While many of the area Little League District 12 All Star teams had good showings this year in pool play and beyond, three teams are still hot: the West Windsor 12-year-old All Stars, the West Windsor 10-year-old All Stars, and the Cranbury-Plainsboro 12-year-old All Stars.
WW 12s. The West Windsor Little League 12-year-old All Stars have had a flawless post-season and are in the tournament’s final nine.
The team went 4-0 in pool play mostly behind its batting ability, which was especially clear in the team’s first two wins over West End, 12-2, and Ewing, 15-5. The team also defeated Nottingham, 4-2, on June 29, and Bordentown on July 2 in extra innings, 4-1, behind a two-run single by Justin O’Leary.
In the opening round of the final nine on July 4, West Windsor, the third seed, defeated Lawrence, 10-6. Kevin Murphy was key for West Windsor, going 2-for-3 with a two-run home run, three RBIs, and two runs scored as well as pitching four innings in which he gave up only one hit and six walks. Jake Nieschmidt and George Revock came on in relief in the fifth inning to hold off Lawrence. Revock and Michael Radey also hit solo home runs.
The 12s advanced to take on Allentown on July 7, where their bats came up strong in the team’s 15-5 win. Radey and C.J. Markisz each home runs for West Windsor.
The team will now face Robbinsville in the final on Saturday, July 10.
In the team’s 4-2 win over Nottingham on June 29, Kyle Siegler hit a single to drive in Justin O’Leary in the top of the second inning. Nottingham came back with two runs, but Markisz answered with a three-run, sixth-inning home run that brought the score to 4-2. Markisz and Revock pitched for West Windsor.
WW 10s. The 10s went 4-0 in pool play and reached the final six, held at West Windsor’s R.J. Ward Complex. The 10s won their first two games in the final six, 11-5 over Millstone-Roosevelt and 8-4 over Nottingham.
The team faced Robbinsville on July 7, where they shut out the team, 10-0. They now head into the finals on Friday, July 9, at 7 p.m. at the R. J. Ward Complex, where they will face the winner of the Robbinsville-HTRBA game. “It was our most complete game of the tournament,” he said. “Robbinsville, to that point, was undefeated. They only gave up five runs in four games prior to that game.”
Lichtenstein attributed the team’s success this year to its depth. “This is the first time we can only bat nine players,” he said. “Usually, in the past, when they were younger, they batted 12. But, you don’t get an easy out on any of our guys. They all hit very well.”
The team has had some slow starts, but “we’ve always managed to get the big innings later in the game. This has created very large margins over very good teams.”
He also said the team’s coaches and parents, including Jason Welch, Mike Strype, and Dave Philbin, “throw very hard to our kids to get them ready to face tough pitching.”
Princeton-Cranbury/Plainsboro Little League 12s. Cranbury-Plainsboro advanced out of pool play to the District 12 Tournament final nine, where it defeated its biggest rival, Millstone-Roosevelt, 7-6, on July 4 in the opening round.
Cranbury-Plainsboro’s offense carried the team in its first game. Hayden Reyes, Zach Crossey, and Luke Apuzzi each had base hits. Matt Hart hit a two-run single, while Brandon Kocher added an RBI single. Apuzzi finished 2-for-3 with a solo home run, and Austin McGinley had an RBI.
The team then fell, 10-4, to top-seeded Allentown-Upper Freehold on July 5, sending it to the losers’ bracket to face Lawrence.
Behind the bats of Luke Apuzzi, who knocked in four runs and had two home runs, Hayden Reyes, Zach Crossey, Dan Woodhull, Brandon Kocher, and Ken Shanaberger, the team defeated Lawrence, 10-0, on July 6. The team will play on Friday, July 9, at 6 p.m. against Nottingham.
The team did well in pool play, blending its offensive effort with good pitching and defense. In the team’s 6-0 win over Millstone-Roosevelt on June 29, Danny Woodhull pitched a complete-game, five-hit shutout. Luke Apuzzi went 3-for-3 with a home run and three runs scored. Matt Hart had an RBI single, and Brandon Kocher hit a double.
Softball All-Stars
West Windsor Softball 12s. Despite a great run in pool play, the West Windsor Softball 12s were unable to overcome Robbinsville, who defeated them on July 4 and 5 in a best-of-three series for the District 12 title.
West Windsor Softball 10s. The West Windsor 10-year-old softball team went 3-1 in pool play, defeating Millstone-River, 16-2, Allentown, 19-4, and West End, 14-9, with its only loss coming against New Egypt, 11-8.
New Egypt, however, would later hand the team its second loss in the double elimination round, with another 11-8 victory on July 5. West Windsor also fell to East Windsor, 9-0, on July 4.
