The City and County Little League baseball tournament came down to a battle between Bethlehem and Guilderland.
Pine Bush National champion Delmar Pediatrics used a six-run third inning to propel itself to a 12-5 victory over Tri-Village Little League’s Bob Bellizzi Grand Slam Camps in last Thursday’s final at Albany’s American Little League.
Bellizzi Grand Slam Camps built a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on Jerry Jennings’ solo home run and Tony Cheruvu’s two-run double, but Delmar Pediatrics had seven consecutive hits in the third inning to take control. Andrew Czekay’s two-run single capped the rally.
Jonathan Ciccone belted a two-run homer in the top of the fourth inning to extend Delmar Pediatrics’ lead to 8-3. Matthew Harding drove in a run with a fifth inning sacrifice bunt, and Angelo Sbardella added a two-out RBI single to give the Pine Bush National squad a 10-3 advantage.
Trey Sgroi’s two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth inning gave Bellizzi Grand Slam Camps new life, but Ryan Huber’s RBI double and Blake Van Epps’ follow-up RBI single in the sixth inning sealed the victory.
Czekay pitched 5.2 innings to pick up the victory for Delmar Pediatrics, which finished its season with a 13-4 record. Delmar Pediatrics ended its season on an 11-game winning streak. Bellizzi Grand Slam Camps posted a 10-6 record.