With regular season play finished for various teams in the West Windsor and Cranbury-Plainsboro Little Leagues, the All-Star teams in both leagues are getting ready for pool play.
And two of those teams — the West Windsor 12 All-Stars and the Cranbury-Plainsboro 12 All-Stars will open their seasons by facing each other on Monday, June 29, at 6 p.m., at the HTRBA field, off Sloan Avenue in Mercerville. West Windsor gets home field advantage.
West Windsor 12 All Stars. Under manager Pat O’Brien, and his assistant Andrew Foster, the 12 All-Stars are returning four players from last year’s team.
Those players include O’Brien’s son, Sean; Foster’s son, Josiah; Christian Waters; and Alex DeSanctis. O’Brien says the remaining eight players on the roster are moving up from the 11-year-old team from last year.
Three of the returning players, O’Brien, Foster, and Waters, he says, are standouts “all-around” since they are all solid pitchers, but also can prove their strength at the plate.
DeSanctis, he says, is a former pitcher, who adds solid defense abilities to the team this year, but also is a powerhouse at bat.
Last year, the team took the championship in the HTRBA tournament, after it defeated Lawrence, 7-0. Heading into the HTRBA tournament pool play, West Windsor found itself in the loser’s bracket early on, but hit a turning point with a grand slam home run, which set up the team for the championship round. After that, the team was able to gain some momentum.
This year, “it’s a very tight-knit group of boys, and they seem to be having a whole lot of fun, so I expect a successful season,” O’Brien said.
Cranbury-Plainsboro 12 All-Stars. The Cranbury-Plainsboro 12 All-Stars have their own strengths this year, and most of them center around key returning pitchers Ben Gross and Mike Mazzeo, says Manager Ray Cella.
“Ben, without a doubt, was the best pitcher in the district last year,” says Cella. “He’s had a very solid year this year.” And when he is not pitching, he is a strong asset elsewhere, including at the plate. Cella says he has hit numerous homeruns in regular play this year, and hopes to see the same from him in pool play.
In addition to Gross and Mazzeo, he says he also expect a lot out of Ben Danis and Travis Britt, who are also returning from last year’s 12s. He also expects a lot from the rest of the pitchers, who also include Alex Chen, who also played on the 12s last year. He did not pitch last year, but will do so in a relief capacity this year. And Vinny Porreca will also step in as a relief pitcher, Cella says.
Rounding out the team are Dan Borup (infield and catcher); Luke Apuzzi (infield); Bennet Greenburg (infield and outfield); Pat Garron (infield and outfield); Vinny Porreca (pitcher and outfield); Matt Markau (catcher, infield and outfield); and Kareen Elhossieni (infield and outfield).
Last year, the team made it out of pool play and surprised a few of their opponents with some unexpected wins. “We’re not going to sneak up on anybody this year,” says Cella. “We made some noise last year.”
“We’re going to have people looking at us and saying, ‘This is one of the better teams,’ and they’re going to have to be ready to play us,” he added, saying that his team will also have to head into each game with hard work and preparation.
After the game against the West Windsor 12 All Stars on Monday, June 29, the Cranbury-Plainsboro 12 All Stars will play again on Tuesday, June 30, against HTRBA at 8 p.m. at home at Plainsboro Community Park. The next game will be against Princeton at Princeton on Friday, July 3 at 6 p.m.
West Windsor Softball 12 All-Stars. The West Windsor Softball 12 All-Stars will open their tournament play this year on Monday, June 29, against Lawrence at 8 p.m. in West Windsor.
Manager Howard Alter says his team is young, but they are enthusiastic and have been working hard. The pool is challenging this year, with Robbinsville returning as defending champions, not only in the districts and state, but in the entire east. And Robbinsville is coming back with many returning players this year. Other teams in the pool are Lawrence, Allentown, and Bordentown.
Nonetheless, all the teams, including West Windsor, have continued to improve, and Alter hopes to improve upon last year’s pool play, as the team did not advance to the district finals.
“They’re working very hard on their defense, and we’re working on having the pitcher throw strikes,” said Alter. “In terms of the offensive part of the game, the girls are running the bases aggressively and working on driving the ball to the outfield.”
“It’s been a lot of practice and hard work and learning the fundamentals of what it takes from playing recreational or little league and going to play for the All Stars and making the transition,” he added.
Alter says he hopes to set a foundation for future teams. “The goal is for the girls to have fun, develop their love of softball, and help the school teams as they rise in grade through the middle school and into high school,” he says.
Dina Alter will be splitting pitching and short stop duties. Rachel Goldner will also have pitching duties, and will also play outfield. Jessica Bizenov will be a key player for the team if she recovers from her injury. Shannon Radey and Alissa Julius will share catching responsibilities, with Radey also playing outfield and Julius also playing the infield.
Anahita Padmanabban will take the infield at first base, and will be one of the leaders on the team. Linda Mykietyn will be at second base, and Emily Vena will play short stop and third base. Kristin Finnie will play third base and right field.
Mackenzie Young will serve as the team’s left fielder and third base. She is currently injured and Alter hopes to have her back. Lauren Mctigue will have a role in both the infield and outfield, and Lindsey Hinczyski will play both center field and second base.
Following the Lawrence game, the team will face Allentown on Wednesday, July 1 at 6 p.m. in Lawrence, and then take on Robbinsville on Thursday, July 2 in Bordentown at 6 p.m. The last game of pool play is scheduled for Saturday, July 4, against Bordentown at 10 a.m. in Robbinsville.
