John Bennett is thrilled having the likes of Domenic Zanotto,
Jack Affourtit, Cole Campi and Garrison Grisedale on his side this
year
LOS GATOS
John Bennett is thrilled having the likes of Domenic Zanotto, Jack Affourtit, Cole Campi and Garrison Grisedale on his side this year.
Last summer, Bennett’s intrepid Morgan Hill Pony-13 B All-Stars went toe to toe with Morgan Hill A in an elimination game to decide the final pairing in the Santa Clara Sectional. Playing against the bulk of Morgan Hill’s 2009 Bronco World Series team, the “Thrill,” Bennett’s group nearly pulled a colossal upset over the eventual tournament champs, losing 2-1 at Lou Vierra Field.
The players consolidated under Bennett for 2011 and were back to their winning ways Sunday against a common rival in the Pony Sectional at Los Gatos’ Fisher Middle School. The A All-Stars beat Blossom Valley 10-3 in elimination play behind three solid innings of relief from Zanotto, their side-winding righty who struck out seven in as many innings — 10 batters total — the day before, and a three-for-five effort by Zach Riveron. Justin Dziuba added a double that landed just in front of the wall.
“Having kids like Jack and Cole and Dom — that kid’s got the heart of a lion — you can see the talent in those boys,” Bennett said. “They deserved to be on that A team last year. Our guys kind of had a chip on their shoulders. Together they make for a solid group, a great group of kids that work hard and push themselves to do better.”
Their combined playoff experience and championship mettle helped the A All-Stars bounce back from a head-scratcher of an opening loss — 10-3 — to San Jose PAL on Saturday. Morgan Hill committed several errors and was strapped for hits with runners on base.
San Jose PAL’s pitching produced 11 strikeouts.
“(Our guys) were disappointed, but they understood it was mostly because of mental mistakes,” Bennett said. “Had they played to their ability … it would have been a different ballgame.”
The locals played with more focus Sunday, not that they needed Saturday’s loss to key in on beating Blossom Valley. Morgan Hill led 4-2 after five innings and broke it open with three runs in the sixth and three more in the seventh.
The A All-Stars were coming off taking first place in a Fourth of July tournament in Fremont. They play Campbell at 5:30 p.m. Monday.
Morgan Hill’s B team was eliminated after two games at Sectionals, losing 12-0 to Campbell on Saturday and 9-3 to Sunnyvale/Cupertino on Sunday.
MUSTANG: For a team that was one win — more precisely one bad inning — away from advancing to Regionals a year ago, the Morgan Hill A All-Stars played as inspiringly as one would expect last weekend in their host section tournament at Britton Middle School.
The locals twice rallied Saturday to pull even with South San Francisco in a 5-4 opening loss in extra innings, then on Sunday, eliminated Morgan Hill B by 11-1 score in four innings, receiving at least one hit from each player.
“We finally started hitting like we can,” Morgan Hill A manager Rich Dunne said. “Hopefully we can keep that up and reel off a few more (wins).”
Only two teams will advance to Regionals from the 11-team Morgan Hill Sectional, which, for the locals, continues at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.
The A All-Stars have survived with sharp pitching by Charles Romriel, Seth Conforti and Donald Ukanwa; superb defense by Anthony DiVittorio and Cole Dunne, and good hitting and catching by Damon Rodriguez.
Rich Dunne said his team will likely play its next game against San Jose Pacific, which beat Dunne’s group in a Pinto section championship in 2009.
Last summer Dunne’s team blew a three-run lead in the final inning and lost 8-6 to Blossom Valley in an elimination game to decide their Mustang-9 section’s final invite to Regionals.
“It’s funny; these kids are 10 years old and they’ve already learned a lot about themselves,” he said. “They’ve improved a lot, and they’re playing harder than ever.”
