The Whitecaps, Port's 11-and-under independent Little League team, put a bow on an up-and-down tournament season with a strong final week of play. In a convincing victory over a playoff-bound St. Paul's team on Sunday, the Whitecaps leapfrogged into post season contention in the Glen Cove Mayor's Trophy Tournament, giving the locals three consecutive wins in just six days. A victory in their final game against Roslyn, to be played Wednesday after this newspaper goes to press, would put the Caps in contention for the final playoff spot in the 11-team field.

Also last week, the team completed scheduled games in the competitive East Meadow Tournament with an impressive showing in a Saturday morning double-header, against top division teams from Seaford and Rockville Centre. In the Seaford game, Carmi "Stick" Schickler and Jake "Snake" Paisner combined to take a no-hitter into the sixth inning, with a 3-0 lead, before Seaford scratched across four runs in the final frame to steal the game. In the "night-cap," played under the hot noon sun, the undefeated Rockville Centre nine managed just four unearned runs off Matt "Laser" Lazar through the first five innings, but that was enough to put a fork in the Caps for the afternoon.

The Fightin' Whitecaps came back strong the following day, however, with an all-out attack on St. Paul's in the Glen Cove tournament, led by the finesse and control of Johnny "Smoke" Marx on the mound. Gus "Boomer" Bechtold, Andy "Moonshot" Mullen, Danny "Rock" Marmor, Marx and Schicker, contributed key hits, while Jon "Roadrunner" Seltzer ran the bases like a demon. Scott "Kong" Irving got the team going in t he first inning with a towering home run to right center that left St. Paul's scrambling on defense the rest of the way. Behind the plate, Paisner and Brett "Prime Time" Friedman shared catching duties in the oppressive heat and kept opposing runners honest on the basepaths, while Lazar came on in the sixth to put out a late St. Paul's rally and seal the victory.

Earlier in the week, against their hometown rivals from Port Washington PAL, the Whitecaps tallied a solid win, backed by the strong hitting and all-around play of Bobby "Sweetness" Candela, Tom "Big Cat" Davis, Michael "Stone Cold" Winter and Marx Irving. Billy "Clutch" Brown supplied most of the firepower, driving in a season-high five runs in the game.

The team finishes its local season next week, when their ranks will be filled with returning team member "Air" Jordan Thaler, with a series of scrimmages under Cooperstown rules against teams from Manhasset, Roslyn, Albertson-Herricks and Syosset. The East Meadow and Glen Cove tournaments are played under Little league rules, with 60-foot basepaths and no leading, but the more challenging Cooperstown games will be paved with 70-foot basepaths and leading.

The Cooperstown Dreams Park tournament is fast becoming the most popular tournament in youth sports, attracting a 48-team field from around the country in each of 14-weekly sessions. The Whitecaps will stay as a team in the tournament barracks and play a minimum of eight games the week of Aug. 14, while also competing for individual honors in the home run derby, golden arm, competition and base-running contest. Parents and families will stay in nearby hotels and campgrounds and together enjoy a week of games in the cradle of baseball history.