On a beautiful spring day Merillon Athletic Association opened its 56th season on March 31st. With over 200 people attending as the instructional division opened up the 2007 Spring Baseball & Softball season with the playing of our national anthem and a group of enthusiastic players and parents. Special thanks go to Bill Depietto who is the Instructional Vice President and to all volunteers who helped make this happen. Keep up the great work Merillon!!

Boys & Girls Instructional League

March 31

Dennett Law Offices "Power Puffs"

The Power Puffs took the field for the first time this year and boy, I mean girl, do they look good. Katie Belmonte brought her own special Power Puff bat to the line up. Daniella Connor is fleet of foot on the base paths. Isabella Fazzolari demonstrated very good skills in all aspects of the game. I would like to thank Joe Fazzolari for helping out today & for volunteering to be the Asst Coach. Una Reid looks like she belongs in a baseball uniform. I would like to thank all the parents for assisting today with their daughter's first experience in organized softball. With parents like this, I know the kids will be great. It's going to be a great year for the girls!

Sperry Associates "Team 6"

It's that time of the year again when our favorite words are yelled "Play Ball." Our opening day roster was Dave, Christopher, Nicholas, Van Dyke, Matthew, CJ, Luke, Brendan, Garison and Andrew. The first day of instructional baseball was great. We look forward to many more days of fun and baseball

Boys Upper Farms Division

Ridgewood Savings Bank "Giants" Vs. Dr. Margaret Zadnik, DDS, PC "Phillies"

The Giants & Phillies opened the season on a high note both played an excellent game. Kevin Driscoll, Kyle Perno, Spencer Diamond & Andrew Tse led the hitting attack, all had multiple hits. There were outstanding defensive plays as well, Anthony Bartolotta, Kenneth Tse, Samuel Livers & Jo Jo DelGiorno played stingy defense. Luke Hoffman started the game giving up 2 runs in 2 innings pitched. Kyle Perno & Jo Jo DelGiorno pitched the last 4 innings, all three pitched great! All of us missed our buddies Matt Bateman, Nicholas DiMaria & Alex Bracco. Great game boys, keep up the good work!

Virgillio Chiropratic "Angels" Vs. Baxter Sports Shop "Yankees"

The Angels and Yankees kicked off their 2007 seasons in a close game on Saturday afternoon. The Angels' hitting attack was led by Nick Campanella, Thomas Fitzgerald and Eric Rennie with a couple of hits each. Nick and Thomas also had two RBIs each. David Lapidus and Peter Restivo anchored the Angels pitching with two solid innings each. Jared Kossover contributed on both sides with some timely hitting and great defense. Jared Schwartz pitched a key inning for the Angels closing the door with a big strikeout. Peter's triple in the fourth and his 6 K's in two innings on the mound earned him the game ball. The Angels would like to thank the Yankees especially Casey, Chris and Eric for helping out a shorthanded Angels' squad. Way to go boys!

Skanska USA Building "Brewers" Vs. The Fundamentals of Ball "White Sox"

The Brewers opened their season with a bang & victory over a tough White Sox team. Outstanding pitching in the first 2 innings by 8 year old Yanni Rigos is just what the Brewers needed to help them jump out to an early lead. The rest of the pitching rotation was outstanding with solid performances by Andrew Kraus, Andrew Krotinsky & Justin Marder. Justin Marder led the offensive onslaught with a 3-run home run & a RBI double in the 4th. Francesco Laboito had an RBI double, Alexander Lutsky had an RBI single in the 4th inning. Anthony Kimkowski, Adam Krieger & Erik Jaklitsch also began the season hitting the ball well. Brendan Nolty, along with Joseph Dunn showed off their skills against the White Sox on both sides of the plate. The Brewers look like one of the top contenders.

The Baxter Sport Shop "Yankees" Vs. The Virgilio Chiropractic "Angels"

The Yankees started opening day with a bang with two, 2 run homeruns from R.J Donohue and Matthew Vowinkle. Great pitching from John Killcullen and our closer, Frankie Saladino. Big RBI's from Antonio Prunella and Mohammed Kidwai. Great fielding by Eric Mollin, Chris Barulic, and Francesco Maropakis. The Yankees want to thank Chris Killcullen and Casey Donohue for coming up from the lower farms.

The Dr. Margaret Zadnik, DDS PC "Phillies" Vs. Ridgewood Savings Bank "Giants"

The Phillies came out slugging quickly led by Zeeshan Anwar (2 Hits), James Cotumaccio (2 Hits), Thomas Agate (Double) & David Kimmel, who hit the Phillies first Home Run of the season. The Phillies were also helped out by some great pitching by Andrew Filocoma, who received the game ball for his pitching debut. Mid relief was handled by Jack Belmonte & Nicholas Winkhart pitched a scoreless 6th. The defense was anchored by the play of Brendan Montenegro, Joshua Putter & Steven Cascio. The coaching staff would like to thank Mr. Filocoma & Mr. Agate for their help with the pitching staff. Let's Go Phillies.

Dennett Law Offices "Cardinals" Vs. Mike's NHP Convenience Store "Rockies"

The Cardinals opened up their season with a come from behind victory (11-10) over the tough Rockies. Ben Portnoy pitched the 2 solid innings in holding off the Rockies which steadied the game and helped mount the comeback. Brendan Quinn, Anthony Verde Jacob Portnoy, Jacob Seidenberg all contributed key at bats. Tommy Murphy & Mike Carbone pitched 2 solid innings each. Jonathan Farkas, Max Pau, Mike Hershenhorn rounded out the Cardinals attack in their comeback.

