The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Post 43 edged by Niantic in tournament opener
EAST LYME — Sometimes, baseball terms like “pitchers’ duel” just aren’t enough.
Niantic’s 1-0 win over Winsted Post 43 Saturday afternoon in an American Legion Baseball firstround tournament game is just such a case.
Niantic lefty Trevor Delesdernier and Winsted 6-foot-9 righty Ryan Sholtis arm wrestled; threw darts; and stared each other down for eight innings at East Lyme High School.
By the top of the eighth, Winsted had three hits; Niantic, just one.
Each pitcher trudged to the mound frame after frame with the need to keep zeroes on the board growing stronger every inning.
The “duel” was to see who could get a run on his side before reaching the Legion’s 100-pitch maximum.
“The later it gets, the more you concentrate on just getting the outs and not wasting pitches,” said Delesdernier, a rising sophomore at Plymouth State University and Zone 6’s ‘Pitcher of the Year.’
“We were contemplating taking him out in the sixth inning when his count was at 75, but, in a game like this, you just can’t do that,” said Niantic coach Grant Livingston. “Both teams are playing by the same set of rules.”
Each team had tantalizing chances, stranding seven runners apiece thanks in part to seven errors (4-3 Niantic). A pitcher who could slam the door on base runners was vital.
Delesdernier withstood two Niantic errors in the first inning with a pair of strikeouts; a double play ended the second; a pair of ground-outs forgave a thirdinning error; an infield popup killed the fourth; groundout, the
fifth; strikeout the sixth; and two groundouts, the seventh when Winsted’s Mike Bobinski represented Post 43’s biggest threat, on third base.
Sholtis’ magic was similar: a double play and strikeout ended the first; a strikeout erased a secondinning error; three straight fly-outs left Ryan Kane on second with Niantic’s only hit in the third; a strikeout chased an error to the bench in the fourth; a strikeout and two grounders in the fifth; a popup and groundout expunged an error in the sixth; a groundout, popup and strikeout shut Niantic down for the seventh.
Each pitcher headed for 100 pitches in the eighth.
Delesdernier chased three straight batters on a grounder, and two popups in the top of the inning.
Sholtis got a popup, hit Tom Mason with a pitch, got a fly-out to right for the second out, then reached the limit against Matt Malcom.
Reliever Vinnie Tancreti walked Malcom, then rang up a 2-2 count against rising Eastern Connecticut State University sophomore Matt Abbey.
Abbey poked a single through the left side. Mason raced past third, no thought of stopping. Winsted left fielder Kevin Sullivan’s throw to the plate was perfect, just as Mason arrived.
The ball was lost in his slide.
Niantic cheered each other off the field with the win.
“You never know what’s going to happen in a game like this,” said Abbey. “We owe it all to Trevor for keeping us in it long enough to walk off.”
Each team plays again today in the Legion’s double elimination format.
Within Niantic/Winsted’s four-team pod, West Hartford beat South Windsor 1-0 Saturday.
Winsted will play at South Windsor at Rotary Field on Sunday at 1 p.m. Niantic is hosting West Hartford at noon at East Lyme High School.
Those planning to make the trip should check the CT Legion website for late changes.