Haven entry is 7-3 going into this week’s play.
The West Haven 19U baseball team opened the summer season in the Connecticut Elite Baseball Association with seven victories in its first 10 contests. West Haven has received solid pitching, along with timely hitting and solid defense to post the 7-3 record.
The Westies opened the season with an 8-5 victory over Orange in the first game of a doubleheader at Piurek Field in West Haven. Daniel Izzo came up with the big hit as his double broke a 5-5 tie. Orange rallied in the nightcap to post a 5-4 victory over the Westies.
West Haven improved to 2-1 with a 2-1, 8-inning victory over Hamden at Legion Field. Bryan Barrington and Hunter Axelrod combined to allow just one run, and their pitching held West Haven in the contest until the Westies evened the game in the seventh and took the lead for good in the eighth.
Gianni Gambardella came up with the big hit in the seventh inning as his double evened the game at one. With runners on first and second in the eighth, Brandon Thayer sacrificed, and an error on the play allowed the eventual winning run to score.
The Green Dragons traveled to Piurek Field a day later and the two teams played to a 1-1 tie in a game called after 11 innings due to darkness. Trailing 1-0 as Hamden scored on a bases-loaded walk in the second inning, the Westies evened the game in the fifth inning on a run-scoring single by Isaiah Wyatt.
Lorenzo Espinal and Mike Boni led the West Haven offense as Espinal had three hits and Boni added two. The contest will be completed later in the season.
West Haven improved to 3-1 with a thrilling 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Wallingford at Pat Wall Field in Wallingford. Trailing 2-0 in the seventh, Barrington hit a two-out, two-strike single to deliver one run. An error on the play evened the game at two, before Barrington scored on a passed ball for a 3-2 lead.
Dylan Supan led the Westies with three hits and Barrington added the run-scoring single. Espinal started and pitched well for the Westies, and Izzo closed out the contest for the save as West Haven posted the victory.
West Haven improved to 4-1 with a 10-0 victory over New Haven at Piurek Field in a game stopped after five innings due to the mercy rule.
Gambardella led the Westies on the hill as he tossed a no-hitter. Offensively, Supan led the way with one hit and three runs batted in. Espinal also drove in three runs in the win.
The Westies then traveled to New Haven and posted an 11-3 victory to improve to 5-1 on the year. Supan tossed the first four innings to pick up the win, before Jake Romano closed the contest with three solid innings of relief.
West Haven received offensive support throughout the lineup with Wyatt leading the offense with four hits. Espinal added three hits and scored twice, while Tyler Jones had two hits and scored three runs. Gambardella, Izzo and Boni each scored twice in the win.
After a loss to Wallingford dropped West Haven to 5-2, the Westies got back on the winning track with a doubleheader sweep of East Haven at East Haven High on Saturday.
West Haven took the opener 13-1 behind the pitching and hitting of Espinal. Espinal allowed just a seventh inning hit and run, while striking out six on the hill. The West Haven pitcher also led the offense with three hits and two runs scored. Axelrod, Jones, Izzo and Anthony Rubin all scored twice in the win for West Haven.
The Westies picked up their seventh victory of the season with a 9-1 victory in the nightcap. Barrington and Jones were stellar on the hill, combining on a six-hitter. Barrington tossed the first five innings, allowing five hits and one run, while Jones allowed just one hit in two innings of work.
Espinal completed his stellar day with four hits in the contest to give him seven on the day. Jones and Boni added to the offense with Jones finishing with three hits and Boni picking up a pair. Jones and Barrington also scored twice apiece.
West Haven dropped to 7-3 with a 5-4 loss in eight innings against Branford at Piurek Field. Supan gave West Haven a much-needed boost on the hill, resting arms, as he went the distance, allowing nine hits and striking out five.
Boni and Wyatt led the offense with three hits apiece, with Boni and Axelrod each scoring twice.
Seadogs open at 4-0
The Savin Rock (West Haven) Seadogs 14U travel baseball team opened the season with four consecutive wins in the East Shore Travel League. The Seadogs topped Monroe Travel in their return to the diamond, then CT. Hank Yanks in a doubleheader sweep two days later.