New Hyde Park Funeral Home "Diamondbacks" Vs. Bracato "Rangers"

This game had plenty of fireworks to start off the season. Gregory Kyro led the game off with a single, stole 2nd & 3rd bases scoring on a hit by Matty Lorandini. Providing multiple hits & RBI's were Brett Baker, Zack Schreiber & Nicolas Favale. Kyle Berlinsky had a multiple hit game driving in 4 runs. Pranshu Babber made a nice defensive play. Big triples by Michael Fiala & Nicolas Favale. Andrew Kadish & Andrew Greiche reached base & scored runs. Outstanding pitching was turned in by Brett Baker & Matty Lorandini. Solid catching by Gregory Kyro & Zack Schreiber doesn't allow for much stealing by our opponents. Great job boys!

Dennett Law Offices "Cardinals" Vs. Mike's NHP Convenience Store "Rockies"

The Rockies battled the Cardinals on a beautiful opening day. The Rockies showed a hard hitting aggressive offense. James Colgan led the way with a 2 run home run. Michael Husch was clutch with 2 hits & 3 RBI's. Louis Plomitallo & Jacob Leeds both chipped in with a hit & RBI. Additionally aggressiveness was shown on the base paths, the Rockies stole a total of 9 bases, Gregory Donovan swiped 3 & Anthony Lanzilotta stole 2. The pitching & defense looked good as well. Jack Mangin & Vincent Rossello both pitched a strong inning an 2/3 striking out 2 a piece. Mark Niewierowski played a nifty 2nd base that highlighted a good defense. Fun was had by all!

Skanska USA Building "Brewers" Vs. The Fundamentals of Ball "White Sox"

The White Sox and Brewers played under bright sunny skies on opening day. Everyone played with enthusiasm. Pitchers Shin, Tyler, Matthew & Dylan had an outstanding first game. Offensive and defensive efforts were also provided by Max, Sean, Rasul, Joshua, Michael (Mike), and Ishan.

Boys Minors Division

April 1

Nuzzi Fuel "Red Sox" Vs. D's Upscale Barbershop "Blue Jays"

The Red Sox got off to a tough start to the Blue Jays. But the Red Sox did happen receive an outstanding individual performance on offense from Jake Grusd, who's a triple driving in 2 runs. Other standouts at the plate included Ethan Volk, triple, then scored on a single by Mitchell Schwartz. Ryan Tucker & Michael Barry hit the ball hard but right at Blue Jays infielders. The Red Sox also received some excellent pitching from Tom Kelly & catcher Joe DiMonte played extremely well defensively. The Red Sox are also expecting big things this year from Joe Tricarico, Ethan Schonhaut & Matt Esposito, all of whom made their Minors Division debuts.

Hand Rolled Bagels "Pirates" Vs. State Bank of Long Island "Devil Rays"

The Pirates beat the Devil Rays 10-7 in an exciting game. The Pirates went on top 3-0 & 5-1, but the Devil Rays came back with 6 in the bottom of the 5th to go ahead 7-5. Michael Sitzer & Frankie Suppa had single RBIs, while Frankie D'Angelo knocked in 2 runs & Matthew Kipnis cleared the bases with a double. Ross Crames, Daniel Hodes & Jarett Gross all scored runs. Alex Putter gave us 3 aggressive at bats. The Pirates came up with some clutch hitting & 5 runs in the top of the 6th to go ahead 10-7. Mark Young led off the 6th with a base hit, but the Devil Rays could not capitalize.

Hand Rolled Bagels "Pirates" (10) vs. State Bank of Long Island "Devil Rays" (7)

The Pirates took an early lead with 3 runs in the 1st with a key hit from Jon Kestenbaum. After 3, the Pirates led 3-1 behind the strong pitching of Brett Alper. In the 4th, the Pirates scored 2 more runs on a clutch hit from Andrew Korpacz. In the 5th, the Devils Rays battled back with 6 runs to take a 7-5 lead. Then, in the top of the 6th, the Pirates regained momentum with 5 runs, highlighted by a base clearing double by Griffin Adwar. In the bottom of the 6th, the Pirates regained their composure on the field to back the excellent pitching effort of Andrew Schneider. Additional contributors to the Pirates were great base running of Brandon Martinez, the awesome catching by Colton Schnall & the strong fielding of Derek Menker, Tim McCormack & Ali Kidwai. It was a great team victory for the Pirates showing a tremendous amount of heart by not giving up.

Nuzzi Fuel "Red Sox" Vs. D's Upscale Barbershop "Blue Jays"

The Blue Jays opened the season with an impressive win over a tough Red Sox team. Every player on the Blue Jays had a least one hit and were led by Brandon Silva and Liam Quinn who each homered. Liam Slattery, Gary Huang and Dan Cohen each had 3 hits. Jeffrey Gordon played a solid 2nd base. Jack Kimmel handled the leadoff spot getting on base and scoring 3 runs. Andrew Waibel, Jayson Molina and Akaash Ranu each had a hit and a run scored while Alex Lopez made a nice play at first and also scored 2 runs.