It’s still only April but the little league competition is already heating up, as many of the teams are playing as though the postseason was upon us. However, as coaches and parents will tell them, it is important to take a step back and learn as much as possible during this young season. The players though, they all believe it gets late early out there.
In the Bayside Little League, Katie-Den is at it again, as they extended their winning streak to four games with wins against VIPizza and Palmar Plumbing. In the first game against VIPizza, pitchers Anthony Costa and James McGee contributed to the 14-1 victory by combining for nine strikeouts against the heavy hitting pizza boys. Katie-Den’s defense was solid, as Kerem Asa wowed the crowd with a diving catch in right field. At the plate, Chris Chiodi had four hits, Costa and Lou Nicholisi both had three hits and James McGee, Liam Hamill, Ryan Gardiner and Emanuel Figetakis each reached base twice. For VIPizza, their only run was scored on a hard hit RBI double by Ryan Rinfret.
In their second game, Katie-Den outplayed Palmar Plumbing for a 7-2 victory. Pitchers Anthony Costa, Lou Nicholisi and James McGee served up 13 strikeouts against the plumbers. The big bats of McGee, Nicholisi and Chris Chiodi reached base eight times to ensure Katie-Den’s fourth straight win.
Madison Avenue Pharmacy of the Bayside Little League won their first game of the season against Sal Salamone Masonry, 6-3. Madison Avenue pitcher Jesse Spellman was the star, pitching a complete game with 11 strikeouts and one walk on 76 pitches. Spellman was also a standout at the plate, cracking a three run triple over the centerfielder’s head in the third inning – he ended up with four RBI on the night. Sal Salamone Masonry pitcher Joe Scibilia started and gutted it out through three innings, giving up six runs before yielding to reliever Christian Spallino – who shut down the Madison lineup the rest of the way. Stars of the game included Thomas Katic, Daniel Lam, Justin Chan, Nicholas Masi and Angelo Collura.
Later, Three of Cups defeated World of Discovery, 6-5, in a back-and-forth offensive battle. Elias Andriopoulos started for Three of Cups, pitching 2 2/3 innings – but it was his bat that did the talking. Andriopoulos belted a two-run homerun and added an RBI triple before scoring on a catcher’s error.
Nicholas Perez, who came in as a relief pitcher, started the game with a two-run homerun in the first inning after eagle-eyed Michael G. got on base with a walk. Also contributing to the victory was Michael Hom with two singles, Savino Barile and Jeremy Daulat.
It’s not too late to get your team and league the coverage it deserves. Contact The Queens Courier sports editor at 718-224-5863 ext. 225 or email him at smosco@queenscourier.com.
