Junior Legion Baseball

The East Haven Junior American Legion baseball team secured its place in the State Tournament by picking up a pair of victories in Zone 2 play last week. In their recent games, the 89ers recorded a lopsided win versus North Haven, took two defeats against Orange, but then avoided the sweep by winning the final contest of their three-game series with Orange. Head Coach Anthony Maggiore’s club is in second place in the Zone 2 standings with a record of 11-6, trailing Hamden by 2.5 games for first place heading into the last week of the regular season. East Haven will open play in the State Tournament the following week.

On July 8, the 89ers posted an 8-0 victory at North Haven in the final of a three-game set that saw Post 76 take the first two matchups. In this game, John Crisci recorded the win on the mound for East Haven by tossing six scoreless innings in which he allowed just one hit and struck out nine. AJ Maggiore pitched a scoreless seventh to close out the victory for the 89ers, who scored three runs in the third inning, two runs in the fourth inning, two more in the fifth, and then one run in the sixth on their way to the shutout.

Gianni Mumford had a big day at the play for East Haven by going 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs, scored and three RBI. Mike O’Connor had two hits with an RBI, Jake Marquardt was 1-for-2 with a walk, a run, and an RBI; and Maggiore singled, walked twice, and scored a run. Robbie Garcia also drew two walks to go with a run scored, while Giro Esposito singled, walked, and scored a run in the win.

Two days later, East Haven dropped a 5-2 decision at Orange in the opener of a three-game series between the Zone 2 rivals. Matt Lisko took the loss despite turning in a solid effort on the mound. Lisko pitched 5.1 innings for the 89ers, allowing no earned runs and striking out seven. East Haven plated both of its runs in the third inning. Maggiore led off with a double and then Mumford drove him in with a single. Mumford later scored on an RBI single by Danny Flores.

In the second game of the series, the 89ers took a 4-0 loss to Orange at East Haven High School. John Ruggiero pitched well and struck out eight for East Haven, which was unable to muster any runs. The 89ers had their best chance when Mike Streeto, Marquardt, and Flores all singled in the sixth inning, although the 89ers couldn’t bring any of them around the score.

To close out the series, East Haven picked up a 2-1 home victory over Orange on July 13. Crisci tossed a complete game in which he allowed one unearned run on three hits to go with five K’s for the 89ers. East Haven struck early in the first inning as Marquardt’s two-out double drove in Streeto, who had reached base on a walk. In the third inning, Esposito reached on an error and was driven home by Mumford for a 2-0 advantage. Orange scored a run in the fourth, but was unable to score tying run off of Crisci and the 89ers.

East Haven is playing a pair of games against Hamden in the last week of the regular season. The 89ers wrap up their regular season with a home doubleheader versus New Haven that gets underway at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 21.

Senior Legion Baseball

The 89ers won two of their five games in last week’s Zone 2 action to move to 6-12 in the zone entering the final week of their season.

East Haven kicked off its recent stretch by claiming a 7-2 victory in West Haven on July 8. The 89ers then took two defeats versus Hamden, losing a 10-3 home game on July 11, followed by a 10-0 home loss two days later. The good news was the East Haven completed its week on a positive note by notching a 4-1 victory against Orange at East Haven High School on July 15.

The 89ers have games against West Haven, Hamden, and Orange in their last week of the season.