Windham Little League 11-12 Baseball All-Stars fight hard in district tournament

By Matt Pascarella

The Windham Little League 11-12 Baseball All-Stars opened the annual district tournament at the Westbrook Little League Complex with a close 3-2 victory over Tri Town on Friday, June 23 and then beat the Cape Elizabeth All-Stars 6-1 on Tuesday, June 27. Windham left it all on the field in a game against Cumberland North Yarmouth, but sustained its first tournament loss, 10-5, on Friday, June 30.

Windham seventh grader Dylan Emmons makes contact during
a tournament game at the Westbrook Little League Complex 
on Friday, June 30 against Cumberland North Yarmouth.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA

“We had a very ... rough and rocky start, but the kids never gave up on each other, they never gave up on the team,” said Windham 11-12 All-Stars coach Mike Manning. They continued to battle hard and that’s all you can ever really want as a coach; they don’t quit, they keep playing hard.”

A couple errors in the first inning by Windham put some Cumberland North Yarmouth runners on base and they scored three runs. However, some excellent fielding and quick feet by Windham center fielder and sixth grader Nolan Harvie had several solid fly ball catches early in the game.

Harvie said he was thinking about running hard and trying, because he knew doing so could save the game. He said he did good at the plate and made good contact.

Windham didn’t let a small lead get them down. Harvie was hit by a pitch in the first inning. Seventh grader Sullivan Nappi singled and Harvie scored. Seventh grader Joseph Small singled to right center and brought Nappi to third base. Sixth grader Robbie Sanicola reached first base and Nappi scored.

A fly ball to Harvie, a strikeout and another fly ball to Harvie sent Cumberland North Yarmouth back to the dugout in the second inning.

In the third inning, seventh grader Brady Legere walked, then stole second base. A single by Harvie brought Legere to third base and when seventh grader Ryan Manning grounded out, Legere scored. Now, the game is tied 3-3.

Unfortunately, Cumberland North Yarmouth scored six runs in the fourth inning, but Windham kept them scoreless in the fifth inning.

Windham had one last chance in the sixth inning, and they really put the effort in. Manning walked and Nappi singled. Small walked and now Manning is on third base. Manning’s hustle enabled him to score on a passed ball. Nappi also scored.

“We had a couple errors at the beginning, but we definitely pulled together,” said Nappi. “At the end, we tried to battle back. At one point we did tie the game up, but it kind of got away from us.”

Nappi said Harvie’s catches were a positive of the game, pitching went well and there were solid hits, good fielding and it was a fun game.

Windham will play again on Thursday, July 6 against a yet-to-be-determined opponent. <