Darien Legion Holds Off Bridgeport, 7-6

With the score tied 2-2 in American Legion baseball Saturday morning, Darien and Bridgeport were locked in a defensive, small-ball struggle.

But after Darien shortstop Chris Bruno stymied a Bridgeport rally with a leaping grab of a line drive, Bruno and teammates Scott Dempsey and Tom Driscoll sparked a five-run fifth inning that broke open the game.

And though Bridgeport battled down to the wire, catcher Dempsey blocked home plate and tagged out a sliding runner for the final out of the game to seal Darien's 7-6 triumph at Bridgeport's Seaside Park.

"Our bats really came alive when we needed them to, and Dempsey made a huge play at the end to block the plate and secure the win for us," Darien coach Mike Petrona said. "We've had some tough losses so far this summer, so today was really big for our ballclub."

For Darien (4-6), it was a true collective effort from start to finish.

Starting pitcher Cameron Armstrong was steady throughout, netting a pair of timely strikeouts with two runners on in the bottom of the fifth before Bruno went airborne to snag a liner and deny a big Bridgeport inning. Armstrong surrendered just two earned runs in six innings.

In the fifth inning, Darien came alive at the plate, as Dempsey raced to first to beat out a bunt single. A sacrifice moved Dempsey to second, and Driscoll blasted a drive down the left-field line to plate Dempsey.

A few pitches later, Mike Alfieri mashed a two-run single to center to lift the visitors to a 5-2 lead. Bruno prolonged the big inning with a laser beam single, and raced his way into scoring position, courtesy of a stolen second base.

Teammate Alex Pette singled to stretch the lead to 6-2, followed by Will Preziosi's sacrifice fly that pushed the lead to 7-2.

In the bottom of the sixth, Armstrong stood tall atop the mound, buckling down to quell a looming Bridgeport threat. With two strikeouts in as many batters faced, Armstrong seemed poised to escape trouble, but two Darien errors suddenly made it a 7-5 game.

Preziosi came in to close the door in the final inning, but a line drive single, coupled with an infield single, suggested a Bridgeport comeback was imminent.

However, Preziosi made a dazzling play, racing off the mound to dive and snag a bunt bloop just inside the first-base line. Preziosi turned and fired to second to nail a Bridgeport runner for the first out of the final frame.

A single trimmed Darien's edge to 7-6, and with men on first and second, the game's most critical moment was about to unfold. Camped at home plate, Dempsey fired an errant pick-off attempt into the outfield, giving Bridgeport the green light to sprint the bags and attempt to knot things up.

With the Bridgeport runner sprinting full bore around third and racing home, Dempsey blocked the plate with authority and perfect positioning.

Darien outfielder Justin Pryor sent a rocket toward Dempsey. The sliding runner clearly beat the throw home, but Dempsey would not allow anyone to touch the plate and deftly applied the tag to end the contest in dramatic fashion.

"I knew the previous play that I made was bad," Dempsey said. "I threw that ball into the outfield and was determined to make up for it. As the runner rounded third base, I got ready and blocked the plate as best as I could."

"Justin bailed me out with a great throw from the outfield, and I just worked hard to block the entire plate. I'm just glad I was able to help us hold on for the win. We've had a few close losses lately, so we needed this one."

Immediately following the first game, the teams completed a contest that was suspended earlier in the week, and Darien won that one as well.

In the 10th inning of a tie game, Darien's Ben Hall mashed a deep double over the left fielders head. Walks to Chris Bruno and Peter Meadows loaded the bases for Alfieri, who walked on a 3-1 count to force in a run and give Darien a 6-5 victory.