — are on the school’s JV as 10th graders, getting ready for their shot next year, and are happy to see Huksloot leading the way.
“I think us all being together is really going to bring some power, some brotherhood, some friendship, and great times for the team,” Clark said of everybody playing together again in 2027.
Meanwhile, Alex Pagano found success with the Friars of St. Anthony’s High School varsity squad, while Danny Fregara is playing JV there.
Joey Lionetti, who pitched the championship no-hitter that clinched Massapequa’s spot in the World Series, is on varsity at Chaminade High School with Christian Bekiers as well.
Their magical middle school run bonded the boys for life as they got hero treatment in town — the good luck sign hung outside the iconic All American burger joint still makes Huksloot smile to this day.
“It felt pretty cool,” he said of them being local celebrities in the summer of ’22.
The kids ate it up and wore their Little League World Series gear everywhere they could in the weeks that followed, and Huksloot said: “I’ll never get rid of any of that.”
Nearly four years later, they’ve never let separate paths get in the way of staying true to MCLL blue.
“Even if we don’t see each other for months because of the Catholic school kids, it’s still like nothing has changed,” Huksloot said of the family-like bond.
“The other day, we were talking about hanging out in the [Williamsport] dorms and the great experiences we had.”
Chief executives
Huksloot is stoked for his first full year playing Massapequa varsity and wants even more hardware to complement his trophy case, specifically a coveted state title.
“That’s the main goal,” said Huksloot, who sang the praises of his current teammates.
“I look up to some of them, they’re role models, they taught me a lot my month on varsity last year.”
Manager Tom Sheedy is impressed and said Huksloot’s mental sharpness rivals that of his talent behind the plate, which has exploded year over year.
“He’s gotten much better with his throws, much more consistent with his throws,” added Sheedy, whose main focus is getting back to the Nassau County title and taking it a game at a time from there.
“His pop time has gotten much better, and I just see him gain more confidence, not that he needs any more.”
As with Massapequa Coast, Huksloot knows a key to victory will be player bonding, which he’s already done with the team’s seniors.
Although they may not be smuggling pizzas into the LLWS, the Chiefs will soon head down to the ESPN complex at Disney World to sharpen their skills and relationships during a de facto spring training.
“The closer the team is together, the better they develop, the better we play,” Huksloot said.
He’s excited for this year’s travel, no doubt, but is thrilled to know he’s be dorming in baseball heaven with his Little League buddies in a full-circle moment next season.
“It will be great again,” he said. “Especially since it’s something some people only get to experience once.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
