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06/17/2018 12:00 AMSenior Legion Baseball
The East Haven Senior American Legion baseball team opened up the 2018 season by taking a pair of losses against Zone 2 opponent North Haven in a home doubleheader on June 16. The 89ers lost the first game by the final score of 9-4 and then took a 7-4 defeat in the second contest.
In game one, the 89ers scored all four of their runs in the first inning by getting a couple of hits and taking advantage of a few North Haven errors. With East Haven trailing 3-0, Mark Smith led off and reached first base on an error, after which Gabe Longley hit a bunt single. Jake Ferrara singled to load the bases and then Nick Kraszewski reached on an error to score Smith. Frank Longley hit a sacrifice fly to right field to drive in Longley, and then Ferrara scored on a throwing error to tie the game. During the next at-bat, Kraszewski raced home on a passed ball to give East Haven a 4-0 lead.
However, the 89ers were unable to get a hit for the rest of the game. North Haven came back with three runs in the second inning and then added three more in the sixth for the 9-4 victory. Kraszewski started for East Haven on the hill and pitched three innings. Sal Buffone threw four innings of relief for the 89ers.
In the nightcap, East Haven fell behind 4-0 after the top of the first inning, before rallying to tie the game in the bottom half of the frame. North Haven scored a run in the second to go up 5-4 and later plated a pair of runs in the fifth for the 7-4 win. Mark Smith, Jack Zimmerman, Frank Longley, Tristan Punzo, and Anthony Buffone all recorded hits for East Haven in its big first inning. Punzo and Anthony Buffone had two hits each for the game. Gabe Longley got the start and pitched 4.1 innings for East Haven.
Junior Legion Baseball
The East Haven Junior American Legion baseball squad is back on the field following a brief hiatus. The 89ers started their summer strong by winning their first three games in Zone 2 play, while allowing just one run between the trio.
On June 10, East Haven defeated fellow Zone 2 opponent Branford by a 3-0 score in a home game. The 89ers followed that up with an 11-0 win at West Haven on June 12. Two days later, East Haven headed back to West Haven for another Zone 2 contest and prevailed by a 5-1 score.