Coaching all-year round, and at the head post of the high school he graduated from, was not in Dwayne Page’s childhood forecast.
The former T-Bird backstop who went on to play collegiate ball at both Dowling College (2014-2016) and SUNY New Paltz (2016-2018) “fell in love with coaching” after his freshman year at Dowling when he first earned the chance to assistant coach a youth travel team. For Page, this opportunity set in motion over half a decade of developing young ballplayers and his own leadership philosophy.
“As a player, and now as a coach, I’ve always been such a process-oriented person,” Page told The Messenger. “I’m someone that always puts my head down, and works. I love the process. When I got the opportunity to put in for this job, there was no hesitance. I had a really good support group behind me. Some really good assistant coaches with me on staff. It was definitely the right situation for me.”
Alongside him as assistant coaches: a pair of fellow ex-teammates, Mike Rizzitello and Marc Wangenstein. “I can bounce ideas off of them, and they inspire me,” said Page. “The conversation will never end as long as there are good baseball people in the world.”
Whether while coaching ages 13-17 over the past several summers, or when conducting private hitting and catching instruction through 365 Athletics in Bellport, Page has seen it firsthand: there is a new generation in town. But he cautions those on the outside looking in to not underestimate the baseball I.Q. and passion of today’s youth.
“I think it’s a misconception a lot of people, parents, and coaches have about this generation: these guys want to play ball,” said Page. “How competitive baseball is, especially on Long Island. People can say what they want about the cap of talent on Long Island, but these guys want to be there. These guys are doing camps, private training, weight training with these lifting coaches, something I didn’t too much of when I was younger. My thing is: I don’t sit there and try to question guys if they want to be there or not. I know they want to be there.”
Page adds, while it comes with the territory to offer more explanations than he and his teammates required as kids, it’s nothing he can’t handle – thanks to the “tough, hardcore, hard-nosed, and disciplined” work ethic instilled in him by some of his “favorite people on Earth.” He cites everyone from Tom Caputo, Gregg Sarra, the late Bob Ambrosini, Matt Righter and Arlan Freeman as coaches who taught him to be big on accountability, to know his job, to be aggressive, to stay headstrong, and to always find “different approaches to the game.”
While the Varsity Baseball season does not kick off until next spring, Page will be hard at work with a non-mandatory fall and winter slate of workouts. These developmental rounds are open to anyone in the district looking to work on their craft. For Connetquot Baseball hopefuls, Page believes he can be a trusted mentor because he was in their exact cleats not too long ago. And he’s not the only one as confident in his ability to take the reins.
“I can’t think of anyone better to take up the mantle as head coach,” said Jeff Sarra, 26, of Ronkonkoma. “Dwayne and I have played ball together since we were kids all the way through college and he pours his heart into that game. He’s always been a natural leader. In college, he led our team as a captain and I always trusted his instincts or knowledge of the game. After assistant coaching the past few years at Connetquot, it just feels right for him to lead the next generation of T-Birds and I know he’s ready to show everyone how well he can do it.”
