Tri-State Playoffs Semi-Finals

Terryville Black Sox vs Bethlehem Plowboys

Heading into the Semifinals:The Black Sox remain undefeated on the season heading into the Tri-State semifinals with a 20-0 record.  The Black Sox, littered with seasoned veterans (lots of ice, physical therapy, stim, stretching between games) will take on a young, confident Plowboys team looking to knock off the top seed.  Reporters lined up behind the Sox dugout after the quarterfinal sweep to get some of the players thoughts on the team heading into their semifinal bout.   MVP candidate Andrew Hinckley says “It’s fun being the team everyone in the league is gunning for game in and game out.”  While reigning Cy Young award winner Kody Kerski added “Our pitching staff goes 7 deep and we have 4 of the best pitchers in the league, including ace/coach Dave Alarcon.  As long as we can stay healthy and the our bats take care of business we will be tough to beat in a 3 game series.”  One reporter asked veteran center fielder Connor McEvoy his thoughts on the Plowboys stating in the paper that they are the hottest team in the league and “We’re (Plowboys) the last team in the league they want to face!”  McEvoy shrugged it off with a bit of a chuckle and commented “We know how they really feel, see them on the field Friday….”

Friday August 6: Terryville Black Sox 7 Bethlehem Plowboys 2

Kody Kerski gets the win allowing just 2 first inning runs going 8 innings and striking out 16 plowboys as Terryville takes the Game 1 victory. Andrew Hinkley homered and added two singles. Chris Ayer added two hits and two runs scored and Tony Patane added an RBI single knocking in Billy Armstrong (2 hits). Jon Wilson had two hits and a run scored for Bethlehem.

Saturday August 7: Terryville Black Sox 16 Bethlehem Plowboys 7

Copyright Kevin Roberts Rep-American 8/8/21

The top-seeded Terryville Black Sox slugged their way past the fourth-seeded Bethlehem Plowboys, 17-7, on Saturday at Gallop Field in Bethlehem to vault into the Tri-State Baseball League World Series.

In the other semifinal series, the second-seeded Tri-Town Trojans jumped out to a five-run lead, then held on to top the sixth-seeded Wolcott Scrappers, 9-5, at the B.A.W. Complex in Wolcott.

Tri-Town and Wolcott will meet in the winner-take-all third game of their series today at 11 at John Casadei Field in Litchfield.

Terryville, which has a stable of pitchers, instead used its power to push away Bethlehem. Trailing 5-2 entering the top of the sixth, the Black Sox (22-0) scored 15 unanswered runs to overwhelm the Plowboys.

Terryville’s first three batters, Tony Patane, Andrew Hinckley and Alex Rauso, combined for six home runs and 13 RBI. Patane led off the game with a home run. In the fifth, the right-hand hitting Hinckley blasted a solo home run over the Bethlehem Public Works trucks beyond the fence in right center field to cut the deficit to 5-2.

In the sixth, Patane whacked a line-drive grand slam to put the Black Sox ahead for good, 7-5. Rauso’s first homer of the game led off the seventh and gave Terryville an 8-5 lead. Hinckley (2-run) and Rauso went back-to-back in the ninth.

“It’s pretty impressive,” Hinckley said of the power display. “We’re seeing good pitches, then just getting our pitch and hitting. The wind’s blowing out at a little, short field. All of them were shots, though.”

Pitcher/coach David Alarcon Jr. added: “Everyone’s locked in, we’re hitting well and this is the time of the season to do it. It helps when you just have that calming feeling, knowing that we’re going to strike.”

Terryville blasted out 19 hits, including four from Patane (seven RBI) and Hinckley (three RBI). Rauso (three RBI) and Gavin Lavallee each had three hits while Kyle Tehan added a two-run single.
Terryville travels to Weymouth, Mass., for the AABC Stan Musial Northeast World Series, which runs Aug. 12-15.

Ian Schmidt had a two-run home run and Joe Rupe added a two-run single for Bethlehem (15-8).

Tri-Town Trojans vs Wolcott Scrappers

Friday August 6: Wolcott Scrappers 2 Tri-Town Trojans 1

Ike Negretti hurled a no-hitter and Matt Warren sac fly scored Tyler Baldwin with the go-ahead run as Wolcott escapes game 1 with a 2-1 victory.

