A couple days later here, but Somers senior Dan Zlotnick has already found a new home at Marist. Zlotnick told me he was lucky. Marist was originally his second choice and the program still had scholarship money left to offer. The Red Foxes contacted him as soon as Vermont dropped its program and the deal was done less than four days later. Wow.

Lakeland senior Jon Cosenza has yet to decide his next destination but he has a few opportunities. Albany and Cortland, his original second choice, are both very interested.

You can read the players’ reaction to Vermont dropping its program in this story I wrote for yesterday.

They were understandably stunned. Cosenza said there was no indication from the program that baseball would be cut.

I saw their coach on Shrub Oak, Sonny Graci, at the County Center on Wednesday. He told me his phone was ringing at 11:30 Friday night with coaches inquiring about Zlotnick and Cosenza’s availability. Obviously, the interest was high in Zlotnick. From what Graci said, I suspect Cosenza will land on his fell as well. You have to feel it’s only just after the shock of what happened last week. Good for them.

A few weeks after Lakeland’s Jon Cosenza became the second local player to commit to Vermont, the university announced it would cut its baseball and softball programs in 2010 — when Cosenza and Somers’ Dan Zlotnick would’ve been freshmen.

You can read more about why in this story that outlines UVM’s $10.8 million cuts. Obviously, this is a tough break for Cosenza and Zlotnick. Of course, I’ll let you know where this leaves them.

I’ve been to caught up in hoops to check in, but I wrote earlier this week about Jon Cosenza of Lakeland, who committed to catch at the University of Vermont. You can find the story here.

Cosenza, who steered a pitching staff with an ERA under 2.00, will join Somers ace Dan Zlotnick, a teammates of his on the Shrub Oak American Legion. Those two will have an opportunity to form a battery for the Catamounts for four years, which, according to Cosenza, is something they’re looking forward to.

Cosenza’s signing is the next-to-last piece of the puzzle for what has to be one of the best group of players at one position in such a small area in Section 1 history. I’m serious, too. You may think that’s impossible to qualify (it is), but just consider this list:

Jon Cozensa, Lakeland: Vermont
Tim Panetta, Fox Lane: UConn
Anthony Corona, Kennedy: C.W. Post
Alan Filauro, John Jay: undecided, but has/had D-I interest
Tyler Donovan, Iona Prep (Brewster resident): Winthrop

That’s five players in a 10-mile radius who will play significant college baseball. Can anyone else come up with such a condensed group of college-bound players at the same position?