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By ANDY HUTCHISON

Published: Jun 17, 2011 12:00 am

Baum Orthodontics 10, Papa Alâs Pizza 9: Baum Orthodontics and Papa Alâs played a thrilling first round playoff game Tuesday night at the Reed Field. Baum, behind the pitching of Grace Eurell, Nicole Fisher, and Lydia Shugrue and the bats of Olivia Grant and Jenna Reilly, stayed within striking distance. Down 9-4 to begin the last frame, Baum rallied with big hits from Alea Willis, Julia Gerace, and Paige Connor to tie the game at nine. Then, after making a tremendous fielding play to keep the score tied, Emma Magazu drove in Willis with the winning run of the extra-inning ballgame.

Newtown Hardware 14, Baum Orthodontics 13: For Newtown Hardware Natalie Hornâs RBI single scored Kali Ryder with the game-winning run in one of the greatest comebacks of its season. Newtown Hardware led 9-2 on great hitting by Carley Nuzzo and great fielding by Julie Hess. Then Baum Orthodontics scored a record-breaking 11 runs in the last inning to give the Red Raiders a 13-9 lead with Genevieve Kelly, Julia Gerace, and Alea Wills getting key hits. Newtown Hardware Pink Panthers were down to their last strike twice, when Ally Hurley, Julie Hess, Juliette Cryder, Kali Ryder, Virginia Hepp and Natalie Horn had consecutive hits to finish the unbelievable rally.

For Baum Orthodontics, in a tremendous playoff game Friday night at the Reed Field, the team showed their heart and played hard to the very end. Down 9-2 in the top of the last inning, Baum came alive in spectacular comeback fashion for the second game in a row and scored 10 runs in the inning. Baum was led by the big bats of Emma Magazu, Lydia Shugrue, Julia Gerace, Grace Eurell, Alea Willis, Olivia Grant, Genny Kelly, Jenna Reilly and Nicole Fisher, while Magazu and Shugrue recorded key putouts. Newtown Hardware staged a comeback of their own and won the game with a dramatic walk-off hit with two outs in the bottom of the final inning. The best part of this game was the awesome sportsmanship demonstrated by both teams throughout the contest.

Newtown Hardware 7, Associated Refuse 6: For Newtown Hardware, Kali Ryderâs RBI single brought in Julia Minchak with the winning run in another Newtown Hardware comeback in their last at bat. Carley Nuzzo, Ally Hurley, and Julia Minchak had three hits each to lead the offensive attack. Alison Hechler, Julie Hess, and Natalie Horn had key hits to sustain the winning rally, when Newtown Hardware was down 6-2. Ally Hurley and Virginia Hepp made great fielding plays to stymie big innings by hard hitting Associate Refuse. For Associated Refuse, Shannon Jackman, Anna Burns, and Shauna Tucker had three hits each leading the way for their team, whose members played their hearts out; hitting, pitching, and fielding well.

U10

Extreme Fitness Martial Arts 1, Nuzzo Electric 0: For Nuzzo Electric, Allie Nuzzo and Kaysie Fisher were Nuzzoâs pitchers. Heather Stroili, Joy Metzger, Lauryn Ankers and Anna Johnston had singles.

Blueline Designs 6, Michael Scott Financial Group 5: Blueline Designs Blue Lighting won this playoff game to clinch a spot in the Championship game. Great defensive play was made by Nikki Lillis, Rachel OâGrady, Jaclyn Moccio, Sarah Dowling, Sienna Cummings, and Emily Krasnickas with an impressive pop fly catch at second base. Dani Otero, Casey McLean and OâGrady each hit doubles. Rose Wheway, Moccio, Chloe Freedman, and Vanessa Tucker each scored a run and McLean scored two. Wheway with the last hit, batted in McLean for the win.

Newtown Savings Bank 5, Extreme Fitness Martial Arts 3: Newtown Savings Bank won its first playoff game. Jackie Gouveia got NSB started in the first inning when she hit a triple. Erin Burns then hit a long inside the park home run to drive in both her and Gouveia and gave NSB a 2-0 lead. Gabrielle Calbo drove in NSBâs third run when she singled in the third inning. In the fourth inning NSB scored two more runs when Erin Burns led off with a single and then scored when Nicki DaPra hit a triple down the left field line. DaPrai scored on Noel Carboneâs hard hit single. NSB held Extreme Fitness to two runs, mainly due to the outstanding pitching performance of Adelaide Meier, who pitched three scoreless innings for NSB. Christina Sgobbo and Kendra Saunders also made two terrific plays on high pop-ups helping to secure the win for NSB.

