By:Karen Bonnet
Reach district final for first time before being eliminated by Long Beach
Excitement rippled through the evening air at Baldwin Park on Wednesday, July 18 as more than 125 Island Park Little League baseball fans came out to watch the game that would decide a district champion on the road to Williamsport. Not only did the evening reverberate with spirit, it was also the first time in Island Park Little League history that its all-star team had reached a district finals of the national tournament.
Two nights after having beaten Long Beach in the tournament, Island Park's team of 9- and 10-year-olds would have to do it again.
Island Park had fought back for a 5-4 victory Monday, on a clear and breezy evening that was backdrop to the game. Island Park had fallen behind 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning, rallied to tie the score at 3 in the third, and again fallen behind, 4-3, in the fourth, before riding a triple by first baseman Joey Massone to a two-run fifth inning that won the game.
Joey DeGuire had pitched a complete game for the win, earning praise from the team's head coach. "Joey pitched a fantastic game; he has tremendous heart," Andy Pujol said.
But it would take more than heart to hold off Long Beach in the
championship game Wednesday. By the fifth inning, Island Park trailed 6-0. If it was going to lose, though, it wasn't going to go quietly.
With two runners on base, Massone hit another triple, cutting the Long Beach lead to 6-3. But that's where Island Park's resurgence ended, and soon, so did its involvement in the tournament. "The team fought back with everything they had," assistant coach Jim Frey said. "We kept on trying. These kids have a real willingness to play as a team, to take constructive direction from the coaches, and to use what they have learned. It's been a wonderful season for Island Park
