Class LL Baseball: With Win Over Warde, Amity First To Ever Win Four Straight Titles – Hartford Courant
MIDDLETOWN — The No. 1 team in The Courant state ratings recorded another No. 1 Saturday when it became the first high school baseball team in Connecticut history to win four consecutive championships.
Amity-Woodbridge defeated Warde-Fairfield 4-3 on a bases-loaded walk to Max Scheps in the bottom of the seventh inning in the Class LL final at Palmer Field.
When Amity coach Sal Coppola accepted the championship plaque, his players swarmed around him with four fingers upraised
“It was such a big thing we just wouldn’t talk about it throughout the year,” Coppola said of the possibility of winning four straight LL titles. “We never talked about it once.”
On Saturday, all the Spartans and their fans could talk and cheer about was the achievement. The No. 1 seed (27-1) survived a one hour and 47 minute rain delay and a spirited challenge from No. 10 Warde (19-8).
Warde had tied the game 3-3 on Giacomo Brancato’s three-run homer with two outs in the sixth.
But in the bottom of the seventh John Natoli, who had relieved starter Reece Maniscalco (six innings, five hits, three runs, five strikeouts, four walks), hit Amity leadoff man Chris Winkel with a pitch.
Pat Winkel popped out. Chris Winkel stole second and raced to third on the wild pitch. Natoli intentionally walked Brian Ronai and John Nolan. Oliphant grounded to third for a force out at home.
On a 3-1 pitch Scheps didn’t swing. “I thought he’d come with a fastball, but he left it up and in,” he said. “I did what I had to do and took it to get the win.”
And a little later to touch first.
His teammates piled on him in the batter’s box. Suddenly the players stepped back to allow Scheps to jog to touch first. “Otherwise I’d be out,” he said.
Coppola credited assistant coach Jeff Rotteck. “He was yelling to make sure Max touched first,” Coppola said. “Southington lost on something weird like that [in the 2011 LL final when its player didn’t touch home with the apparent winning run]. Good thing my assistant was on it.”
Warde coach Brett Conner said the runner on third “forced us to create a force out. We did a great job getting the second out. It [Scheps’ walk] happens. It’s unfortunate that was the last play of game.”
The late Amity score came long after its three-run first. Hague walked and went to second on Chris Winkel’s bunt single. A walk to brother Pat loaded the bases. Hague scored on a wild pitch. Maniscalco struck out Ronai and Nolan. But Oliphant lined a two-run double to right center.
Maniscalco issued a walk and struck out Colin Beaulieu. The pitch bounced away from catcher Danny DeBartolomeo, who threw wide of first for an error.
Maniscalco notched his fourth strikeout against Ted Hague to end the first. Rain then delayed the game for 1:47. The threat of more rain postponed the other title games, scheduled for Saturday, to Sunday. The St. Paul-Morgan S game is at 12:30 p.m.; the Notre Dame-West Haven-East Lyme L game is at 4.
Both Maniscalco and Oliphant returned after the delay. “I wanted to pitch, not leave this one,” Oliphant said.
The only damaging hit against the winning pitcher (seven innings, seven hits, seven strikeouts and one walk) was Brancato’s homer to left center on a 3-1 fastball. “It was like a knife went through me,” Coppola said.
Ten minutes later the hurt evaporated when Scheps’ walk gave Amity its historic walk-off victory.
“Credit to all the coaches, the guys; the youth programs in town,” Chris Winkel said. “These four titles are for everyone.”
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