Pennsylvania walks-off against New York

Posted 8/7/13

After missing a chance to win the game in the top of the sixth, Pennsylvania’s Red Land Little League manager Nate Ebbert knew his team would still have a chance in the bottom half as long as the game didn’t get out of hand.

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Pennsylvania walks-off against New York

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After missing a chance to win the game in the top of the sixth, Pennsylvania’s Red Land Little League manager Nate Ebbert knew his team would still have a chance in the bottom half as long as the game didn’t get out of hand.

Down 6-5 with no outs in the top half, he went out for a conference with his son Brady Ebbert, the team’s pitcher. Ebbert had just surrendered a two-run home to New York’s Mid-Island Little League’s Justin Klayman, which put New York in front.

“I told him after he gave up that home run, ‘I’m like look, you’ve got to hold it right here, and we’ll score two runs and win it for you,’” Nate Ebbert said. “Did I believe that? Maybe I did.”

His team believed it.

Brady Ebbert held the score there for the rest of the sixth, and his teammates came through when they got the bats in their hand. Jake Cubbler tied the game on a one-out single, and Kaden Peifer followed that with a shot over the right-fielder’s head to drive in the game-winning run in a 7-6 Pennsylvania victory at the 9/10 East Region Invitational at Cranston Western Little League.

Pennsylvania stayed mathematically alive in the Mid-Atlantic Region as it improved to 2-1, while New York was eliminated from advancing - but still has one more game - as it fell to 1-2.

“We all made some plays, we all didn’t make some plays,” Ebbert said. “It was just a heck of a Little League baseball game.”

It was one of the most exciting games in the tournament’s four-year history.

Pennsylvania carried a 5-1 lead into the fifth inning before New York tied the game up with four runs thanks to good patience at the plate and some erratic Pennsylvania pitching.

Coming back has been in New York’s DNA all summer long.

“We’ve been doing that the whole tournament,” New York manager Joe Calabrese said. “In Staten Island, we lost our first game, came back and had to win six in a row. We did that. We won the sectionals. We came out of the loser’s bracket in the states, and we won that.”

With the game tied at five, the game began to seesaw. In the bottom of the fifth, Peifer took a walk for Pennsylvania to start the inning, and Dominic Apa traded places with him on a fielder’s choice. With two outs, Apa was still at first with Darren Shaffer at the plate. New York went to the bullpen and brought in Stephan Gerwer to face him.

Shaffer delivered. He rocketed a line drive that short-hopped the fence in left-center, scoring Apa all the way from first to put Pennsylvania up 6-5. It was Shaffer’s only at-bat of the game.

“First at-bat of the game, probably third or fourth hit of the whole tournament we’ve played the past month,” Ebbert said. “We all talk about pulling the same rope, everyone pulling the same rope.”

Down a run, with three outs to go, it was New York’s turn to battle back. Against Brady Ebbert, Matt Bedford reached on an error to start the frame and that brought up Klayman. On a 1-1 count, Klayman bombed a home run over the right-field fence, putting New York back ahead 7-6.

“We had a shot here,” Calabrese said. “We battled back, got to five-up. Kid hit a big two-run homer.”

That’s when Nate Ebbert came out and talked to Brady, and it paid off. Brady Ebbert retired the next three batters in a row, giving Pennsylvania a shot.

They didn’t waste the chance. Facing Mark Bedford, Braden Kolmansberger walked to start the frame and then Pennsylvania caught a big break. Adam Cramer hit a double-play ball toward second base, but the ball was bobbled and everyone was safe.

“That’s been our Achilles’ heel,” Calabrese said. “If there is one weakness that we’ve had, it’s been our defense a little bit. It showed today.”

After Jaden Henline popped out, Cubbler stepped in and smashed a single through the middle, scoring Kolmansberger with the tying run.

Then it was Peifer’s turn. After falling behind 0-2, he belted a ball that sailed close to the fence in right, easily scoring Cramer “It’s crazy, but it’s a lot of fun,” Nate Ebbert said. “It’s a lot of emotion.”

New York jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning against Pennsylvania’s starter, Henline, thanks to a double by Bedford and a sacrifice fly by Mark Scamardella.

Pennsylvania came right back with two runs in the bottom half against New York’s Nick Velluzzi, as an infield error on a ball hit by Camden Watter scored Kolmansberger and Cramer.

The game remained 2-1 until the third, when Pennsylviania got an RBI single from Cubbler and another from Peifer. The third run of the frame came on an outfield error on Peifer’s hit, making it 5-1.

On the mound, Henline was cruising, but he came out after 3.2 innings, with Peifer taking over. He got through the fourth, but in the fifth he walked Dom Sanastano, gave up a single to Bedford and walked Klayman to load the bases with nobody out. Brady Ebbert came into the game and walked Mark Scamardella and John Martello, then hit Eric O’Neill to make it 5-4. A single by Velluzzi tied the game at five.

Ebbert buckled down from there, and in the end, Pennsylvania did enough to pull out the win. It will be back in action on Thursday against Maryland - which is currently 2-0 - with a likely place in Friday’s Mid-Atlantic final on the line.

New York is scheduled to play Maryland as well, with that game on Wednesday.

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