CLCF has dominated Rhode Island’s Cal Ripken Baseball all-star circuit in recent years, but for all its success, one thing was still missing.

Not anymore.

With a pair of victories over Exeter, N.H., last Thursday in New Hampshire, CLCF’s 10-year-old all-stars won the league’s first-ever New England championship and clinched a spot in the Cal Ripken World Series.

“Something like this only comes around once in a lifetime,” said manager Craig Barbarino. “And here it is.”

CLCF will depart August 7 for the World Series in Winchester, Va., and will begin play August 9. Since last week’s win, the team has been fundraising and organizing, all while basking in the glow of a historic achievement.

CLCF had come close to regional titles many times but had never cleared the final hurdle. Just last year, the 10-year-old team lost in the regional championship in the 9-year-old division.

This time, there was no stopping them.

CLCF lost to Exeter, the host team, by a 10-4 score in the winner’s bracket final last Tuesday. The next day, it stayed alive with a 9-8 victory over Seacoast, N.H., earning a spot in Thursday’s championship round. Needing to beat Exeter twice, CLCF rode a hot start to an 8-5 victory in the first game then rallied from a 5-0 hole to win 8-7 in the winner-take-all title game.

“All the kids are very excited and the league is very excited,” Barbarino said. “It’s something CLCF has never done before, and these kids worked really hard for it.”

The all-stars entered the summer with high expectations after last year’s run. They went undefeated en route to their second consecutive state championship, then headed for New Hampshire, where they beat Quincy, Mass., and Seacoast, N.H., for a spot in the winner’s bracket final. Exeter, playing on its home field, handed CLCF its first loss of the summer.

“The focus after that was just one game at a time,” Barbarino said.

In the 9-year-old regional tournament last year, CLCF had been in the opposite position. It won the winner’s bracket final before getting beaten twice in the championship round.

“I think they remembered that,” Barbarino said. “They knew anything could happen.”

CLCF beat Seacoast for the second time in the tournament to move into a rematch with Exeter, and it wasted no time taking control. In the top of the first inning, CLCF took a commanding 4-0 lead. Matthew Barbarino led off with a base hit and took second on a sacrifice bunt by Andrew Travieso. Tyler DiNezza knocked Barbarino in to make it 1-0, and Cole Carbone plated DiNezza with a single for the 2-0 lead. After a walk to R.J. Fatorma, Ruben Fernandez smacked a double to score two more runs.

Exeter cut the lead in half in the bottom of the first, but CLCF stayed in front then pulled away in the fourth and fifth innings. Carbone, Fatorma and Evan Dacey had hits in a two-run fourth. Travieso and Alex Marot reached on base hits in the fifth before a two-run double by DiNezza, making it 8-2. Exeter scored three runs in the fifth but got no closer. DiNezza got the start on the mound for CLCF and went the distance.

“We needed our entire lineup to hit that day, and that’s what happened,” Craig Barbarino said. “Everybody came through.”

The victory set up one final game, with the winner earning the World Series spot. It was played immediately following the first game, but instead of riding the momentum, CLCF found itself in a 5-0 hole in the third inning.

“It was 5-0 but the attitude of the kids didn’t change,” Barbarino said. “We always tell the kids that we play six innings, not one. They knew there was a lot of baseball left.”

CLCF started its comeback with three runs in the bottom of third. After base hits by Matthew Barbarino, Travieso and Marot, DiNezza delivered an RBI single, Carbone brought a run home with a groundout and Dacey knocked in the third with a hit.

After a scoreless top of the fourth from Marot, CLCF’s pitcher, the bats picked up where they left off in the bottom half. Fernandez led off with a single, Preston Kermen was hit by a pitch and Barbarino legged out an infield hit to load the bases. Travieso cleared them with a three-run triple that vaulted CLCF into the 6-5 lead.

“It says a lot about 10-year-old kids that they didn’t pack it in after a bad start,” Craig Barbarino said. “We asked them if they thought they were going to win, and they all said yes. One of them even came up to me without me asking and said, ‘Hey, coach, we’re going to win this game.’”

CLCF tacked on two more runs in the fifth on a hit by Fatorma, a walk to Hernandez and a two-run double by Kermen. That made it 8-5 going into the final inning.

But Exeter wasn’t done. The team regrouped from CLCF’s rallies and scored two runs with two outs, making it a one-run game. But Marot buckled down and recorded a strikeout to end the game and send CLCF to the World Series.

“I walked out to the mound when it was 8-7 and my pitcher said, ‘We’re going to win this game,’” Barbarino said. “I said, ‘Okay, let’s go do it.’”

After the strikeout, the celebration was on.

“We all went crazy,” Barbarino said.

The team has had plenty more time to celebrate since then, but there’s also more business to be taken care of. CLCF’s first-ever World Series team won’t just be happy to be there.

The CLCF stars will play the first game of the World Series on Saturday, August 9 at 1:30 p.m., against the Ohio Valley champion. They will play a total of four pool-play games, and the top three teams from each pool will advance to a single-elimination bracket that will determine the champion.

“We had practice Monday and we talked a lot about what’s next,” Barbarino said. “We’re going to play some very good teams, but we let the kids know that they deserve to be there. There’s nothing to be afraid of. We’re going to go down there and play like we know how. We’re going to represent Rhode Island and New England to the best of our ability.”

Whatever happens, it’s going to be fun.

“I think it’s a great accomplishment for these kids,” Barbarino said. “They’re a great bunch. They get along very well, and the families get along very well. As a coach, I’m blessed to have this team.”

Fundraising effort in full swing

Cal Ripken Baseball will cover teams’ transportation costs to the World Series, but not hotel costs. As a result, CLCF is organizing several fundraisers to help defray expenses for the players’ families. With 12 families staying for 10 days, expenses will add up.

The league has set up an online fundraising site at www.gofundme.com/c3tnjc, where anyone can make donations. Players and families have been canning at Stop and Shop, and will do the same at Shaw’s this week. On Tuesday, August 5, there will be a pasta dinner at St. Mary’s Feast Society at 15 Phenix Avenue, beginning at 6:30 p.m.