Newtown Babe Ruth Baseball hosted its first 70-foot tournament over the Memorial Day Weekend and – fittingly, perhaps – the Newtown Lightning captured the title with wins over New Milford, Bethany and New Milford again.

In an 11-0 win over New Milford, Dan Gustafson and John Lebinski combined on a  mercy-shortened no-hitter with eight strikeouts between them. Pat Thornberg had a two-run double as Mike Scharfenberg, Alex Roche and Sean Dardine all doubled.

In a 15-5 win over Bethany, Gustafson homered twice, Lebinski doubled, Ryan Daignault collected an RBI grounder and Tyler Gibney pitched well and drove in a run

And in a 13-7 win over New Milford in the tournament final, Thornberg singled in a pair of runs and Dardine double to spark the offense. And in the third, with runners at first and third and two outs, pitcher Troy Larsen picked a New Milford runner off first base. As the runner ran for second, first baseman Lebinski fired to shortstop Roche. Roche wisely ignored the oncoming runner, wheeled and threw a perfect throw to catcher Thornberg to nail the other New Milford runner attempting to score.

The Lightning players had a raucous celebration and pool party after the clinching game. The team also drenched head coach Gary Stoller with a bucket of water, a garden hose and assorted water balloons.

The Lightning kicks off its Connecticut Summer Baseball League season on June 23. The Lightning finished in third place last season and was the only team to defeat league champion Redding.

U13

Associated Refuse 15, Newtown Savings Bank 4 – Sean Burson, Chris Haylon and Connor Blanc pitched well and accounted for six hits, eight runs and four RBI to lead Associated Refuse. Joel Fox and Cole Baldino also had multiple hits with Fox driving in five runs on the day. Brandon Ziman, Will Arndt and Anthony Maki had two hits apiece for Newtown Savings Bank as Scott Keating made a couple of nice defensive plays at second base in the loss.

Associated Refuse 11, The Blinds Guys 2 – Chris Haylon, Connor Blanc and Joel Fox all had multiple hit games with Blanc, Ryan Kleinert and Connor Pineau contributing key RBI in the Associated victory. Sean Ross pitched well for The Blinds Guys as Luke Shearin had a great game behind the plate. Ross, Matt Carroll and Jake Tolson connected with solid hits.

Newtown Savings Bank 8, The Blinds Guys 7 – Ryan Truschess and Dan Aurelia had strong offensive performances in the come-from-behind victory for Newtown Savings. Dakota Christiano played a fine game, pitching a scoreless inning and making a few nice plays in the field. Jason Marks played a great game at catcher, throwing two people out at third. For TBG, Cody Gottardt tripled in a pair of runs while Steven Zarifis and Jack McManus had strong games on the mound and at third base, respectively.

Associated Refuse 4, Newtown (#3) 2 – Cole Baldino pitched three scoreless innings to lead Associated to the win. RBI hits by Sean Burson, Cole Baldino and Omari Miles helped propel the offense. Matt Rospenda contributed two hits as well.

Redding over The Blinds Guys – Sean Ross pitched four scoreless innings in a loss to Redding. Catcher Johnny Kerins, first baseman Ian Kirner and second baseman Ian McWilliams sparkled in the field.

Brookfield 8, Associated Refuse 5 – Chris Haylon, Sean Burson and Joel Fox hit the ball hard in a loss to Brookfield. Burson also pitched three innings, yielding only one run.

Ridgefield 12, Newtown Savings Bank 4 – Greg Frattaroli, Anthony Maki and Dan Aurelia collected two hits apiece in the loss. Ryan Truschess, Jason Marks and Scott Keating had strong defensive games.

Brookfield 11, Newtown Savings Bank 2 – Ryan Truschess and Scott Keating hit the ball had and Ryan Cassidy played a great defensive game, making an outstanding play at shortstop, but Newtown Savings fell to Brookfield. Dakota Christiano pitched well.

New Milford 8, Associated Refuse 1 – Chris Haylon had two hits and a walk and pitched two scoreless innings and Connor Blanc contributed two perfect innings in the loss.

New Milford 9, The Blinds Guys 8 – Steven Zarifis had three hits, including a stand-up double that scored two runs, to lead The Blinds Guys. Mike Mossbarger made three fantastic catches in the field and Ian McWilliams closed out the game with a scoreless inning of pitching.

U12

 

Lee J Demers, Builder 13, Westport Worldwide 0 – Kyle Wilcox and Richie Sandler threw a four-inning, no-hit shutout as Demers put together its most impressive win. Sean Dardine smashed a two run homer and Kyle Hagerman a two-run single to power the offense. Alex Roche made a fine play in the field for Westport.

Onex 12, Lee J. Demers, Builder 8 – Eric  Terhaar blasted two home runs and teammate Reid Schmidt hit a double and homer to power Onex. Alex Champagne also doubled and scored for the victors. Terhaar, Michael Lengel and Chad Magoulas each scored two runs. For Demers, Richie Sandler drove in three runs, Kyle Wilcox had two hits, and Dean Demers doubled.

