Baseball Wins Another One-Run Game: Rombola Improved to 4-1 In Tennis

This article written and reported By Rick Volk

Berlin baseball fans have seen it before this season:  

• Chilly weather conditions. 
  
• Strong pitching from Connor Bennett.   
  
• And a game decided by one run.    
  

This time the one-run margin was a 5-4 Redcoat victory over the Platt Panthers, under the lights at Sage Park.
 
Jared Gallagher, working in relief of Bennett, got the last two outs for the first Berlin save of the year. With the tying run aboard, Gallagher fanned Platt clean-up hitter Tyler Lavelle to preserve Bennett’s fourth victory of the season.

Berlin put five runs up against hard-throwing Platt junior Dmitri O’Donnell to lead 5-0 going into the sixth inning behind Bennett’s no-hit pitching. Berlin centerfielder Daren Grabowski contributed a nice running catch of a blast by Lavelle with two Platt runners on in the first.

Alec Norton’s two-run triple put Berlin up to stay in the second.   His shot to right followed an infield single from Dave Condon and a Jordan Zima safety to right. In the following inning, Kyle Naples tripled home Mitch Williams and later scored on Dante Vasi’s sacrifice fly.

The Redcoats’ eventual margin of victory came in the fifth when Greg Konowski’s fly ball to left was lost in the lights, scoring Gallagher.
 
Bennett, working on three days rest following his victory over Stafford on Saturday, struck out five Panther batters over the first five innings, but ran into trouble in the sixth, with Platt putting up four unearned runs, on two Berlin errors, a hit batter, a two-run double by Lavelle, a sacrifice fly off the bat of O’Donnell, a walk, and another sacrifice fly off the bat of Evan Golebiewski.

Bennett began the seventh inning, but gave way to Gallagher with the tying run on first and one out.   Overall, Bennett and Gallagher combined to hold Platt to one hit.
The Redcoats, now 6-3, travel to Hartford to play Bulkeley on Friday.   Platt fell to 3-6 on the season.  

• Berlin  
  
• Daren Grabowski cf   1-0-1 
  
• Jared Gallagher cf-p   1-1-0 
  
• Greg Konowski  lf-cf   3-0-1 
  
• Mitch Williams 3b    2-1-1 
  
• Kyle Naples ss         3-1-1 
  
• Dante Vasi lb 2-0-0 
  
• Dave Condon rf         3-1-1 
  
• Jordan Zima c 3-1-2 
  
• Jeff Sylvester eh 3-0-0 
  
• Connor Bennett p-lf   0-0-0 
  
• Alec Norton 2b           3-0-1 
  
• 2b:  Konowski 
  
• 3b:  Norton, Naples 
  
• RBI:  Norton 2,  Naples, Vasi, Konowski 
  
• BB:  Grabowski 
  
• SF:  Vasi 
  
• HP:  Williams, Grabowski 
  
• 
  
• Connor Bennett (W 4-0), 6.1 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 5 K 
  
• Jared Gallagher (S, 1)  .2 IP, 1 BB, 1 K 
  

• Platt 
  
• John  Byam C             3-1-0 
  
• Kyle Pelcher ss          3-1-0 
  
• Brandon Valentin lf  1-0-0 
  
• Jake Papacoda  pr     0-1-0 
  
• Gage Forney lf           0-0-0 
  
• Tyler Lavelle rf         3-1-1 
  
• Dmitri O’Donnell p   2-0-0 
  
• Toby Hollman lb      2-0-0 
  
• Mike Barnett ph       0-0-0 
  
• Evan Golebiewski  3b  2-0-0 
  
• Crème Watford cf     2-0-0 
  
• Tory Clemens  cf      1-0-0 
  
• Scott Dargan 2b      2-0-0 
  
• Will Ksywanos ph   1-0-0 
  
• 2b:  Lavelle 
  
• RBI:  Lavelle 2, O’Donnell, Golebiewski 
  
• BB:   Byam, Pelcher, Valentin, Barnett, Forney 
  
• SF:  O’Donnell, Golebiewski HP:  Lavelle, Valentin 
  
• 
  
• Dmitri O’Donnell (L)  6 IP,  8 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
  

Boy's Tennis

Simsbury 6, Berlin 1

It was another tough loss for the boys (0-6) yet again to a LL school.

This time, especially in doubles, all of the matches were competitive.

Junior Dan Rombola raised his record to 4-1 with a very convincing win.

The team will face yet another tough opponent in East Catholic Thursday at home.