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12/16/2014 11:00 PMEvery Tuesday and Thursday morning starting in April and lasting into October, senior softball players converge in Madison to play in the Madison Senior Softball League (MSSL). These players come from 31 different towns and cities. Over 40 players are from the Shoreline east of New Haven, 10 are from Fairfield County, 15 from New Haven and the surrounding towns, eight from the Meriden/Southington/Wallingford region, and four from the Naugatuck Valley.
The MSSL has become a destination for Connecticut softball players who are 60 years old or older. It was started by the Madison Beach and Recreation Department in 2001 and continues to be under its direction and support. There were six players the first year, but the program has grown to 90 players who are divided into six teams. The league is now run by a board of seven commissioners in Jim Bombaci, Ken Conlon, Charlie Corso, Jack Gontero, Barry Haigis, Tom McMahon, and Bill Porter.
The teams play a 30-game schedule with a regular season champion. Teams then participate in a double elimination tournament for the overall league crown. The league has also been sponsored by The Red Tomato Pizzeria since 2006.
This season, the Saints, managed by Jack Gontero and Roy Scialabba, won the regular season championship with a 21-9 record. They allowed the fewest runs in the league behind great pitching by Bob Schilling (league leader in wins) and the outstanding defense of infielders Tim Horton, Dennis Edgeworth, and Rod Hammel. Edgeworth led the team in batting average, home runs, RBI, and runs scored.
The postseason tournament had teams seeded by their finishing place during the regular season. The Saints and Foxes (2nd in the regular season) received a first round bye. The Devils (17-13) were seeded third, the Hurricanes (15-15) fourth, the Jaguars (13-17) were fifth, and the Coyotes (6-24) sixth. The Coyotes, managed by Bombaci, were also an expansion team in 2014. The Jaguars and the Hurricanes vied for the 2014 championship.
In the final seven-inning game to decide the champion, the teams were tied at 5 going into the bottom of the sixth. The Jaguars broke the tie by scoring five runs as Tom McMahon started the rally with a base hit and went all the way to third on an overthrow. Eight consecutive hits by Harry Fazio, Dan Junior, Paul Mortensen, Kevin McDonough, Dan Pantalone, Paul Brown, Tommy Golino, and Ken Conlon produced the five runs. Pitcher Conlon shut down the Hurricanes in the top of the seventh inning to make the final score 10-5 Jaguars and crown them as overall league champions.
Four Guilford residents contributed to the Jaguars' victory. Pictured is the entire team in (kneeling) Paul Brown (of Madison), Dan Pantalone (Guilford), Ken Conlon (Madison), Tom Golino (Fairfield), and Tom McMahon (Madison); along with (standing) Bill Porter (Madison), Kevin McDonough (Guilford), Roger Lecza (Guilford), Harry Fazio (Wallingford), Bill Carr (Killingworth), Paul Mortensen (Durham), Ed Cugell (Madison), and Dan Junior (Guilford). Missing from the photo is Rich Bettley (Hamden).
Photo and information courtesy of Bill Porter