For this past summer, the Deep River-Chester-Essex (DR-C-E) 10-U All-Stars Little League Majors baseball team was forged out of the combined efforts of two local teams from those aforementioned towns, as the young sluggers gained great growth and knowledge of the game, while harvesting the values of companionship, camaraderie, and teamwork.

The trio of towns had a tandem of teams for the 10-U level with the Padres and the Rays. After solid regular season campaigns from those clubs, the two fused together to form the All-Star squad, which traveled to Wall Field in North Branford and faced off against fellow Shoreline schools. Despite not advancing beyond that pool of postseason play, the DR-C-E skippers were plenty proud of their boys of summer.

“We all had a great 2023 season,” said Rick Miles, who coached the Padres’ squad. “You always go into the season not knowing what you have to work with, as the kids move up to the next level every year. Both teams had quite a few new additions, who came up through the coach-pitch level. What helped us was having the older kids that have been with us for a year already help ease them to this new level of play. With the kids from the coach-pitch level, the older kids took them under their wing and shepherded them, which helped everyone jell. We went from having only one team last year to having enough kids for two teams this year. Seeing how they played from start to finish was great.”

Miles added that the metamorphosis of all parties involved in any given season from its inception to conclusion often brings out the best feelings of reward and satisfaction from afar.

“One of the best things about coaching is to see the change from the beginning of the season to end,” said Miles. “It’s awesome. Their hard work and dedication in practices and games is great to see. A lot of the kids interact together through camps and other sports in the tri-town area. It was nice to see the kids come together and have new and existing friendships that always last a lifetime.”

The mentors in the dugout additionally contributed greatly to the success and enjoyment of the 2023 campaign, with carefully constructed practices that taught the basics and a little more, plus allowing for instances where the boys got to learn elements of the game beyond turning a 6-4-3 double play.

“All of the coaches did a great job setting up drills and teaching kids the fundamentals, as well as more advanced techniques as the season progressed,” Miles said. “We ran multiple combined practices, which helped by having scrimmages in which we were able to pause the game for teaching moments, where we couldn’t during our regular season games due to time constraints.”

The families of all players supplemented the great team atmosphere for contests throughout the spring and summer. They not only helped nourish their children’s love for the game, but they also did the little things along the perimeter of the program.

“We also had one of the best groups of parents that we’ve ever had,” said Miles. “Their interest in the team, kids, volunteering for our snack shack, and even helping at practices was great to see.”

The DR-C-E All-Stars ensemble got a great taste of what it is like to perform in pressure-packed situations when it ventured to North Branford, despite not earning a win in that draw. The future looks bright and the sky’s the limit after the prominence and adulation surrounding this spring season as the fall approaches.

“For our 2023 All-Star team, we had a combination of coaches and players from each team,” Miles said. “We played at Wall Field in North Branford and played against some very good teams! [North Branford, Middletown, and Coginchaug]. The kids played great with timely hitting and defense, but unfortunately, we fell short of moving on. We have 2023 fall ball coming up next, and we’ll have some of the same kids as well as coaches. We are looking forward to a great season. It is all about having fun and learning about the game. The program we have here for Little League has come a long way, with the help of all the board members, as well as the volunteer coaches we have.”

Competing on the 10-U Padres’ team was Ricky Miles, Parker Zduniak, Will Rice, Luke Callahan, Carson Carangalo, James Germini, Luke Malcarne, Gus Page, Mason Plancon, Ryder Richardson, and Liam Spencer. The club was coached by Rick Miles, Perry Gardner, Ken Rice, and John Callahan.

The roster of the 10-U Rays’ squad was comprised of Andrew MacLean, Luca Silvestrini, Kallan Whaley, Steven Enright, Nathan Palumbo, Jacob Pellitier, Tripp Rheinheimer, Owen Harris, Nicholas Suarez, and Dylan Bonneau. The team’s coaches were Tom MacLean, Mike Silvestrini, Craig Whalley, and Tom Enright.