Westport Worldwide 10, Noyes-Ryder 5 – Mike Koch went 3-for-3 with a pair of homers, Mike Lobosco singled and homered and Alex Roche homered to lead Westport to the win. Chris Robinson added a pair of hits.

Westport Worldwide 14, Emmett & Glander 8 – Dan Poeltl went 3-for-3, Mike Koch homered and singled, and Brandon Cooper and Chris Robinson banged out two hits apiece to lead Westport.

Emmett & Glander 12, Onex 12 – Dan Gustafson drove in two runs with a hit and sac fly and Robbie Hughes picked up two RBI with a timely hit as E&G and Onex drew even. JP Blanco reached base four times, scoring twice along with teammates Chris Devaney and Mario Pizighelli. Kyle Buckley made a thrilling two-out, bases loaded catch in right field.

BASE Technologies 7, Emmett & Glander 4 – JP Blanco (double, RBI), Stefan Hennessey (single, double, RBI) and Stephen Conway (single, two runs scored) powered E&G. Dan Gustafson and Mario Pizighelli hurled two solid innings each.

Emmett & Glander 13, Onex 4 – JP Blanco smashed a grand slam and Mike Scharfenberg banged two hits and drove in three runs to lead E&G to the win. Mike Allwein and Riley Wurtz each reached base four times, scoring a total of five runs. On the mound, Stephen Conway, Dan Gustafson and Mario Pizighelli combined for 9 strikeouts.

U11

 

Prism Painting 14, Ocon Pest Control 6 – Conner Noonan belted a grand slam, a two run home run, and drove in nine runs to power Prism to the win. Jacob Moore and Tristan Villamil played well in the field as Matt Hoyt, Erik Laaksonen, and Michael Davis struck out 12 batters in the win.

Onex 15, Taunton Press 14 – Bubba LeBlanc’s based-loaded double completed an eight-run bottom of the sixth rally for Onex. Chris Stanton, Tom Floros, Jack  Zahansky and Cassie Ekstrom all had key hits during the final inning rally.

Taunton Press 14, Onex 9 – Jonah Muniz reached base three times and was a huge factor on the base paths for Onex and Andrew Ryan hit a long triple and Tom Gleason continued to hit the ball hard with another long double. Stefan Dullinger pitched well and played excellent defense.

Onex 8, Ferris Acres Creamery 6 – Jack Zahansky, Jonah Muniz and Stefan Dullinger each pitched two great innings to lead Onex. Anthony Padgett had a key RBI and Tommy Gleason had a double and a triple to lead the offense. Tom Floros made a great diving catch in right field in the last inning to help secure the win.

Stony Brook 11, Ferris Acres Creamery 0 – Pat Mullins (3-for-4, homer), Greg Hennessey and Justin Cherry combined on the shutout to lead Stony Brook. Second baseman Alex Romeo and catcher Ricky Kerins sparkled in the field. Alex Lapinski hit double off of the center field fence to score two runs for Stony Brook in the third. Justin Cherry, Jamie McDonald and Sam Svensson also had nice hits.

U10 Travel

Southbury Tournament

Newtown Blue 8, New Milford 1 – Virgil Procaccini, Connor Roche and Brandon Powell combined to hold New Milford to four hits and one run with Colton Smith, Powell, Julian Dunn, Stephen Grasso and Roche adding hits apiece to lead the offense.

Newtown Blue 7, Southbury 1 – Jim Parker pitched three scoreless innings in the win. Stephen Grasso went 2-for-3 with an RBI and Virgil Procaccini added the only extra base hit of the game with a double. Parker and Colton Smith both scored two runs.

Newtown Blue 12, Brookfield 1 – Virgil Procaccini went 3-for-3, scored three runs and drove in two more to lead Blue. Julian Dunn went 2-for-3, including a triple, with two RBI as Colton Smith and Brandon Powell added two hits each. Bobby Archiere pitched two solid innings for the win.

Newtown Blue over Brookfield – Blue defeated Brookfield in the tournament finale as  Jim Parker, Connor Roche and Virgil Procaccini pitched great. Troy Frangione and Chase Wurtz both 2-for-2 and scored two runs. Julian Dunn doubled.

U10

 

Mount Pleasant Animal Hospital 7, Cascone Painting 6 – Nate Dowd and Pat Carello each had three hits to lead Mount Pleasant. Jon Rospenda got out of a bases loaded jam by striking out the side in the fifth inning to preserve the win.

Mastercard International 12, Mount Pleasant Animal Hospital 7 – Jim Parker and Matt Wood had two hits each and Daryl Silverlieb pitched two strong innings for Mount Pleasant.

