No circumstances are enough to stop a true winner.

Early on, it looked like the Nassau Conference AAA baseball showdown was about to be ruined by poor playing conditions Tuesday at Howitt Middle School in Farmingdale. With a soaked turf field, accompanied by thick fog and persistent mist, the game was going to be hard for either side to win. However, Farmingdale still found a way to defeat Oceanside 1-0, securing a monumental two points in the conference standings.

Farmingdale starting pitcher Lorenzo Cimino had to exit the game in the bottom of the first after throwing a scoreless top half. While leading off for Farmingdale, Cimino twisted his knee while fouling off a pitch, his cleat caught in the wet turf. After taking a breather, Cimino fouled off the next pitch and once again twisted his knee, causing coach Frank Tassielli to pull him.

Cimino’s teammates picked him up. Jack DeLeo finished the at-bat for him and worked a walk before coming around to score on a bases-loaded walk by rightfielder Ken Roldan. Justin Hills took the mound in Cimino’s place in the second, and the rest was history.

Hills, who is generally a middle reliever, dominated over six shutout innings, allowing just two hits. He struck out six batters and tossed 69 pitches, 47 of which were strikes. His curveball, which is his go-to pitch, was particularly lethal.

“I just had a lot of confidence,” Hills said. “I knew I needed to step up, and everything was just working.”

He retired Oceanside’s  two-, three- and four-hitters in order on just nine pitches in the seventh to seal the win.

Farmingdale (14-1-1, 11-1-1) and Oceanside (10-3, 9-2) entered the two-game series as the two best teams in Nassau’s top baseball conference. Farmingdale sat three points ahead of Oceanside for the conference lead, entering Tuesday. Hills’ emergency performance may very well be the most impactful one the Dalers have had all season. 

Now five points ahead with just two weeks left in the regular season, a series sweep over Oceanside on Wednesday would place Farmingdale just one win shy of clinching the conference title.

“They’ve got their foot on the pedal,” Tassielli said. “They know what they have in front of them and, from the first guy to the last guy on that bench, they’re ready. They know what it takes to be a winner. Justin [Hills] — unbelievable. This has been his biggest outing … and he performed.”

There were other valuable contributions made in the win. The top of the third inning ended when  catcher Angel Cartagena caught a runner stealing, and the fourth began with a sliding, basket catch by centerfielder James Sebber.

“It feels great,” Hills said. “I’m not the man, the team’s the man. We did it together, so it’s a team effort.”

Oceanside's Dylan Beirne took the complete-game loss, allowing just two hits while striking out 11 and picking off a runner.