West Hartford LIttle League All-Star Team Wrap-Ups as of July 6

Game 1 vs. Mayor Mike-Hartford

The WHLL U12 Wahoos got off to a nice start in district play with a convincing 10-0 win over Mayor Mike–Hartford at Hyland Park. West Hartford starting pitcher Joe Kitz was rock solid on the mound going 5 1/3 innings giving up only 2 hits (the first two hitters of the game), striking out 7 and walking none. Sam Fiske finished the shutout by striking out the last two batters of the game. 

The Wahoos jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on singles by Fiske (1-2, 2 runs), Miles McCarthy-Reynolds (1-3, 2 runs) and Grady Brockway (1-2, 1 RBI). They stretched the lead to 4-0 with two more in the 2^nd as Michael Mack (2-3, 2 runs, 2 rbi’s) and Spencer Altman added runs. Patrick O’Keefe made it 5-0 in the 3^rd with a deep solo shot to left. The Wahoos put the game out of reach with 4 in the 5^th to take a 9-0 lead behind hits from Declan Chill (1-1, 1 run) and Corey Wolski (1-2, 1 rbi). Mack drove in the final run with a single to right driving in Fiske who had walked. 

The Wahoos were very strong defensively led by their outfielders as Right Fielder Altman and Center Fielder Jeff LaRosa ran down several fly balls and Left Fielder Adam Giroux piped a runner out at third base in the bottom of the first inning. Patrick O’Keefe was spectacular behind the plate giving up no freebies and calling a phenomenal game.  The Wahoos take on Rocky Hill Sunday at 4 in Rocky Hill.

Game 2 vs. Rocky Hill

The WHLL Wahoos ran their district 7 record to 2-0 with a hard fought 5-4 win over Rocky Hill. The Wahoos got two in the bottom of the 2^nd inning as Patrick O’Keefe (1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI) scored on a passed ball and Michael Mack (1-3, 1 run) stole home. Rocky Hill narrowed the gap to 2-1 with a run in the 3^rd but WH put three more on the board in the bottom of the 3^rd. Jeff LaRosa (1-3, 1 run) led off with a single and Sam Fiske (1-3, 1 run) followed with a beautiful bunt single. Miles McCarthy Reynolds walked to load the base. Grady Brockway (1-3, 1 rbi) grounded out to third to drive in a run.  Fiske scored on a passed ball and Patrick O’Keefe’s ground out drove in the final run. Starting pitcher Michael Mack (4 2/3 ip, 5 runs, 5 K’s, 2 BB’s) was cruising through the first 4 innings but ran into a jam in the 5^th. Rocky Hill scored 3 runs behind 3 hits and 2 West Hartford errors and had the tying run gunned down at the plate as catcher O’Keefe took a passed ball off the backstop and dove at the plate to snag the runner. Fiske blew away the first two batters in the top of the 6^th and McCarthy-Reynolds snared the final out as he ran down a bloop into right from his second base position. 

Joe Kitz added a single for the Wahoos and Shortstop Jeff LaRosa made several outstanding plays to kill Rocky Hill rallies. West Hartford faces East Hartford Tuesday the 26^th.

Game 3 vs. East Hartford

Spencer Altman’s bat and Patrick O’Keefe’s arm led the WHLL Wahoos to a 8-1 win over East Hartford, running their record to 3-0. Altman’s (1-3, 1 run 4 RBIs) first inning grand slam helped WH jump to a 6-0 lead. Earlier in the inning, Declan Chill (1-3, 1 run, 2 RBIs) hit a 2 run double to get the Wahoos on the board. West Hartford extended their lead to 8-0 on a two run single by Jeff LaRosa (2-3, 2 RBIs) in the 3^rd inning. O’Keefe was cruising thru the game mixing up hard fastballs and a nasty hook. He went 5 innings giving up one run on  2 hits, walking 4 and striking out 5. LaRosa struck out 2 in the 6^th and Sam Fiske came in to get the last out. Defensively the Wahoos were perfect on the night. Declen Chill was brilliant in his first start at third base, making several nice plays including starting a 5-4-3 double play with Miles McCarthy-Reynolds turning the pivot at second. Corey Wolski was solid at second, fielding four balls cleanly and Mateo Ramirez-Webster made the play of the game going deep to left center to snare a long drive. Catcher Joe Kitz called a great game behind the plate and fielded the position flawlessly. Grady Brockway and Michael Mack added hits for WHLL. The Wahoos go head to head with Newington at the UConn field Wednesday June 27^th.

Game 4 vs. Newington

With a 10 spot in the top of the 6^th inning, Newington turned a 10-9 game into a 20-9 victory over West Hartford, dropping West Hartford’s record to 3-1 in tournament play. Newington jumped out to a 3 run lead on a 3-run home run but West Hartford got one back in the bottom of the 1^st as Jeff LaRosa (3-4, 2 run, 1 RBI, double) doubled and was driven in on a triple by Michael Mack (2-3, 1 run, 4 RBIs, double, triple). Newington increased their lead to 10-1 after 3 ½ innings. West Hartford decided to make a game of it scoring 8 runs in the bottom of the 4^th to get to 10-9. Declan Chill led the inning off with a single and two walks loaded the bases. An outfield error plated a run as did a single by Sam Fiske. Adam Giroux walked with the bases loaded and LaRosa followed with an RBI single. Mack’s 2-run single scored two more and a fielder’s choice by Miles McCarthy-Reynolds finished the scoring. LaRosa held Newington scoreless in the 5^th but they would not be quiet for the night. Newington strung out numerous hits and kept the pressure on scoring 10 runs to break the game open. Despite the loss, the Wahoos are holding strong in the District 7 standings with a 3-1 record. Their next game is at Glastonbury National. 

