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07/29/2018 12:00 AMThe North Haven Senior American Legion baseball team was eliminated from the State Tournament after taking a 1-0 defeat versus Middletown at DeMayo Ballfield on July 24. Head Coach Tim Binkoski’s squad then competed in the second annual Dan Riccio Memorial Tournament, where Post 76 won four ballgames to take the tournament title for the second year in a row. North Haven finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 26-8.
Tom Myjak got the start against Middletown in states and allowed just one run to go with seven strikeouts in 5.2 innings. Hunter Garthwait pitched the last 1.2 innings for North Haven, fanning all four batters that he faced. Middletown used a two-out double to score the game’s lone run in the top of the fourth.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Andrew Laudano hit a one-out, pinch-hit double with a runner on first base, but Middletown’s left fielder threw out the would-be tying run at home plate to preserve Middletown’s 1-0 advantage. North Haven’s next batter grounded out to end the game. Kevin Lucey had two singles, Brendan Clark drew two walks, Garthwait had single with a walk, and Zach Pincince had two sacrifice bunts in the loss.
Following states, North Haven competed in the second annual Dan Riccio Memorial Tournament. The tournament began last season as a way to honor Dan Riccio, who was the North Haven American Legion Post 76 commander for many years, before passing away in January of 2017. Post 76 won the inaugural Dan Riccio Memorial Tournament last summer. This year, North Haven started the tournament by winning a pair of decisions against two AAU teams in round-robin games held at DeMayo Ballfield on July 28. North Haven earned a 3-2, eight-inning win versus the Connecticut Hurricanes A team and then defeated Diamond Zone 8-1 in a five-inning, rain-shortened contest. The following day, Post 76 captured the crown as they defeated the Connecticut Hurricanes B team 8-0 in the semifinals at Montowese Field, followed by a 3-1 triumph against the Hurricanes A team in the championship game at Bailey Road Field.
To open the tournament, North Haven trailed Hurricanes A 1-0 early, but then scored two runs in the fifth inning, when Alex Page singled home Andrew Laudano and Danny Cannavaciolo. The Hurricanes plated a run in the bottom of the seventh to send the game to extras. In the top of the eighth, Post 76 took a 3-2 lead when Lucey’s one-out single brought home Pincince. Clark followed by pitching a 1-2-3 inning to finish off the victory.
Clark earned the win by pitching two scoreless innings for Post 76. Starter Griffin Bottomley went 5.1 innings, allowing just one run to go with six K’s. Pincince had a single and a double to pace the offense.
In the second game, North Haven scored two runs in the first, second, and third innings, followed by single runs in both the fourth and fifth on its way to an 8-1 win over Diamond Zone. Myjak got the win after allowing one unearned run in the first inning, after which Pincince tossed four scoreless innings.
At the plate, Clark went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, Dave Christoforo was 3-for-3 with a double and a run, and Laudano also went 3-for-3 to go with a run and two RBI. Jason Ostrowski singled, walked, and scored two runs; Lucey walked twice and scored a run, and Page added an RBI single.
In the semis, Luca Lawrence threw a complete game by pitching six shutout innings in which he allowed three hits, three walks, and struck out seven. Post 76 held a 2-0 lead over Hurricanes B, before breaking the game open with three runs in both the fourth and fifth innings. Clark had two hits with an RBI, Pincince singled and doubled to go with three runs scored, and Cannavaciolo contributed a hit with a run scored and three RBI. DJ Caron singled with an RBI and a run scored, Garthwait drew two walks and scored a pair of runs, Lucey singled and worked two walks, and Erbe walked twice to go with an RBI.
For the final, Clark started and allowed just one run in six innings to go with 11 strikeouts to pick up the win, after which Myjak tossed a scoreless seventh for the save against Hurricanes A. North Haven trailed 1-0, before scoring two runs in the fourth and another in the sixth for the 3-1 win. In the fourth, Pincince singled home Erbe to tie it up and later came home with the go-ahead run on an error. Lucey singled and scored on a double from Christoforo for North Haven’s insurance run in the sixth. Christoforo also drew two walks in the win, as did Garthwait, while Pincince added a single in the victory.
Post 76 had previously recorded a mark of 16-5 in the Zone 2 standings during the regular season to take second place in the zone, finishing just one game behind Hamden for first place.