Admirals’ American Legion Season Recap

The Bethel Admirals 17U American Legion baseball club won its last two games on the final day of the regular season, taking back first place in the Zone 5 standings and securing a second round berth in the state tournament

The Admirals, coached by Josh Hull, Gary Buzzanca, and Pastor Tim Kuhn, went 1-1 in the single elimination tournament, which left them  tied for seventh place among 56 17u Legion programs distributed among eight Legion baseball zones in the state. Sponsored by Post 100 and Post 202, the wood bat team draws its players from Newtown, Bethel, Easton, and Redding. Here is a game-by-game recap of the summer season:

Admirals 6, Danbury-South 4: Starter Dan Simonelli set the 2012 Admirals on the right course with three scoreless innings in their season-opening win over Danbury-South. Pacing the Admirals’ hitters were Stephen Conway and Carson Duffy, both 2-for-4.

Admirals 3, Monroe 1: Hurler Matt Liquori went the distance at Masuk High School. Liquori struck out nine, including the final batter with the winning run on base. Backing up Liquori was the excellent defense of shortstop Mike Koch and catcher JP Blanco, who snuffed a six-inning rally by nailing a potential thief at second. At the plate, Dean Demers (2-for-4) drove in the eventual winning run with a two-out, two run single in the third frame. Carson Duffy banged a stand-up triple into the right field corner. Pat Rowley’s sacrifice bunt moved Koch from first to third on a bunt-and-run to set up a key insurance run in the sixth, with Walter Frank notching the RBI.

Admirals 4, Naugatuck 3 (15 innings): In a 4 1/2 hour endurance test, Garrison Buzzanca singled and eventually crossed the plate with the lead run in the top of the 15th inning in the first half of a twin-bill in Naugatuck. The game had been knotted at 3-3 since the fourth frame, with right-hander Dean Demers (8 innings pitched) and lefty Logan Whelton-Pane (4 innings) combining on the hill for 12 frames of scoreless relief. They were backed by the standout defensive play of  catcher JP Blanco and  infielders Matt Liquori  and Walter Frank.

Admirals 3, Naugatuck 0: Having back-stopped 15 innings in the victorious first game of a double-header, receiver JP Blanco tacked on another seven behind the dish in Mike Koch’s complete game three-hitter in the concluding contest. Koch struck out 12. Swinging the bats were Dean Demers and Carson Duffy (both 1-for-3 with a double) and Dan Simonelli (2-for-3).

Admirals 6, Monroe 2: Pat Rowley went the distance and whiffed six in the Admiral’s home-opener win at the conifer-bordered confines of  Hunt Field. Rowley got help from first-sacker Dean Demers, who snagged two hot shots down the line, and second baseman Garrison Buzzanca, who continued to vacuum the right ride of the infield.

Admirals 11, Monroe 0: In the nightcap of their home-opening doubleheader, the Admirals banged out 16 hits in support of Jim Parker’s complete game one-hitter. Throwing an economical 93 pitches, Parker pounded the zone and kept the Monroe batters off balance. Garnering multiple base hits for the locals were Mike Koch (3-for-4, double, walk), Matt Liquori (2-for-4, triple), Ryan Nuzzo (2-for-4, double), Walter Frank (2-for-3, walk) and Dean Demers (2-for-4).

Brookfield 5, Admirals 1: On the longest day of the year, the Admirals fell short against Brookfield under the lights at Hunt Field. Starter Dan Simonelli threw five solid innings in the loss.

Admirals 8, Naugatuck 6: The Admirals outgunned Naugatuck, staging a late-inning comeback on the strength of a clutch RBI double by Garrison Buzzanca and a two-run bases-loaded single by Jim Parker. Also contributing  were Dean Demers  (4-for-4 with a triple), JP Blanco (3-for-4) and Carson Duffy (2-for-3, double). Shortstop Mike Koch put on a defensive clinic behind starter Matt Liquori, who gutted out his second complete game victory of the year.

Naugatuck 2, Admirals 1: In the nightcap of a Hunt Field twin-bill, Post 100/202 got another efficient seven-inning performance from right-hander Dean Demers, who threw 69 pitches and gave up not even a single free pass. Batterymate JP Blanco was a wall behind the plate. The Admirals’ hitters, however,  were stymied by a rangy Naugatuck southpaw.

Admirals 8, Danbury 5: The Admirals chalked up 11 hits in support of hurler Mike Koch’s second complete game win of the season. Reid Schmidt’s towering triple set the tone in the first inning. Banging a pair of hits were JP Blanco, Garrison Buzzanca, Dean Demers (double), and Logan Whelton-Pane. Clutch two-out RBIs were recorded by Ryan Nuzzo and  Whelton-Pane.

Danbury-South 8, Admirals 5: Pat Rowley took the mound seeking a doubleheader sweep. Rowley gave his team a solid 108-pitch complete game effort, but several defensive lapses sunk the Admirals.  The locals got RBIs from Stephen Conway, Carson Duffy, and Reid Schmidt.

Admirals 2, Brookfield 0: Matt Liquori (4 1/3 shutout innings) and Dean Demers (2 2/3 shutout innings) shared the pitching duties in a nail-biting road-win which evened up the season-series at 1-1.  Walter Frank and Pat Rowley banged line-drive singles to drive in the runs. The Admirals squeaked out of two bases-loaded jams — first, via a two-out Liquori-to-Rowley pickoff in the fourth inning, and later with an inning-ending 1-2-3 double-play initiated by Demers in the sixth.