Fairfield County Irrigation 6, Cascone Painting 6 – Matt Lindell, Matt Janco and Nick Eisle each had critical hits with runners in scoring position to lead FCI to the tie. On the mound, Jack Lago and Virgil Procaccini looked great and solid fielding by Jacob Burden and Mason Galanis rounded out the day.

Mount Pleasant Animal Hospital 13, Cascone Painting 10 – Nate Dowd picked up the win with strong relief support from Kai Hedin and Patrick Carello to lead Mount Pleasant to the win. Matt Wood, Jim Parker and Carello scored three runs each while Matt Mitchel supplied strong defense in the outfield.

Mobil 1 Lube Express 7, Aerco International 6 – Julian Dunn led Mobil 1, scoring three times with two doubles, a single and two RBI. Connor Miller had a double, a single and scored three times as Nick Strokis had a single and drove in two and Greg Grasso had two singles and an RBI.

BW Retail Real Estate 11, Newtown Mobil 3 – Charlie Huegi and Mark Dowling each went 3-for-3 (single, double and triple) with two runs scored to lead BW. Dowling also contributed three RBI. Connor Roche added two singles and two RBI in the win.

Mastercard International 15, Sal & Pepe 13 – Will Swain and Markus Elken pitched two solid innings each for Mastercard while Jonathan Sherman, Colton Smith, Brandon Powell and Swain hit the ball well. Brenden Grant added two hits down the left field line.

U9

 

Associated Refuse 9, Newtown Financial Mortgage 3 – Michael Parker went 3-for-3 with a double, triple and four RBI to lead Associated. Chris Calo, Patrick Berger and Jaret DeVellis combined to pitch three strong innings. For NFM, Stephen Brittin and Jake Courchene-Roy hit doubles and Curtis Williamson had a key hit in the first inning. Russell Jacobs had a run scoring single and Peter Fiorella also had a hit.

Newtown Financial Mortgage 8, Coldwell Banker 8 – Jared Pearson, David Anderson, Peter Fiorella, and Andrew Drap all had key hits to lead NFM. Matthew Elias pitched well. For Coldwell, Matthew Maturo (triple) and Erik Street (double) powered the offense as Timothy Vanderhave and Joseph Duero pitched well.

U8

 

Onex 6, Mobil 1 Lube Express 2 – Matthew Carino went 3-for-3, including a double, to lead Onex. Jeremy Spath, Timothy Le Blanc and Scott Martin chipped in with two hits apiece. For the Mobil One, Sam Duffy had a pair of hits as Ryan Shaw and Justin Dunn each had an RBI. Shawn Fulton and Matthew Clark contributed a hit each.

Onex 9, Flagpole Realty 8 – Timothy Le Blanc caught a long fly ball and then doubled up a runner at first to turn a double play and lead Onex to the win. Matthew Carino made a nice defense play on the mound to end the game. Jeremy Spath, Spencer Johnson, and Carino each had three hits to lead the offense.

Addessi Jewelers 7, Newtown Real Estate 0 – Mathew Gerics went 3-or- with a double and Connery Mayer went 2-for-2 with two singles and two runs scored to lead Addessi. Parker Addessi, Sarah Spillane and Mitchell Savoca pitched very well. For Newtown Real Estate, Colin Patrick and Matt Campbell hit the ball hard as Brendan McMahon, Claire Swanson and Jonathan Paes made solid defensive plays.

Addessi Jewelers 6, Raymond James Financial 4 – Parker Johnson and Brian Kerins had two base hits with two RBI each to power Addessi. Noah LaFerriere and Rachel Williams played great on defense.

Gas House Gorillas 10, Raymond James Financial 0 – Forrest Weatherby, Kieran Lynch, Andy Hubina, Nick Rohrbacher, Ellie Nikitchyuk and Paul Whitaker had two hits apiece to lead the Gorillas.

Gas House Gorillas 7, Burrell & Winans 6 – Matthew Kretz, Matthew Pelison and Jack Moulder who had multiple hits as Bobby Haskins and Patrick Conte  banged out doubles to lead the Gorillas. Peter Winans, Matt Stewart and Alex Soderholm powered the B&W offense.

Burrell & Winans 12, Mobil 1 Lube Express 1 – Matt Davis led the way for Burrell & Winans with three hits, including a triple. Owen Samson and Lucas LaDestro added two hits each and John Cagganello sparkled in the field, catching a screaming line drive up the middle. For Mobil 1, Ryan Shaw blasted a triple while Oliver Wood collected a pair of hits. Sam Duffy and Justin Dunn pitched well.

VFW (Post #308) 6, Newtown Real Estate 5 – Singles by Charles Soto and Bryan Silk, plus a double by Clayton Schneider, sent home three runs for VFW in the win. David Berquist added another RBI and made an awesome catch in the outfield. For Newtown Real Estate, Jake Oliger singled twice and homered as Colin Patrick (3-for-3) Grant Varnum, Matt Campbell, Tom Cotton and Quinlan Hart hit the ball hard.