Millstone Dawgs go on solid run in tourney play
By Mike White
Staff Writer

The Millstone 11-year-old all-stars, affectionately known as the Dawgs, are on a roll of late.

Having won six of their last seven games, they positioned themselves as the top seed heading into the championship round of the Sayreville Little League Invitational Tournament before struggling this past weekend.

After a shaky start in their first tournament, hosted by Princeton, the Dawgs moved on to Freehold’s Little League Tournament where things started to come together. They worked their way into the championship finals, playing for the No. 3 spot after defeating the Brick team 4-2 in a game that saw pitcher Kyle Gormley strike out six, and second baseman Matt Santarsiero drive in three runs with the key hit of the game.

This victory pitted them against a fine Tinton Falls team, where Anthony Morolda pitched an impressive six full innings in 95-degree heat, and left fielder Drew Ferraro’s bat was on fire, driving in three runs with back-to-back doubles to secure the third place finish.

"That third place finish was a great accomplishment for these boys," said Millstone manager Kevin Ferraro. "I have said all along that it’s all about the draw, as our small town of Millstone has pulled 12 boys from a group of only 30, where other towns such as Ewing, Nottingham, Brick, Tinton Falls, etc., are pulling their 12 players from groups sometimes as large as 150.

"It’s a numbers game. When we played Brick, it was as if all 12 of their boys were as good, if not more talented, than the best we had to offer. So to go into these games and be able to compete and win is a major accomplishment, and we have a lot to be proud of."

Upon completion of the Freehold tournament, the Dawgs were entered into the Sayreville Little League Invitational Tournament where they started out strong with a decisive 2-0 victory over the top-ranked Sayreville team. Nick Mammano went the distance and pitched a four-hit, seven-strikeout gem, backed by the bat of third baseman Doug Ticse, who drove in the winning runs with a single up the middle.

"Going into this game against Sayreville (after the spirit-lifting third-place finish in Freehold) was a turning point for this team of blue-collar scrappers," manager Ferraro said. "Something changed in the locker room and all of a sudden the boys came together. They truly found the team brotherhood that it takes to insure a successful, fun-filled experience that Little League baseball is supposed to be all about."

Next in the Sayreville tournament, the Dawgs rode the back of pitcher Robby Dembinski who pitched them to a nine-strikeout, two-hit victory over South Amboy. The 3-2 pitchers’ dual was decided when catcher Ben Miller crossed home plate in the top of the sixth after reaching on a single, then later scoring on a South Amboy infield error off the bat of Ferraro.

Now standing in a three-way tie for first, the Dawgs were again pitted against a Tinton Falls team that was thirsty for revenge after being edged by Millstone in the Freehold Tournament.

"This game was a war, and probably the best little league game I’ve ever been involved in," Ferraro said.

The extra-inning contest was full of great defensive plays for the Dawgs. First baseman/center fielder/shortstop Ryan McKenna, dubbed "Golden Glove" by a loyal following of family members, has made several outstanding plays during this 14-game stretch. Assistant Coaches Kevin Dembinski and Nick Santarsiero recall one play where McKenna (playing shortstop) with a runner on third and two outs in a tie game, dove for a grounder in the hole, got up, spun completely around and fired a bullet to first that ended the Tinton Falls rally, and the inning.

"After the play, the umpire came over to our dugout and told us, ‘In all of my years of umpiring, that was the best play I’ve ever witnessed,’" Ferraro said.

In this marathon, right fielder Dembinski broke the ice in the fourth when he hit a rocket to left, and the ball hit the top of the 210-foot fence, leaving him with a leadoff double. First baseman McKenna then drove him in with a single, and later scored on an RBI single by third baseman Ticse.

Catcher Miller and second baseman Kyle Bakacs, whose bats have been consistently hot throughout this stretch of games, each had two hits, and were both on base in the top of the ninth when shortstop Gormley smacked a triple over the center fielder’s head for the go ahead runs. One key play worth noting in this game was an over-the-shoulder catch by center fielder Morolda which ended the seventh inning, when Tinton Falls were threatening with men on second and third.

Pitcher Mammano was outstanding on the mound, as he came in to relieve in the fifth inning, and shut down the normally hard-hitting Tinton Falls team all the way through the ninth to secure this key win for the Dawgs.

Moving on to their next game in this Sayreville tournament, pitcher Ferraro fired seven strikeouts in just four innings as Millstone beat the Jamesburg squad 21-2.

The Dawgs’ bats were again alive as they finished with 12 hits in those four innings, highlighted by Dembinski who was 3-for-3.

These victories positioned Millstone as the unlikely top seed going into last weekend’s championship round of the Sayreville Tournament.

"These boys are playing flawless ball," Ferraro said.

"They’re hitting the ball, they’re making the plays in the field, they’re stealing, bunting and they’re playing with a lot of passion."

Unfortunately, their solid run came to an end with some disappointing play over the weekend, but that does nothing to take away from what was a great series of games for a gutsy 11-year-old all-star team.