Printer Friendly Version - North Haven Senior Legion Charges Down the Home Stretch

Reid Kankel and the Post 76 Seniors stand at 15-8 in Zone 2 action following a week that saw North Haven notch five victories in seven contests. File photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier

The North Haven Senior American Legion baseball team improved to 15-8 in Zone 2 play this season by claiming victory in five of its seven zone games last week. Post 76 earned a win versus Meriden, lost two of three in a series with Orange, and then swept a doubleheader against Madison to finish with a winning week. North Haven is in second place in the Zone 2 Western Division standings heading into the last week of the regular season, trailing Hamden (15-6) by two games for first place.

North Haven recorded a pair of road wins versus Meriden at Legion Field on July 7. Post 76 notched a 2-0 victory in game that started on July 6, but was completed the following day due to rain. Later on July 7, North Haven defeated Meriden by the final score of 4-1 to complete a three-game sweep of its Zone 2 opponent.

In the opener, Nick Rossi earned the win by tossing four scoreless innings of relief for North Haven. JJ Mazzaro got the save by pitching a scoreless seventh inning. Ryan Sullivan started on the mound and threw two scoreless innings.

Post 76 took a 1-0 lead when Zack Pincince singled and scored on a single by Mason Balmer in the third inning. In the top of the seventh, Sullivan reached on a single and later scored when Rossi dropped down a squeeze bunt for an insurance run. Dave Christoforo went 2-for-3 with a double for North Haven.

In the second game, Reid Kankel picked up the win by pitching 6.1 innings in which he allowed just two hits and one walk, while striking out eight. Daniel Meyers retired the last two batters of the game with the bases loaded to sew up the save and preserve the 4-1 victory.

Post 76 got on the board when Kankel singled home Balmer and Kevin Lucey for a 2-0 lead in the third. The following inning, Pincince doubled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Balmer to make it 3-0. Later in the game, Lucey hit an RBI triple that plated Rossi for a 4-0 advantage. Meriden scored its only run of the game in the seventh inning.

Pincince went 3-for-3 with a double and a run scored, Lucey was 2-for-4 with triple, a run, and a double; and Danny Cannavaciolo went 2-for-3 for North Haven.

Following the sweep of Meriden, North Haven took two defeats in a three-game series against fellow Zone 2 Western Division opponent Orange. Post 76 lost the first game by a 4-3 score, won the second game by a 10-0 final, and then took a 5-2 defeat in the last game.

North Haven opened up the series by taking a 4-3 road loss to Orange at Brinley Field. North Haven went up 3-1 in the second inning, but Orange tied the game with two runs in the fifth and then won it in walk-off fashion by scoring the winning run in the bottom of the seventh.

Sullivan turned in a solid effort on the hill by allowing three runs (2 earned) in six innings pitched for Post 76. Lucey went 2-for-3 with a walk, a double, and a run; Pincince was 2-for-3 with a run, Hunter Garthwait had a single with an RBI, and Cole Zalegowski had two walks with a run scored.

On July 10, North Haven hosted Orange and posted a 10-0 shutout at DeMayo Ballfield. This game was called due to the mercy rule after Post 76 scored nine runs during the bottom of the fifth inning. Meyers pitched all five innings to get the win, allowing no runs on just two hits.

Christoforo highlighted a big day for the North Haven offense by going 3-for-3, including a grand slam home run, to go with two runs scored and a total of five RBI. Owen Silk went 1-for-2 with a run, two RBI, and a stolen base; Sullivan drew two walks and scored a run, Pincince singled and scored a run, and while Cannavaciolo had two walks with two runs scored for Post 76.

The following day, North Haven lost a 5-2 contest against Orange in the rubber game of the series at Brinley Field. Orange brought a 3-2 lead into the fifth inning and then added a pair of insurance runs in the frame. Pincince went 2-for-2, and Sullivan was 2-for-3 for North Haven. Cannavaciolo and Kankel each had a single with an RBI, Zalegowski singled with a walk and a run scored, and Balmer had a single with a run.

Then on July 13, North Haven swept a doubleheader on the road against Madison at Town Campus. Post 76 took the opener by the score of 5-0 and then prevailed by a 7-5 final in the nightcap.

In the first game, Mazzaro got the win by allowing just two hits and two walks in six scoreless innings for North Haven. Sullivan worked a scoreless seventh to close it out. Sullivan also went 3-for-4 with a double, a run scored, two RBI, and a stolen base. Christoforo went 2-for-4 with a double and a run, while Zalegowski was 2-for-3 with a walk. Balmer doubled and scored a run, Lucey had a single with a walk and a run, and Pincince added a single and a run.

Sullivan earned the win in the second game while striking out 11 batters over five innings. Pincince got the save by pitching 1.2 scoreless innings in relief. At the plate, Sullivan went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run, and two RBI; Christoforo was 2-for-3 to go with a walk, a run, and an RBI; Lucey went 1-for-3 with two runs, an RBI, and a stolen base; and Pincince had a double with a run scored and a stolen base.

Nick Rossi pitched four scoreless innings of relief to get the win when North Haven defeated Meriden by the score of 2-0 in a game that took two days to complete due to rain. File photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier