Catcher Shea Walsh makes a play during the World Series in Oregon.
Alexa Petito throws a pitch during the World Series in Oregon.
Cameron Bruker in action during the World Series in Oregon.
Lauren Kiszely, Sara Motusesky, Kellie Hoffman and Megan Kratz support the Robbinsville Little League 12-year-old softball All-Stars during a community viewing party of the team’s World Series semifinal game Aug. 13, 2013 at the township senior center. (Staff photo by Samantha Sciarrotta.)
The Robbinsville Little League 12-year-old All-Star team represented the East region at the Little League Softball World Series in Portland, Ore., in August, finishing third. Robbinsville lost to the Southeast champion from Virginia, 6-3, Aug. 13, before bouncing back with a 7-1 win against Puerto Rico in the third place game.
Five years after its first Little League World Series appearance, Robbinsville Softball all stars finish third in the world.
Robbinsville must be getting used to this by now.
For the third time in five years, the town’s 11/12-year-old softball team earned a trip to the Little League Softball World Series in Portland, Ore. The East girls finished third in the world, one place lower than the league’s best-ever finish in 2008. The tournament ran from Aug. 8-14.
What happened in the past does not diminish what this year’s squad accomplished. Manager Anthony Manto, who went to the World Series with his older daughter Gabby in 2010, said he may never get used to the feeling of seeing his squad play on a national stage. Multiple trips, though, do make his job a little easier.
“From a coaching standpoint, going through it one time already put me at ease,” he said. “We know what’s going to go on. Everything was a little easier because we knew what to expect.”
The RLL girls went 24-3 on the season and 4-2 in the World Series, defeating Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Southwest before being ousted by Southeast in the semifinals. They won their final game against Latin America to finish in third place. Manto said the team was disheartened after the semifinal loss, but it bounced back in its last matchup.
“After watching the next game after ours and then getting back out there and playing, they were back in business,” he said. “I think they felt OK with coming in third. It’s a great accomplishment.”
The fans back home felt the same. The township held a viewing party at the senior center for the semifinal game, which aired on ESPN2 on Aug. 13. Little League players and coaches, township officials, and Robbinsville residents all gathered to root on the hometown girls, cheering as if they were actually in Oregon.
“The kids work so hard, and you see them out there every day,” Robbinsville Little League president Jerry Chmielewski said. “They do a lot of stuff on their own. They earned it. They get out there, they work super hard. It’s all them. As a league, we’re super proud of them. They’re just great kids. You want them to do great things, and they do.”
The community, Manto said, plays a major role in the league’s ability to consistently churn out teams that are literally among the best in the world.
“When I look on some of the websites like the game tracker, we had probably double the amount of people watching us as the next-highest team had,” he said. “From a coach and kid perspective, the support was incredible. I can’t even tell you how many people sent along their well-wishes, how many people said that they watched us and the games. It makes the community grow a little closer.”
Robbinsville resident Mary Caffrey agreed. Following the teams each year is something the community can “rally around.”
“It’s a very positive thing,” she said. “They’re just a lot of fun to watch. You get to see them play through the different levels, and it’s fun to see them come up and to see the next group come up. Year in and year out, they have a good track record. Where we are, some people root for the Yankees and some people root for the Phillies, but everybody can support the softball team. They’re doing a lot better than the Yankees or Phillies are.”
Caffrey recalls Robbinsville’s first trip to the Series, which took place the same year its name changed from Washington Township in 2008. Seeing the new name in the public eye was a source of pride for Caffrey and other Robbinsville residents.
“They do such a good job of representing us,” she said. “Five years ago, when the team first made it to the televised game, we had just changed the name of the town. it was the first time the name ‘Robbinsville’ kind of got out into the public domain in such a big way. The Robbinsville softball program, both the little league and the high school girls, have probably done as much as anybody to publicize the name since we changed it. I think that they’ve really done a lot to put the town on the map in a positive light.”
They continue to do just that. Manto said between games, mini field trips and team dinner nights, the highlight of the tournament was the chance to participate in the annual Challenger Game. The girls stepped out on the field with a team of local athletes with various physical and mental disabilities and assisted with gameplay by serving as “buddies” during the game. It happened to fall on Robbinsville’s day off, so they were chosen to participate along with the Central team.
“The girls did an unbelievable job,” Manto said. “I think it gives everyone a little perspective. That was a really, really wonderful experience, especially for the kids and their families. I was so happy to get the chance to do that. They were all excited about doing it. After a minute or two of just being awkward 12-year-old girls, they got right in there.”
Chmielewski said he could not have been prouder of the team’s enthusiasm during the Challenger Game.
“I’m hoping that they know how proud we are of them and how much we’re behind them,” he said. “We just think that what they’re doing is amazing. They’re great kids, great girls. This experience is going to be something that they take with them the rest of their lives.”
The World Series experience is one that many of the younger girls in the league hope to get in the future. Ella Iorio, 10, whose sister Nicolina played on the 2010 World Series team, is inspired by the older girls.
“It just looks so fun,” she said. “So many Robbinsville teams have made it, and we want to make it, too. Out of everyone in the world, it would be cool to be one of those teams.”
Manto said each new generation of players looks up to the ones who came before them. A lot of times, former players like Lauren Fischer, Morgan Psiuk, Hannah Olshevski and Gabby Manto run a number of practices during the season, which Manto said encourages his team.
“I definitely think that the support from the girls on the high school team and the past teams that went to the World Series is a major factor in these kids wanting to do so well,” he said. “They want to carry on that tradition. We appreciate the girls who come back on a year to year basis to talk to the kids. It’s one thing for them to say, ‘Hey, I saw Lauren Fisher play,’ but it’s another thing that they come into practice, come to the league, and talk about their experiences while they interact with the girls.”
The girls, after all, are who this is all about.
“I do this not for me, but for them,” Manto said. “Of course it’s satisfying. We couldn’t have done it without the girls. They’re the ones who played out there. I’m satisfied for them. This is an experience that’s hard to duplicate for them.”
The team’s main goal at the beginning of the season was to capture a state title for Chelsea Manto and Sara Toscano, who will age out after this year. The two girls had already captured four state and two regional titles in their four years on All-Star teams.
“I thought if we did that, we would go to the regionals, work hard, and see what happened from there,” Manto said. “Ultimately, that’s the goal. That’s why we do this. We didn’t say, ‘Okay, we have to make it to the World Series.’ If it ended in Bristol, that would have been OK with me. The girls wouldn’t let that happen.”
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