Game 5 vs. Glastonbury National

The Wahoos pulled off their biggest win of the District 7 playoffs with an inning 6-5 win over Glastonbury. Not only did the win push their record to 4-1 but it was WHLL's first victory over a Glastonbury team at Ross Field’s hallowed ground. This win came via mental toughness and desire as West Hartford batters only managed 4 hits and were struck out 18 times by several pitchers clocked between 66-70 mph. The Wahoo boys decided that they were going to hang around and figure out a way to grab a win. 

West Hartford grabbed a 1-0 lead as Jeff LaRosa struck out but advanced on a passed ball. Three wild pitches later, LaRosa scored. Glastonbury came back with 2 runs on a two run home run off LaRosa (3.1 ip, 4 runs, 6 K’s, 4 hits) who settled down and struck out 5 of the next 6 batters. West Hartford took the lead back with 4 in the top of the 4^th led by a 2-run missile to left field by Miles McCarthy-Reynolds. NASA claimed it was a UFO. Earlier in the inning Mateo Ramirez-Webster led off with a HBP and came around to score on a triple to right center by Sam Fiske. Sam scored on a passed ball to give WH a 3-2 lead.  LaRosa singled to left on a two strike hit to keep the inning alive. McCarthy-Reynolds then launched a fastball deep into the parking lot to give WH a 5-2 lead. Glastonbury scored two in the bottom of the inning as they strung together several hits. Michael Mack came on to pitch and snuffed out the rally. Glastonbury tied the game with a run in the bottom of the 6^th inning but Mack was brilliant and he struck out the number four hitter with the winning run on third and got a ground out to end the inning. Neither team scored in the 7^th but West Hartford would grab the lead in the 8^th.  Spencer Altman reached on an error by the SS and advanced to 2^nd on the overthrow. Two wild pitches later, Altman slid home with the go ahead run. With only 9 pitches left before he hit his 85, Mack (4.2 ip, 1 run, 6 k’s) bared down. He struck out the #2 hitter who had homered earlier in the game. Third Baseman Declan Chill snared a chopper down the line and gunned out the runner at first. An infield single and a throwing error got the tying run to second for Glastonbury. The next batter hit a grounder towards the middle but Short Stop LaRosa slid up the middle to make the grab and threw a perfect strike to Grady Brockway at first to end the game. Wahoo Nation exploded with applause as the WH players mobbed the field. Now at 4-1, the Wahoos visit Hartford North End in their next game.

Game 6 vs. Hartford North End

The WHLL Wahoos ran their record to 5-1 with a convincing 14-0 win over Hartford North End. Pitchers Spencer Altman (2 ip, 1 hit, 4 K’s) and Corey Wolski (2 IP, 1 hit, 2 K’s) combined on the shutout. Offensively, the Wahoos were led by Altman (3-4, home run, 2 runs, 3 RBIs), Declan Chill (3-3, 3 doubles, 2 RBIs, 2 runs), Michael Mack (3-3, 2 runs, 3 RBIs), Miles McCarthy Reynolds (2-3, 2 runs, double), Joe Kitz (2-3) and Corey Wolski (1-3, RBI, run). Sam Fiske and Mateo Ramirez-Webster added singles.  The Wahoos are off until July 6 when they take on Glastonbury American at home at the UCONN Fields.  A win by West Hartford or a loss by Mayor Mike-Hartford will wrap up a top 4 spot in the districts and guarantee a playoff game. 

Game 7 vs. Glastonbury American

The WHLL Wahoos ran their record to 6-1 and secured a birth in the District 7 playoffs with a 11-6 win over Glastonbury American. The long ball proved to be the determining factor as West Hartford smacked 3 big home runs in the game. Glastonbury jumped out to a 4-0 lead after they batted in the 2nd but the Wahoos cut the lead in half on a monster 2-run home run from Spencer Altman (2-3, 2 HRs, 5 RBIs) who hit it over the batting cages in left field. In the 3rd, Michael Mack (2-4, 2 runs), Miles McCarthy-Reynolds (2-3, double, RBI), and Declan Chill all singled to load the bases. Two batters later, Patrick O'Keefe hit a towering fly to center field which cleared the fence for a Grand Slam home run that gave WH a 6-4 lead. After Glastonbury tied the game in the top of the 4th, West Hartford went on the offensive again. Jeff LaRosa (2-4, RBI, double) and Mack hit infield singles. McCarthy-Reynolds doubled to drive in a run and then came Spencer. Spence hit a laser to left that almost knocked the batting cage over for a 3-run home run, putting the Wahoos up 10-6. In the 5th, Corey Wolski led off with a triple to right and was driven in on a double by LaRosa to finish the scoring. Mack shut down Glastonbury over the final 2 innings allowing only 2 hits and striking out 2. West Hartford's final pool play game will be against undefeated Wethersfield Monday at the UConn complex.