Saturday August 7: Tri-Town Trojans 9 Wolcott Scrappers 5

Copyright Kevin Roberts Rep-American 8/8/21

In Wolcott, Tri-Town jumped out to a 5-0 lead after five innings. The Scrappers got to within 6-4 after six innings and 6-5 after seven, but the Trojans scored three runs in the ninth to put the game away.

Austin Patenaude doubled, walked, scored a run and drove in four more for Tri-Town (17-3) while Danny McCarty and Casey McDonald (double) each had two hits and two runs scored. Landon Gardella singled, walked and scored two runs for the Trojans.

Matt Warren was 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, a run scored and an RBI for Wolcott (12-10) while Jason Sullivan was 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and two RBI. Justen Rodriguez also drove in two runs for the Scrappers.

Sunday August 8: Tri-Town Trojans 11 Wolcott Scrappers 4

Copyright Kevin Roberts Rep-American 8/9/21

The Tri-Town Trojans played Sunday’s Game 3 of their Tri-State Baseball League semifinal series against the Wolcott Scrappers like every out, every at bat, was critical. That attitude fueled a strong Tri-Town effort, an 11-4 win, and a berth in the Tri-State World Series against the Terryville Black Sox on Aug. 18-20 at Municipal Stadium in Waterbury. The World Series will feature the league’s top teams after Wolcott made a valiant effort to sneak in as the No. 6 seed.

Tri-Town (17-7), a team that prides itself on pitching and defense, finally broke through for a big inning. The Trojans scored seven times in the third inning to take a commanding 7-0 lead.
“We finally had timely hitting. We finally strung hits together,” said player/coach Danny McCarty, who went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI. “We’ve been leaving a lot of guys in scoring position due to not having back-to-back hits. That seven-run inning was all with two outs, and we were able to string hits together.” McCarty, Coleby Bunnell, Tommy Troy, Casey McDonald and Matt Troy each drove in runs with hits in that pivotal third inning. Another run scored when Nick Sordi was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. In between innings, longtime catcher Landon Gardella and third baseman Austin Patenaude emphasized winning each inning. “Keep going, add more runs, because we’ve been struggling,” McCarty said. “We get up, and then we get flat.”

Gardella had reason to want to secure the win, given the game was his last at John Casadei Field. Gardella is moving to Vermont in September, so this is his last go-around with Tri-Town.
The Trojans added single runs in the fourth, sixth, seventh and eighth innings. Wolcott scored once in the fourth and three times in the ninth when Tri-Town had its lone let-up of the day. Nolan Cloutier was 2-for-2 with two walks, a run scored and an RBI to lead the Scrappers (12-11). Jack Drewry, Caden Cloutier and Tony Broadhurst each drove in a run, as well.
“Wolcott, I give them all the credit in the world,” McCarty said. “They played well. They’re young, they’re scrappy, they can hit. I think they’d be dangerous in the next couple years if they add some pitching, get some pitching depth.”

The Scrappers put together a solid effort, but there was nearly no let-up from the Trojans.
In the top of the sixth inning, Scrapper catcher/coach Matt Warren scalded a grounder toward the first baseline, but it was knocked down by the Trojan first baseman Bunnell. Bunnell didn’t have much time, so he dove head-first at the bag and tagged it to get Warren out. “I try to tell them to never play down to their level when we’re winning by that much,” McCarty said. “You still have to play, because baseball can change in the matter of an innning. Since I’ve been the coach, and since we started the Trojans (back in 2006), we’ve said defense is what wins games. I’m still old-fashioned, and I like hard-nosed, no-errors baseball on defense.”

Leading, 10-1, in the top of the eighth, Tri-Town got another great-effort play, this time from second baseman Austin Swanson. Wolcott’s Steve Urbanski smacked a ball up the middle, but Swanson laid out, snagged the ball, then threw it to shortstop Matt Troy to complete the inning-ending force out. Bobby Chatfield threw a complete game for Tri-Town, and he allowed only one run over his first eight innings.

Terryville is the defending 2019 Tri-State League Champion. Tri-Town makes its 8th World Series appearance in the last 11 seasons.