Monroe Tops Fairfield National in the First Round

Fairfield was excited about the potential for a Little League Baseball championship game betweeen the town's two all-star teams of 12-year-olds entering tournament play Monday night.

Monroe had other plans.

The Monroe All-Stars played well in every phase of the game in soundly beating Fairfield National 6-3 at Blackham School, 425 Thorme St., Bridgeport. And pitcher, Cameron Kovachik, silenced Fairfield's bats for most of the game in notching the first round victory.

"That's a good team we just beat," Monroe Head Coach Bill Duignan said. "Again, Cameron was just off the charts. We had some timely hitting, good base running and defense."

Tuesday night, Monroe squares off against Fairfield American at Blackham School at 5:30.

The last time the two teams met, Fairfield American blew out Monroe 11-0 in a game decided by the Little League mercy rule in the fourth inning. Fairfield starter Nick Nardone threw a perfect game and struck out 11 Monroe batters.

Monday night, Fairfield American crushed Westport 13-3, winning on the mercy rule in the fourth inning.

Fairfield National was also highly touted before being dismantled by Monroe on Monday.

After a scoreless first inning, Monroe manufactured a run in the bottom of the second.

Tim Quinlan walked, then reach second on a wild pitch. Coach Duignan replaced him with pinch runner, J.J. Williams and the move paid off.

When Brian Denham got caught in a run down between first and second base later in the inning, Williams took off from third and crossed home plate.

Monroe would go up 2-0 in the third, when Mike Delapiano's hit dropped in front of a sliding Fairfield center fielder for an R.B.I. single. Nick Maini, who had doubled into the gap in right-center earlier in the inning came around to score.

Meanwhile, Kovachik retired the first seven batters he faced - four on strikeouts - before Fairfield battled back in the top half of the fourth.

Drew Speckman, Reed Harrington and Johnny Crescione hit consecutive singles for Fairfield National to start off the inning.

Kovachik looked like he may escape unscathed after he struck out the next two batters.

But then Fairfield scored on two passed balls to tie the game at 2-2.

Monroe answered right away, exploding for three runs in its half of the inning and jumping out to a 5-2 lead.

Monroe scratched for the runs in an inning that included a bunt single by Williams, a stolen base by Nick Maini, a passed ball, and a single by Delapiano that hit the first base bag and popped up over the first baseman's head.

In the top of the fifth, Kovachik was aided by an inning-ending double play turned by second baseman Nick Maini, who fielded a ground ball and flipped it to shortstop Jay Buhlmann at second for one out.

Buhlmann then fired the ball to first baseman Pat Ryan to complete the clutch defensive play.

Ryan belted a pitch over a the right fielder to lead off the fifth, hustled around second and slid safely into third for a triple.

Kovachik hit a single to score Ryan, giving Monroe insurance with a 6-2 lead going into the final frame.

In the sixth, Kovachik got Reed Harrington to hit a grounder back to the box for out number one.

Because Kovachik had reached his pitch count, Coach Buhlmann brought in Delapiano for relief.

Fairfield managed to scratch out one last run before Delapiano forced Eddie Grella to hit a pop up, which Delapiano caught himself to seal the 6-3 victory.