Printer Friendly Version - Post 83 Juniors Walk Off Against North Haven; Prep Legion Doubles Up West Haven, 10-5

Colin Baxter (pictured bunting in a game from last season) turned in two quality relief outings on the mound last week to help the Branford Junior Legion baseball team earn a win against North Haven and a tie with Orange. Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Sound

The Branford Junior Legion baseball team came away with a win and a tie in Zone 2 action last week to improve to 4-1-1 in the division and remain in second place. Stratford is currently in first place with a record of 7-0.

On June 18, Branford defeated North Haven 3-2 as Post 83 left North Haven on the field for a walk-off victory in the bottom of the seventh inning. Branford worked hard to load the bases in the seventh, when a walk forced home Blake Kustra with the winning run. Henry Watson started on the mound and pitched four strong innings for Branford, allowing no runs on a hit with five strikeouts. Colin Baxter came on in relief to earn the victory. Offensively, Aiden Ricciardelli had a hit and a run scored, while Dan Lear finished with a hit and an RBI.

Two days later, Branford played Orange to a 2-2 tie in a 10-inning contest. Branford held a 1-0 lead going into the bottom of the sixth, when Orange got a big hit that scored two to grab a 2-1 lead heading into the seventh. In the seventh, Lear got a hit that brought home Anthony Burzyinski to even the score. Both teams had scoring opportunities in extra innings, but excellent defensive play on both sides kept it tied at 2 after 10. Justin Botte was outstanding on the mound for Post 83, pitching six innings and allowing two runs on just four hits to go with six strikeouts. Once again, Baxter came out of the bullpen and only gave up one hit in his four innings. At the dish, Burzynski had a hit and a run scored, Lear had the key RBI single, Tyler Sibling also had a hit with an RBI, and Augie Gugliemo contributed a hit for Branford, which is 5-4-1 overall.

The Post 83 Prep Legion squad notched a win and a tie last week to stand at 3-1 in Zone B play with an overall record of 3-2-1. Meriden is in first place in the zone at 6-2.

Branford hosted zone foe West Haven on June 21 and prevailed by the final score of 10-5. The following day, Post 83 played non-zone opponent RCP at Cromwell Middle School and the game ended in a 6-6 stalemate.