U12

Claim Services International 19, Peace Love and Cupcakes 11: Claim Services International again played well against Peace Love and Cupcakes. Sydney Flint and Kelsey Nicholson handled the pitching duties, with Cassidy Keller directing the game from behind the plate. Jackie Sgobbo and Jenna Carvalho led the offense, each with a single and double driving in multiple runs. Mee Mee Filan and Joanna Vodola also drove in runs with singles of their own. Defensively, the CSI Penguins got great infield play from Tegan Doherty and Jackie Sgobbo, and outfield play by Tina DeMaio who came up with a towering fly ball catch in center field. For Peace Love and Cupcakes, the offense was led by Samantha Cody, Lauren Villamana, Avery Tananbaum, Sophie Ackert and Kelly Merrick. Samantha hit a homerun, walked and drove in three runs. Lauren singled walked three times and scored twice. Avery walked three times, singled and scored twice. Sophie walked, singled twice and scored three times and Kelly walked and doubled. Kaitlyn Pierce and Kelly Merrick pitched very well while Katie Reilly, Jillian Gibney and Cassidy Datin had strong games defensively.

New England Bounce About 14, Peace Love and Cupcakes 8: NEBA scored five runs, led by a home run by Claire Hull. Sklyer Kneski added to the scoring with two hits and contributed defensively at third base. For Peace Love and Cupcakes, the offense was led by Cassidy Datin, Sophie Eckert, Kelly Merrick, Jillian Gibney and Madison Fusaro. Cassidy singled, walked twice and scored two runs. Sophie had a walk and two singles. Kelly had two singles, a walk and drove in three runs. Jillian singled, walked drove in a run and scored a run. Madison singled, walked twice and drove in two runs. Katie Reilly and Alexa Horkachuck pitched very well and Madison Fusaro had a monster game defensively, making a rally-killing catch at second base.

Claim Services International 11, WellBaskets.com 10: This game had the kind of drama and excitement you would expect in the playoffs. Claim Services International trailed by one in the top of the first but answered back with five runs. The game tightened up after that with great defense and pitching by both teams. At the top of three the game was tied at six runs each with momentum and confidence building for the WellBaskets.com team. Tina DeMaio led off the fourth with a single and two stolen bases. Hanna Bigwarfe hit a SAC fly to center driving in the go ahead run from third. Kelsey Nicholson hit a single and moved over to second on a passed ball. Sarah Spillane drove in another run on a double to left and CSI was up 8-6. WellBaskets.com answered back in the fifth scoring three runs to take the lead 9-8. CSI answered with two runs off a single by Jackie Sgobbo scoring Jenna Carvalho and Ashley Gong to take back the lead 10-9. In the top of six with Sydney Flint on the mound and Cassidy Keller behind the plate, the battery tried to close it out but WellBaskets.com scored a run to tie the game 10-10. With bases loaded and one out, Ashley Gong hit a fielderâs choice to first where Bella Luciano threw home to get the force out and keep the game tied. That left bases loaded and two outs with Sydney Flint on third, Mee Mee Filan on second, Ashley Gong on first and Jenna Carvalho at the plate. The fans and players were on the edge of their seats. After taking the first two pitches Jenna was hit by a pitch bringing in the deciding run for the CSI Penguins. The CSI Penguins move on to the Championship game to face NE Bounce About who took 2 out of 3 games during the regular season.

Newtown Hawks 7, Southington Lightning 4: Newtown Hawks U12 Travel softball team went to Southington to add another win to their standings. The Hawks beat Southington Lightning 7-4. Lauren Wilcox controlled the mound and struck out 15 batters, while shortstop, Caitlyn Linden and first baseman, Kelly Merrick made solid plays for the infield. To assist in the 7 run game, Haley Ryan batted two singles and earned an RBI, Wilcox and Merrick each contributed an RBI, Shannon Lynch had a great game with two singles, Isabella Luciano gave her team a single, and Rylee Mulligan hit two sacrifice bunts to advance the runners and put an RBI in the book. The Hawks would like to thank their sponsor Strocchia Iron Works.

