After defeating New Haven its last two games of the regular season, the Branford U-19 baseball team opened up the playoffs by facing that same New Haven squad in the play-in round of the Connecticut Elite Baseball Association’s (CEBA) Division II Tournament. Branford was the No. 7 seed in the bracket after going 6-12 during regular-season action. However, despite the sub-.500 record, Head Coach Kyle Heins told his athletes that Branford had a chance to beat anyone once the postseason started.

“The message was that we could beat anybody,” said Heins. “The winner of the Division II was Orange. We lost to them in nine innings and then we beat them 5 to 2 [in the regular season]. We weren’t afraid to play anybody.”

Branford hosted No. 10 seed New Haven for its opening game in the CEBA’s Division II tourney on July 31. Coach Heins’s squad fell behind 2-0 in the first inning, but stormed back to get a 9-3 victory and advance to the quarterfinal round, where Branford was eliminated with a 3-0 loss against 2nd-seeded Madison. The team finished its season with an overall record of 7-13.

Teddy Zabawa pitched a complete game for Branford in its win over New Haven, allowing just three hits to go with 13 strikeouts. Enrique Diaz went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, Bennett Gentile was 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBI, and Eddie Zanor went 2-for-3 with a run to help Branford prevail.

“We went into the bottom of the first chasing two runs. I told the kids, ‘We have been here before. No big deal,” Coach Heins said. “We just needed to put together a couple good innings, and that’s what we did. Our offense was really clicking. We were able to be aggressive on the basepaths. We executed bunts. We did everything we needed to win. We played pretty perfect baseball after the top of the first inning.”

Heins said that Zabawa was “a gamer” on the mound throughout the CEBA season and wanted to take the ball as much as possible. Zabawa also played second base when he wasn’t pitching and didn’t make a single error at the position this summer.

Gentile took the hill for Branford when it faced Madison for a road game in the Division II quarterfinals on Aug. 1. Gentile allowed three runs in the bottom of the first inning, but settled down after that to pitch scoreless ball the rest of the way. Unfortunately for Branford, Madison was able to hang on to its 3-0 advantage and win the game to move to the semifinal round, where it lost to eventual champion Hamden in extra innings.

Branford had a great chance to score in the top of the first inning against Madison. With runners at second and third and one out, Gentile hit a line drive that was caught by Madison’s third baseman on a dive while tagging the bag to double up Branford’s runner and end the threat.

“We had a lot of opportunities. We ran into a hot team, and we didn’t capitalize. But the kids battled. It did not feel like a 3-0 game,” said Heins. “Madison beat us. We didn’t beat ourselves. They hit the ball really hard in the first inning, but other than that, Bennett shut them down.”

Even in defeat, Coach Heins was impressed with how Branford performed in its matchup against a Madison team that went 14-4 during the regular season. Despite losing the game, Heins said that his squad showed immense progress throughout the 2020 campaign.

“It is immeasurable. When we came out game one against East Haven, I knew we had a lot of work to do,” Heins said. “We put in that work every practice and every game. We got better every day. We started 1-6 and finished 7-13. You can tell right there the difference in our team. The kids played well. They wanted to be there. We were disappointed the season came to an end, but it was fun.”

Heins gave plenty of credit to his fellow coaches in the Branford baseball family for helping the club get better on a daily basis throughout the summer. Heins said that every athlete on the team always showed up at the field ready to learn from anyone who would teach them. Heins was assisted by Stephen Malafronte, the head coach of the Branford High School baseball team; Bryan Maturo, who is an assistant coach for the Hornets; along with Mike Virginelli and Heins’s cousin Mike Heins. Chet Santoro is Branford’s general manager.

“It helped the kids. The kids really absorbed everything we taught them. That was what made it so fun,” Coach Heins said. “The kids enjoyed being around us. That’s what is most important.”

The athletes on the Branford U-19 baseball team are Bodner, Diaz, Gentile, Zabawa, and Zanor, along with Dominic Bonnano, Adam Chasse, Daniel Farricielli, Michael Farricielli, Max Liebel, David Loomis, Ryan Nuzzo, John Onofrio, Franklin Polanco, Sam Russo, TJ Shields, Nicholas Soliwoda, Nick Tranquilli, Zachary Vandale, and Mike Virginelli.