Savin Rock opened the season with a 14-4 victory over Monroe Travel. Jesse Buonocore was stellar on the mound for the Seadogs as he went the distance, allowing four runs on five hits, while striking out seven. Ryan Robinson, Ray Gilbert, JJ Trager, and Evan Jones all had two hits, Robinson drove in three runs, while Gilbert, Jones and Cam Cruz each drove in a pair. Michael Madera, Robinson, Haygen Axelrod, and Fabrizio Nunez each scored twice in the win.
Monroe jumped on the board with a run in the top of the first, but Savin Rock responded with four runs in the bottom of the inning and five more in the second for a 9-2 lead.
Madera and Robinson opened the first inning with walks, before Gilbert singled to left to score Madera and put runners on the corners. Buonocore grounded out to score Robinson, and Gilbert scored on a single to left by Trager. Cruz ended the first inning scoring with a two-out single to plate Trager.
Leading 4-2, the Seadogs pulled away with five more runs in the second. Anthony Constantinople and Fabrizio Nunez opened the inning with walks, with Nunez and Madera scoring on a one-out single by Robinson. Robinson scored on an error, and a two-run single by Jones drove in Axelrod and Buonocore for a 9-2 lead.
Savin Rock took a 12-4 lead in the third. Chase Supan, Axelrod and Constantinople walked to load the bases, before a one-out walk by Madera plated Axelrod. Robinson singled to score Constantinople, and Gilbert singled to score Nunez.
Jones singled, stole second and third, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Cruz for a 13-4 lead, before Supan scored on a wild pitch to cap the scoring.
The Seadogs improved to 3-0 with a doubleheader sweep of Hank Yanks on Saturday, winning the opener 9-0 behind the pitching of Supan and Robinson, and the nightcap 11-1.
In the opener, Supan and Robinson combined on a one-hitter, while striking out nine. Supan went the first four innings, striking out six, while Robinson closed the contest, allowing one hit and striking out three.
The Seadogs again got off to a quick start, scoring three times in the first and two in each of the second and third innings.
In the first, Madera led off with a walk, moved to third on a one-out single by Gilbert, and scored on a passed ball. An error allowed Gilbert to score, before Buonocore scored on a wild pitch. Axelrod scored on a wild pitch and Constantinople on a fielder’s choice in the second, before Trager singled, stole second, and scored on a fielder’s choice by Jones for a 6-0 lead in the third. Cruz singled later in the inning and scored on a double by Axelrod. Buonocore and Jones scored in the fifth to cap the scoring.
In the nightcap, Savin Rock scored single runs in the first and second innings, then added three in each of the next three innings for an 11-1 victory. Robinson started on the hill and allowed one run on two hits, while striking out three in three innings of work. Jones pitched two innings, striking out four and walking two.
Robinson walked and scored on a grounder by Gilbert in the first, Jones walked and scored on a single by Supan in the second, before Gilbert drove in Nunez with a double for a 3-0 lead in the third. Supan walked and scored when Madera reached on an error for a 6-1 lead in the fourth, Robinson singled to score Constantinople, and Nunez scored on a ground out by Gilbert.
Savin Rock closed the scoring in the fifth as Trager doubled and scored, before Cruz singled to score Jones, and Cruz scored on an error.
Robinson, Jones and Nunez each scored twice, while Gilbert drove in three runs.
The Seadogs improved to 4-0 with a 7-3 victory over North Haven Friday evening in North Haven. Buonocore started on the mound, allowing three runs on three hits, while striking out one. Robinson recorded the last six outs to earn the save. Jones led the offense with three hits, two runs scored, two runs batted in, and three stolen bases.
The Seadogs took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Robinson singled and scored on a double by Gilbert. The lead increased to 3-0 in the second as Trager scored on a fielder’s choice, and Jones scored on a single by Nunez, before Jones singled to score Trager, who had walked, in the fourth.
After North Haven got within 4-3 in the fifth, Savin Rock put the game away with three more runs in the sixth. Buonocore tripled to drive in one run, Jones singled to score Buonocore, before scoring on an error.