The Marblehead Youth Baseball 11-year-old all-star team had a great summer season, starting with the Cal Ripken Tournament in late June, where it earned a spot in the Cal Ripken District Crossover Round that consisted of Districts 1 and 7.
Medford also made it out of Marblehead’s bracket. The Junior Mustangs went 3-0 in pool play, while the Marblehead boys were 2-1. Revere and Winchester were the other two teams in that bracket. All of those games were played in Burlington.
The crossover round was single elimination, and as a result Marblehead lost its game to powerhouse host Natick on June 27. But baseball was far from over for these all-stars, who went on to compete in the Bay State League.
The Marblehead boys completed the regional portion of the Bay State League Tournament with a 6-2-2 record, edging out second place Haverhill. The Hillies were 5-1-3. Both teams then went on to Trophy Weekend in Sudbury, where Marblehead defeated Brookline in the semifinals, 8-6, but lost to South End (Boston) by the exact same score in the gold medal game to take home the runner-up silver trophy.
The Junior Magicians then continued on to the second round as an upper division finalist, only to finish up with a 3-7 record. However, their last game was a win against North Andover, 7-6 on July 31.
Despite the loss, the Marblehead boys still made the Tournament of Champions as one of the Bay State League’s Top 8 clubs, along with North Andover. They first went up against the aforementioned South End club Tuesday night, Aug. 4, and will be in Natick again tonight (Aug. 5) for the second round game.
These Marblehead stars have been together since they were eight, and their manager Carl Iannacci likes their progression as ballplayers. “They have grown a lot since they came together as a team when they were eight,” he said. “They had to learn the game from scratch, but their dedication made this year’s success possible.”
As eights, they won just one game. But as 10s, they were able to win five games, setting the stage for this year’s successes.
“We are now hitting and pitching well, and with improved defense we can go even further,” said Iannacci.
Iannacci utilized six pitchers on the mound this year that included Luke Murphy, Cam Oak, Reid Benoit, Luke Williams, Gavin O’Sullivan and his own son, Cam. Williams and Oak also split time behind the plate. When he wasn’t pitching, Iannacci was at first base. Will Papalardo was the team’s regular second baseman. Oak and O’Sullivan also manned the shortstop and third base positions, respectively. Colton McNulty, Holden Melanson and Flynn Kelly were the starting outfielders from left to right. Matt McCarthy filled in nicely at second base and in right, while Miles Hench split his time between left and right this summer.
The coaching staff is thrilled to get a few more games with this group this summer, and Iannacci said of them: “I can’t say enough about how well our boys played this season. This is a special group that has been playing and growing together throughout the last four years. They should be proud of how they have competed, overcame adversity and supported each other as teammates, as well as representing our town in this competitive (Bay State) league that featured them securing the runner-up silver trophies (so far).”
