Josh Mayo (12) scored the second run of the game on a wild pitch in the second inning to give Westfield National a 2-0 lead. Westfield scored in every inning except for the sixth inning during their 7-1 win.
WESTFIELD – After 10 teams from Hampden and Hampshire Counties squared off in the district two pool play this summer, the district final for the 9- and 10-year-old All-Stars will have a distinct Whip City feel after both Westfield National and Westfield American won their semifinal games to advance to Saturday’s championship.
The top two teams from pool B showed their individual strengths Thursday evening in strong fashion to defeat the top two teams from pool A. No. 2 Westfield American, the tournament’s highest scoring offense, used a late rally to score 12 unanswered runs to defeat No. 1 Belchertown, 17-5, at Mini Fenway.
Meanwhile, No. 1 Westfield National, who had only allowed six runs in their four pool play games, used a dominant pitching attack and sound defense to defeat No. 2 Longmeadow, 7-1, at Papermill Road.
“Once we get it going, the kids really get pretty comfortable and settled in the game,” said National Head Coach Shane Collins. “Pitching is one of our strengths. We’ve played five games and have given up seven runs total, so that’s the big thing. We got some timely hitting and now it’s time to play Westfield (American) in the championship.”
For the second time in as many home starts, Josh Mayo delivered a clutch pitching performance for National, tossing four innings of three-hit baseball while striking out eight Longmeadow batters to help halt the visitors’ three-game winning streak. During his last two starts against Easthampton and Longmeadow, Mayo has struck out 15 batters and has scattered six hits, showing signs of his pitching display during the 2015 regular season.
“Josh is a good pitcher, no doubt,” said Collins. “When he gets in a groove, then he’s really, really good. Josh played for me in the regular season and he’s pitched like that all year. As a 10-year-old, he got a lot of innings in the majors division because the team he played on was an expansion team. The experience is just paying off unbelievably in the postseason. When Josh gets to the mound, he’s so calm and cool and just gets the ball and throws. He’s very good at what he does.”
As has been the case during their unbeaten run through pool play, Westfield National used a collective attack on offense, scoring runs in all but one inning to chip away at the Longmeadow starting pitcher. Six different batters recorded at least one hit, led by Ryder Pieczarka and Josh Sturmer’s pair of hits. Sturmer and leadoff batter Cody Collins each scored a pair of runs to lead Westfield, while Pieczarka drove in two runs to fuel the Nats.
The designated visiting team jumped in front first in their first at-bats. Collins reached on a Longmeadow error and would come around to score on Pieczarka’s RBI single. Their lead would double in the second inning when Mayo, who walked in his only at-bat, scored on a wild pitch with two outs.
The Nats scored a pair of runs in both the third and fourth innings. After Anthony Schabowski and Sturmer singled with one out, Schabowski came in to score the third run on a fielder’s choice from Jesse Paroline. One batter later, Devin Werbiskis executed a successful suicide squeeze to plate Sturmer and double the Westfield lead to 4-0. One inning later, Pieczarka drove in his second run during Westfield’s two-run fourth inning.
“We hit right through the lineup and the unbelievable thing about this team is that the kids coming off the beench are doing their job,” said Collins. “They come in and make something happen. They’re playing their roles as well as I could possibly ask them. Every single one of them contributes and its so nice to watch. Once we got through the lineup twice, we got to him more. We’re going to hit a pitcher that throws strikes, so that’s what we want. We tend to hit the pitchers that throw a little harder a lot better.”
The Whip City rematch will take place Saturday at 10 a.m. at Papermill Road. During pool play, National gave American its only loss of the summer in an 8-3 win which featured five American errors. The Nats took advantage of these errors and jumped out to an early 4-0 first-inning lead. Collins and the Nats expect Saturday to be a much closer affair, especially after American’s consecutive victories at Easthampton and at Belchertown.
“It’s going to be a great game,” said Collins. “They’re two very good teams and it’s awesome that the two finalists out of the 10-team bracket are from Westfield. They’re all buddies and I think it’s going to be a blast. Clearly, the team that makes the least amount of mistakes is going to win the game. If you play a clean game, you’re usually going to win the game. I am fully anticipating a one-run ballgame, one way or the other.”
