The Marblehead Youth Baseball 14-year-old all-star team came ever so close again to reaching the state Babe Ruth tournament finals, but alas they lost heartbreakingly to host Lynn in the EMass state semifinals, 6-5 at the Breed Junior High School Field in Lynn on July 11.
Most of these same Marblehead players have been winning together since they were 8. They have had the same two managers — John Reardon and Mike Murphy — guiding them through the process, as well.
Two years ago, when they were 12, they went to the Cal Ripken World Series quarterfinal round before losing to Winchester.
“This is a great group of kids, who are very resilient,” said Reardon. “They all believe in each other, and they also care for each other and as a result they don’t want to let each other down, while playing the sport they love so much.”
During this year’s EMass tournament, the Marblehead boys went 3-1 in pool play. They shutout
Peabody, 12-0; smothered Swampscott, 12-2; and hammered Revere, 11-1. Their only loss in pool play was against aforementioned Lynn in the tournament opener, 4-2. There were a total of 15 teams at the start of pool play. Taunton shutout Braintree in the other EMass state semifinal contest, 4-0 to advance to the regional final against Lynn on July 13 after press deadline.
In the playoffs following pool play, Marblehead first defeated Newton, 2-0 in the quarterfinals. John Reardon pitched all seven innings to earn the win. He only allowed two Newton runners reach second base throughout the entire game, while scattering three hits and one walk. He was credited with six strikeouts.
The defense was also amazing in this game, according to John’s dad and manager. Center fielder Madden Lyons, in particular, came up with a diving catch in the second inning, and then made a perfect relay to shortstop Jack Murphy, who fired a strike to third baseman James Machado to nail a runner trying to stretch a double into a triple.
On offense, Liam Pyne singled in a run. Will DePhillips walked with the bases loaded twice to account for a couple of more runs.
The win over Newton setup a rematch versus Lynn. It turned into another tight, back and forth game.
Marblehead scored the first run of the game in the opening stanza, but Lynn tied it up in the second. The host team went ahead with two more runs in the third. The visitors trimmed it to one in the fourth, but Lynn pulled ahead again with four in the fifth. But the never-say-die Marblehead bunch did its best to stage a miraculous comeback in the seventh, only to come up short by one slim run.
Yanzel Fuentes pitched the first 4.1 innings, giving up seven hits, one walk and five runs, but only two were earned. He fanned three. Lyons followed him to the mound going the final 1.2-innings. He yielded three hits, two walks and one run, while whiffing one.
Fuentes came through with a two-run single during the furious seventh inning comeback effort. Holden Ferreria knocked in another run on a fielder’s choice. The visitors collected eight hits in the game, which also included a triple by Lyons.
Reardon summed up his 12 all-stars with some pithy thoughts: Pitcher and first baseman Collin Allen “quiet leader;” Cole Benedetto “super utility player;” catcher Will DePhillips “heart and soul of the team;” second baseman and outfielder Holden Ferreria “our leadoff hitter;” pitcher and first baseman Yanzel Fuentes “crafty lefty pitcher;” pitcher and outfielder Madden Lyons “best athlete on the team;” third baseman and outfielder James Machado “best hitter on the team;” captain and shortstop Jack Murphy “leads by example;” outfielder Jack O'Leary “puts the team before himself;” outfielder Liam Pyne “hardest worker;” pitcher and infielder John Reardon “ace of our pitching staff;” and pitcher and infielder Marcus Waitekus “loves to win.”
The Marblehead stars might have been eliminated from the state tournament, but they are still playing baseball this summer in the Lou Tompkins League. They currently have a 3-2 record, while playing in the upper elite division against 15-year-old players. Lincoln (July 17) and Reading (July 18) are next up on the schedule.