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It seems a lot of the discussion around the flagpole focuses on vilifying drivers who pass on the right, but the real issue is being overlooked. If Chapter 248 Section 14-251 were enforced, we wouldn’t see this problem to begin with. That statute prohibits stopping in the middle of a roadway to yield to cross traffic—as so often happens with cars waiting to turn from Church Hill. When vehicles stop illegally in the travel lane, they effectively create a blockage. Other drivers then either sit through unnecessary delays or carefully pass around them on the right, which is fully permitted when the vehicle ahead is “illegally parked” in the roadway. Instead of punishing drivers reacting to the obstruction, enforcement should focus on the cause: vehicles unlawfully stopping and backing up traffic in the first place. If that behavior were addressed, the need to “go around” would largely disappear.

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John, you raise an important point — these situations are tragic, complicated, and often far less clear-cut than the headlines make them seem. In the Fredericksburg case, the full facts still aren’t publicly known, and like so many of these stories, there’s conflicting information. It was apparently the back door at 3 a.m. — was it justified to use deadly force? We don’t know yet. What we do know is that the homeowner has been charged, and as you rightly noted, that is very serious. But this is also where perspective matters. These cases are quickly sensationalized in the news and on social media, yet when the dust settles, the outcomes are rarely publicized. People forget that in our system, you are innocent until proven guilty. Try to find much coverage of the convication in the case of the Fairfield Realtor vehicle homicide, or updates on the woman who shot her husband a couple of Christmases ago, or even the pedestrian death in Sandy Hook a year or so back. The follow-through simply isn’t there, and public opinion is often shaped only by the first round of headlines. At the end of the day, these situations remind us how split-second decisions in the middle of the night can change lives forever — which is exactly why the right to protect one’s property, home and family is so fiercely debated, and lucky constitutionally protected.

Late Night Prank Gone Wrong

First the low hanging fruit. Dave; it was a joke, please get over it. You are the only person in Newtown that thought I really wanted to build a stadium on 6 Commence Rd. Now on to Alex. You might not appreciate my writing style or my selection of words, but let's not loose sight of the fact that by responding to my letter in the manner that you did, you have removed any doubt whatsoever that you have no idea of the quantifiable benefits you are dismissing not only for the town, but also for protesters. Either you stopped listening at the word "ordinance" or you never started.. Your constitutional rights to assemble were never in question and would actually be strengthened and there would be literally no impediments. We could even title it "The Alex Villamil Ordinance" if you want. It could be your legacy and actually show Newtown your willingness to work in a bipartisan way for the betterment of the town. Businesses would be protected. Traffic wouldn't be interrupted. The town would save hundreds of thousands of dollars in police overtime. And maybe most importantly, the town could prevent another tragedy while mitigating legal risk in the event something terrible happens at a protest. Nothing bad could never happen in Newtown right? All that could be accomplished by a simple, non-intrusive ordinance unless all the detriments to our town are intentional in order to bring more attention to your cause. Alex, this was not me throwing a temper tantrum. Believe me, you will know it if that happens. I am just putting Newtown first. From that perspective, if you think critically, the regulation is necessary. It makes sense logically, rationally, and is reasonable. There is absolutely no down side. None. I would be willing to sit down with you to see if we could come to some type of compromise if you want. Let me know. You would be amazed how much you can accomplish when there is dialogue amongst neighbors.

It’s About Dialogue Amongst Neighbors — Not Regulation

A popular prank circulating on TikTok is “ding-dong-ditch” where a group of young people violently bang or kick someone’s door late at night and then “ditch” or run. On May 3 three high schoolers here in Fredericksburg Va. were participating in such a prank. One homeowner assumed, as in this case, an attempted break in and also took measures to defend his family and property. As the youths were running away he fired, striking an 18 year old graduating senior in the back killing him and seriously injuring a second youth. A wasted life, a family shattered, and the homeowner charged with murder.

You’re absolutely right — no one should ever feel unsafe in their own home. Being startled awake by violent banging at your door late at night is no joke, and it’s a stark reminder that danger can come without warning. That’s why I’m thankful for the right to protect ourselves, our families, and our property. In a moment like that, you don’t get a second chance to call for help before you act — you have to be prepared. Our homes should be a place of peace, not fear, and the ability to defend them is a right worth safeguarding.

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