Admirals 11, Monroe 0: Jim Parker went the distance on the hill, yielding only a pair of hits and a walk. Ryan Nuzzo (2-for-4, double, 3 RBI), Garrison Buzzanca (3-for-3, 4 RBI), and Reid Schmidt (2-for-4, double, RBI) paced the offense.

Admirals 10, Unionville 0: After a seven-day layoff, the Admirals had a full head of steam under the lights at classic old-timey Tunxis Meade Park. Mike Koch found the steeply-angled hill to his liking in a five-inning mercy-shortened no-hitter. Koch enjoyed stout defense from first baseman Dan Simonelli and catcher Matt Liquori, who nailed the only potential base thief. In the batters’ box against a pair of lefties, Dean Demers went 3-for-3, while Stephen Conway (triple) and Simonelli (double) put the barrel to the ball for extra bases.

Burlington 5, Admirals 3: The Admirals couldn’t solve Burlington’s pitchers in a Saturday matinee at  Hunt Field. Matt Liquori started and went the distance for the locals, backed by several web-gems from left-side infielders Pat Rowley and Mike Koch. Batting in the clean-up spot, Dan Simonelli continued to scorch the ball, smoking a double to deep center.

Admirals 12, Simsbury 3: Dean Demers struck out 14 and wrapped up the contest in dramatic fashion. His 109th pitch induced a game-ending 4-6-3 double play — Walter Frank to Mike Koch to Logan Pane. Rapping a pair of base hits for Post 100/102 were Reid Schmidt (2-for-3, with two doubles), Dan Simonelli (2-for-3, double), JP Blanco (2-for-4), and Stephen Conway (2-for-4). The signature moment came in the bottom of the third. Leading by three runs, the Admirals added three more on picture-perfect safety-squeeze bunts by Matt Liquori and Garrison Buzzanca.

Admirals 6, Danbury-South 0: In a pitchers’ duel between the Admirals’ Pat Rowley and the Hatters’ Jack Grace, Rowley prevailed, allowing only a single hit and two walks while going all seven. Nursing a 1-0 lead going into the sixth, Post 100/202 broke it open with four runs on a pair of RBIs each from Dean Demers and Garrison Buzzanca. Also swinging the lumber was Stephen Conway (3-for-4, double, triple). On the defensive side, Buzzanca, Conway, and Walter Frank delivered top-shelf web-gems, and Matt Liquori was flawless behind the dish.

Southington 3, Admirals 2: JP Blanco and Reid Schmidt were the only Admirals to register base hits against a hard thrower under the lights at Southington. On the mound for Post 100/202, Jim Parker allowed only one earned run in four innings and Dan Simonelli was sharp in relief.

Brookfield 9, Admirals 5: With a barrage of hits, Brookfield ousted the Admirals from first place in the zone 5 standings (but a re-match loomed). The Admirals fell behind early and couldn’t put a big inning together, scoring a lone run in five different innings. Walter Frank (RBI) and Matt Liquori (two RBI) went 2-for-2, and Dean Demers cranked a double. Dan Simonelli’s bone-jarring grab of a high-pop at the side-fence provided the Admirals’ defensive highlight.

Admirals 4, Bristol 3: Grinding out a win on the road against the defending state champs, five Admirals — Matt Liquori, Mike Koch, Logan Whelton-Pane, Jim Parker, and Garrison Buzzanca — had standout games. Liquori peppered the zone and mixed up his pitches in an 86-pitch complete game. Koch ranged far at shortstop (and blasted a double at the plate). Whelton-Pane lined in the decisive run in the final inning. Parker went 3-for-3 with an RBI and scored a run. And Buzzanca continued to produce runs, netting a pair of RBIs.

Admirals 3, Brookfield 1: Cruising into Brookfield after a victory earlier in the afternoon at Bristol,  the Admirals were hungry to even the season-series and clinch first place in the zone standings. Dean Demers prevailed, pitching a complete game two-hitter. Flashing the cowhide in the field were Matt Liquori — who dazzled at third base — and Walter Frank, who deftly executed a rally-snuffing unassisted double play. The Admirals scored all their runs in the third, stringing together a double by Dan Simonelli, a single by Frank, a tape-measure triple to left by Reid Schmidt, and a sacrifice fly by Stephen Conway.

First round of state tournament: Admirals 3, Norwalk 2 (10 innings): Garrison Buzzanca’s two-out walk-off single in the bottom of the tenth inning scored Matt Liquori to advance the Admirals to the Final 8 of the State Tournament. Liquori had led off the inning with a single and moved to second on a ground ball. The game had been knotted at 2-2 since the third, when JP Blanco drove in Carson Duffy with a single up the middle to tie it up. Under elimination pressure in this marathon pitchers’ duel,  the Admirals’ Dean Demers matched Norwalk’s hurler by going all ten innings, during which Demers granted a solitary base on balls, whiffed seven, and didn’t allow a hit after the third frame.

State tournament Final 8 quarterfinals: Stamford 5, Admirals 4: The Admirals jumped out to a 4-0  lead, but couldn’t hold off Stamford, which went on to win the state title four days later. Matt Liqouri pitched well for the Admirals in relief, allowing only one earned run in 4 1/3 innings. Carson Duffy led the local hitters, going 2-for-3 with an RBI double. Mike Koch also clubbed a run-scoring double. On the defensive side, Admirals backstop JP Blanco froze the Stamford running game from the outset with a clothesline throw to second that negated Stamford’s larcenous lead-off batter in the first frame.