Westwood Falls to Wellesley in SYBL Quarterfinals

Westwood Little League was eliminated from the Suburban Youth Baseball League Super-12 Tournament with a 4-1 loss to Wellesley Tuesday night at Kelley Field in Norwood.

After finishing 2-1 in pool play and scoring 11 runs in the three games, Westwood's bats were silenced by Wellesley's flame-throwing right-handed pitcher, Peter Stabnick.

"We just didn't hit as well as we've been hitting lately," said Westwood head coach David Horsfall. "That pitcher just came to pitch tonight. He threw hard, mixed his speeds well, and had a great curveball, and we just had a little trouble handling that tonight."

Wellesley jumped out to a first inning 2-0 lead off starter Peter Horsfall, but the solid relief of Matt Talcott kept Westwood in the game throughout. Talcott pitched the final five innings, allowing just two runs on two hits while striking out six.

"I was surprised to get called in so early," said Talcott. "My arm felt good though, and I knew I was coming in soon anyways. I saw that Peter was struggling a bit so I was fine with it."

Catcher Nick Conway provided the lone run for Westwood, driving in Eli Piscitelli on a third inning single. Westwood managed only five hits on the evening, all of which were singles.

"The bats were kind of up and down but our pitching and defense throughout the suburbans and districts were strong all the way," said Horsfall.

Despite the loss, Matt Talcott expressed nothing but positives about his team.

"I'm really proud of everyone. We made it really far here as well as Williamsport," said Talcott, "and I think we could've even gone farther."

Westwood slugger Brendan Gotti was out of the lineup for the second straight game with a sprained ankle and stiff back. He was scheduled to play Thursday had Westwood advanced, but as of today, he wasn't able to bend or swing without slight pain.

"His last little league game for Westwood was a one-hitter in the playoffs, so I guess we'll take that." Horsfall added.