Pirates Pitch Their Way to the Top

Jordan Posway

Twenty teams swarmed the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Massachusetts June 26-29 for the PG Super25 17u New England Regional tournament, but only one team walked away with a National Championship berth. The Rockland OTB Pirates Yellow finished the tournament with an unblemished 6-0 record, but their domination on the mound throughout the tournament was even more impressive.

The Pirates’ pitchers were phenomenal, pitching complete games in five out of six of their contests in the tournament. In those five games, they held the opposition to two runs or fewer. Nick Delipizzi got things rolling during the Pirates’ first game of pool play against the Ruffnecks. Delipizzi kept the Ruffnecks’ offense at bay while Peter Lombardi tallied two doubles in their 4-2 winning effort. James Reilly would pick up where Delipizzi left off in the following game against L&M Baseball. He led the Pirates to a 1-0 victory as he struck out eight and surrendered only two hits in a complete game shutout.

Their ensuing match-up versus the CT Bombers proved to be the Pirates' toughest test in pool play. The Bombers dropped five runs on the Pirates, but they responded accordingly with their best offensive performance of the regional tournament. Jordan Correa spearheaded the offensive campaign with three RBIs on two hits as the Pirates nudged the Bombers 6-5. The Pirates returned to form against the Clubhouse as Eric Sandusky commanded the mound for the Pirate’s third complete game of the tournament, while Ivan Rodriguez and Jordan Rivera provided the necessary run support to propel their team to victory. Rivera’s RBI double in the seventh knocked off the Clubhouse and advanced the Pirates to the semi-final round.

Chris Dodrill was a consistent force on both sides of the plate for the Pirates in their two most crucial games of the tournament. It was a battle of the Pirates in the semi-final round, as the Rockland OTB Pirates Yellow faced the CT Pirates for a chance to play in the championship game. Rob Ottaviano and the CT Pirates’ Terry Bowens kept each other’s offense scoreless for six innings in a thrilling pitching duel, but Dodrill connected for a clutch seventh inning walk-off double to push his team one step closer to the ultimate goal. However, Dodrill’s game-winning double was only the start of his tournament heroics. His complete game three-hitter and second consecutive walk-off hit powered the Pirates to a 2-1 championship win over the CT Grind to conclude a spectacular tournament run.

With the 17u New England Regional championship victory, the Rockland OTB Pirates Yellow earned the chance to participate in the PG Super25 17u National Championship scheduled for July 10-16 in Fort Myers, Florida.

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