DOWN, BUT NOT OUT
Walk off rally puts North Colonie 11s in Mid-Atlantic Regional
GLENVILLE, N.Y. » Avaluable lesson in youth baseball is learning what it’s like to win and how to lose.
Those ups and downs typically occur from game to game, but for the North Colonie Bison 11-year- old Cal Ripken squad, it occurred in one and a-half full innings Monday night in the Eastern New York State championship final at Indian Meadows Park in Glenville.
The Bison finally scratched out a run against Clifton Park in the bottom of the fourth inning when
Frank Conroy led off with a single and promptly stole second, beating the throw down. He scored on Brendan McLoughlin’s RBI single for a 1- 0 lead.
After a final 1-2-3 inning by Bison starter Tye Mariano, North Colonie was on easy street, needing just three outs to punch their ticket to their third Mid-Atlantic Regional tournament in four years, but the Plainsmen had
other ideas.
Ryan Cronin hit a oneout single and advanced to second on a passed ball and when Ian Oehlschlaeger grounded back to the pitcher for an out at first, he rounded third and went straight for home.
The play at the plate was a scene from the baseball movie Major League with Cronin avoiding the tag from the North Colonie catcher Brendan McLoughlin. The two danced with Cronin getting behind the plate and then diving onto it for a safe call to knot the game at one apiece.
Both crowds exploded; the Clifton Park fans with elation, North Colonie in disbelief.
A line drive ended the Plainsmen threat and North Colonie headed to its final at-bat.
Nate Maron led off with a sharp grounder to third that bounced up on the Clifton Park third baseman allowing him to reach safely. He would race around to third on a two-base passed ball, putting the winning run 90-feet away.
Bison reliever Jake Iacobaccio reached on a fielder’s choice, again a grounder back to the pitcher who fired home in an effort to cut down Maron. Taking a page out of the Plainsmen playbook, Maron went airborne, looking to leap out the way like a scene from Mission Impossible, but was tagged out before his leap, again stopping the hearts of the faithful on site Monday night outside the fences.
Iacobaccio was stopped at third on Frank Conroy’s single to centerfield before McLoughlin delivered his second RBI single on the night and secured the win for North Colonie, 2-1.
“We talked all year about bouncing back from adversity and keeping our composure,” North Colonie coach Pat McLoughlin said. “We don’t always do the best job of that, but tonight actually think they did and they won it in the sixth.”
He was confident putting Mariano on the bump for the championship final Monday.
“Tye’s been pitching great to end the season. He pitched against them on Friday and shut them down, as well as a coaching staff we talk about it as we do with all of our decisions we decided we were going with Tye with a short leash, but we didn’t need that leash tonight,” Pat McLoughlin said.
Mariano attacked the strike zone, finishing with five strikeouts with a little help from his friends.
“Just throw strikes and have kids behind me to make plays, which they did,” Tye Mariano said. “My fastball, they hit it, but my team just made plays, so if I throw strikes and they hit it they’ll make the plays.”
There was no plan for him to pitch the sixth; he left that in the hands of Iacobaccio.
“I have to play my position and have him pitch and throw strikes and play my position,” Mariano said.
Iacobaccio almost went home by himself in the bottom of the sixth, but was held up, watching the drama unfold in front of him.
I’m thinking he’s going to score, I want him to score, but unfortunately he gets out, but then I advanced and I tried to score.
“It was going through my mind, I just wanted to score really, but coach held me and I stayed there,” Jake Iacobaccio said. “I’m thinking ( Nate Maron) is going to score, I want him to score, but unfortunately he gets out, but then I advanced and I tried to score.”
That was after giving up the tying run in his relief appearance and then had to get one more out to quash the Clifton Park rally.
“I was a little nervous,” Iacobaccio said. “I just take some deep breaths and try to pitch strikes.”
North Colonie advances to the Middle Atlantic Regional July 24 at Basking Ridge, New Jersey. The Bison have experience, advancing as an 8and 9-year-old squad, their streak stopped by Spring Baseball in last year’s Eastern New York State finale.
“These kids have put in so much work since early January, indoors for three and a-half months, outdoors with a goal of getting our state championship back,” Pat McLoughlin said. “Knowing that that the 11-year- old group in Clifton Park is a great team, Burnt Hills who hosted is a great team, Spring, Niskayuna, the list goes on and on. It’s just a deep age group, so we knew it was going to be hard.
“They put in so much work, they stayed together as a team, they did it together and we got our state championship back.”
McLoughlin’s game plan for next week is easy and straight forward.
“We’re going down there to win it all. We don’t go down to lose baseball games, so we’re certainly going to try to win it all.”