Sports
Spracklin Pitches Post 32 into Legion's Sweet 16
Southpaw tosses five innings of two-hit ball; Schweighoffer raps three hits and makes defensive play of the game.
EAST HAVEN – The American Legion run by Unionville Post 32 gets sweeter by the day.
The locals, after holding serve at home, took their show on the road and sprung an upset that has them in the state tournament’s Sweet 16 for the first time in over two decades.
Adam Spracklin tossed five shutout innings and Brian Schweighoffer provided support at bat and in the field Wednesday en route to 21st-seeded Unionville’s 8-5 victory over error-plagued No. 12 East Haven in a play-in game at East Haven High School.
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Unionville (20-9) has been reseeded at No. 15 and is slated to face second-seeded Oakville, the champion of Zone 5, as the tournament moves into a double-elimination mode Saturday. Game time is 9:30 a.m. at Muzzy Field in Bristol.
Spracklin, the Avon Old Farms left-hander headed for Division I North Carolina-Asheville in the fall, yielded just two hits and struck out eight.
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“Adam was amazing. He pitched lights-out baseball,” Unionville head coach Walt Nakonechny said. “Hats off to Adam.”
Spracklin departed with an 8-0 lead after throwing 91 pitches. The shoulder injury that limited his assignments during the regular season didn’t hinder him in the least.
“It felt really good today,” he said. “The last inning there was dull soreness but you get that whenever you go into the high 80s, low 90s with the pitch count. The arm starts to wear down a bit but hopefully I’ll be out on the mound again soon.
“It feels good to be back on the mound and throwing hard. I’ve got to get ready for [the Big South Conference].”
David Wiegard and Mac Crispino mopped up, withstanding a late East Haven surge that put five runs on the board and brought the tying run to the plate with two out in the ninth.
Spracklin didn’t have an elaborate scouting report on the East Haven hitters but Nakonechny and his assistant coaches scoured the internet for information that rang true. The Easties, Nakonechny perceived, were less than stellar in the field and they committed six miscues that led to four unearned runs.
“By the time we had supper [Tuesday night] we had a scouting report,” he said. “We had three articles, we knew their ace [Mike Anastasio] was going. That’s what helps you.
“Our mindset was to put the ball in play, put pressure on the defense to make a play, and it worked out for us.”
Unionville made three errors that opened the gates for a pair of unearned runs but a breathtaking gem by Schweighoffer that squelched a potential East Haven rally in the third inning turned out to be a game-saver.
A single by Lou Pane and a walk put runners on first and second with two out when Schweighoffer snared a twisting pop foul off the bat of Brandon Gargiulo to end the frame.
“I saw it go up and it was in the sun but I just kept going,” Schweighoffer said. “I just extended and got it.”
Nakonechny didn’t think it possible.
“We were sitting there and going, ‘No way, no way, no way, he’s got a shot, oh my God.’ It was one of those miraculous plays,” he said. “He got a great jump on it. He just turned his back and ran, and he got to the baseball. He did exactly what you should do.
“People may say it was a lucky catch but luck favors the prepared.”
Unionville grabbed a 1-0 lead in the third when Schweighoffer reached on an error, raced to third on David Kerlejza’s grounds-rule double and scored on a wild pitch.
Four runs came across in the fourth.
Pat Wollenberg singled off Anastasio’s leg and John Arcidiacono reached on a bunt single. Anastasio retired the next two on pop-ups but two-out lightning short-circuited East Haven’s dreams of a trip to the Sweet 16.
Schweighoffer tapped an infield single into open space between first and second and Wollenberg scored when second baseman Pane allowed the ball to trickle past him. Kerlejza punched an RBI single to left and Max Spracklin followed with a two-run double into the left field corner.
Post 32 broke it open with three in the fifth thanks to two East Haven errors.
Colan Callahan’s walk ended Anastasio’s outing. Reliever Mike Perry retired the next two hitters but Matt deVaux reached on an infield mistake, stole second and scored on a hit by Jimmy Mulpeter.
Schweighoffer lashed a single to center. Mulpeter, whose availability was questionable after sustaining a finger injury late in Tuesday’s win over Waterbury, scored easily when center fielder Carlos Maldonado let the ball bound past him.
East Haven bunched three hits to start the eighth inning and pushed all three across. An error and walk led to two more tallies in the ninth but Crispino put out the fire by fanning Larry Cifarelli to leave runners on the corners.
Unionville 8, East Haven 5
American Legion Play-In Round
(at East Haven High School)
Unionville East Haven
ab r h bi ab r h bi
deVaux 2b 4 1 0 0 Maldonado cf 2 0 0 0
Mulpeter ss 5 1 1 1 Consulatore cf 3 1 0 0
BSchwghfr 1b 5 2 3 1 Pane 2b 5 1 2 0
Kerlejza rf 5 1 2 1 Perry 3b 5 1 3 1
MSpracklin 3b 5 0 1 2 Anastasio p-3b 3 1 1 2
Crispino cf-p 5 0 1 0 Gargiulo 1b 4 0 1 1
Callahan c 3 1 0 0 Moore pr 0 0 0 0
Wollenberg lf 4 1 2 0 Cifarelli c 5 0 0 0
Arcidiacono dh 3 1 1 0 Poulin ss 3 0 1 1
ASpracklin p 0 0 0 0 Korwek lf 4 0 0 0
Wiegard p 0 0 0 0 Apuzzo rf 4 1 0 0
Kozak cf 0 0 0 0
Totals 39 8 11 5 Totals 38 5 8 5
Unionville 001 430 000 – 8 11 3
East Haven 000 000 032 – 5 8 6
E – Schweighoffer, Callahan, M. Spracklin, Perry, Poulin 3, Maldonado, Pane. LOB – Unionville 9, East Haven 10. 2B – Kerlejza, M. Spracklin, Perry 2, Anastasio. S – Callahan. SB – deVaux. CS – Wollenberg.
Unionville
ASpracklin W 5 2 0 0 3 8
Wiegard 3 4 3 3 1 3
Crispino 1 2 2 0 1 2
East Haven
ip h r er bb so
Anastasio L 4 8 6 4 2 3
Perry 5 3 2 0 0 5
WP – Anastasio, Perry. HBP – by Anastasio (deVaux). T – 2:48. A – 60. Records – Unionville 20-9; East Haven 17-8.
