Newington ends Waterford’s title run
Hits three home runs and rolls to Connecticut Sect. 3 LL (11-12) baseball crown
Waterford — It was a most unusual sight: The opponent celebrating on a Waterford baseball field?
Do the rules even this allow this anymore?
The opponent Saturday night at the Waterford Little League Complex: Newington, a most deserving Connecticut Section 3 champion.
"All the credit goes to them," Waterford manager Todd O'Connell said after watching his team lose 10-2 in the title game. Newington, which lost to Waterford 146 on Thursday, pounded 16 hits, including three home runs. No cheapies, either. "We knew they were good," O'Connell said. "Their pitcher (Shaun Callahan) did a good job keeping us off balance. Then they hit the ball like we have been."
Callahan limited Waterford to six hits. The same Waterford team that scored 14 against Newington and 19 versus Cromwell in previous tournament games.
It began early, too. Leadoff hitter Alex Cappellucci homered to deep right and began what could have been an even more profitable inning. Except that Waterford turned a 5-2-3 double play — Jackson Long to Mason Concasia to Jabez White — with the bases loaded to keep the deficit at 2-0.
"I wasn't worried there," O'Connell said. "The way we've been hitting, I thought we'd be OK and scored seven or eight."
Waterford cut the lead to 2-1 in the bottom of the first after Evan McCue doubled and later scored on a wild pitch.
Newington, however, added to its lead in the second. Nick Gagliardi (the No. 9 hitter) homered, Callahan tripled off the top of the fence and then Alex Bugnacki homered to eventually give their team a 5-1 lead.
Waterford reliever Sean Salvador entered the game after Bugnacki's home run and gave his team a chance, blanking Newington until the fifth.
But Callahan was strong into the sixth, nearly finishing the game with the Little League-mandated 85 pitches. He lasted one out into the final inning.
"He was very efficient," O'Connell said, "against a good hitting team."
McCue had two hits for Waterford and Evan Piotrowski doubled and scored in the fifth.
"These kids had a lot of success," O'Connell said. "They won the district as 9-10 year olds and last year won the sectionals. Every year, the expectations have been high. I told the kids not to hang their heads at all. They represented Waterford well." m.dimauro@theday.com