Teamwork on the diamond

In the Bayside Little League, Marchini Homestyle defeated Northeast Realty, 16-3, in a heavy-hitting slugfest. Ryan Lau, Alex Velez and Matthew O’Donnell led the 16-run attack, which included an 11-run third inning to open up the tight game. Anthony Marchini pitched two stellar innings and also contributed two hits. Chris Kalliagas was a defensive gem in a game which featured a total team effort by the victors.
Marchini Homestyle also defeated Bayside Batting and Pitching, 6-4. Among the contributors were John Chiaramonte, Matt Chiodi, Rino Cattabianni and Conor McCormack. Alex Velez pitched great in relief, while Anthony Autera and Dylan Rinfret made soaring defensive plays to preserve the win.
In a Texas Farm Division game, DK Drilling and Powerhouse Gym put on an offensive and defensive display. DK Drilling was led at the plate by Michael Noon, Haydn Halley and Dominic D’Orta – who also helped turn a triple play by catching an infield pop and throwing to Constantine Efthimiades at third, who then tagged out two runners. For Powerhouse, Josh Bonilla made a great fielding play and threw to first for the out. Robert Gregory got a force at second and just missed turning it into a double play. John Como was the hitter of the day, leading off with a sharp double down the left field line.
Katie-Den gutted out a victory over Mattones, despite falling into an early hole. Mattones’ Kevin Cunningham smashed a first inning homer, but Katie-Den’s starting pitcher Lou Nicolosi settled down and struck out seven batters. Katie-Den’s Charlie Peponakis and Robert Larosa both reached base at crucial times, while James McGee, Lou Nicolosi, Liam Hamill and Anthony Costa reached base three times each. Closer Chris Chiodi struck out all four batters he faced and also reached base four times. Karem Asa, Stephan Castro and Emanuel Figetakis all made major contributions to the victory.
Send in the Clowns defeated Ferhati Restoration & Construction, 3-1. Clowns catcher Vincent Casalo notched two hits, a walk and a run scored to lead the offense. Lee Cantor started the game from the mound and got the win with a strong performance, striking out nine.
American Office Interiors remained undefeated after two weekend games, defeating M&G Pizza, 4-0, and JC Security, 7-1. Michael Wegimont was outstanding in both games, contributing a combined three homers – including a grand slam – and two dazzling outfield putouts. John Callahan pitched a masterful second game to complete the weekend sweep.
The Little Neck Douglaston (LND) Little League also got into the fun, holding their opening day on Saturday, April 30. It was the Dragons vs. the Bombers at Linneaus Memorial Field in Bay Village in a game that saw gutsy play and incredible effort on both sides of the ball.