Penns Grove survives

Salem County squad puts together late-game rally to knock off Millville American, earn a spot in Thursday’s District 3 Little League Tournament semifinals

DISTRICT 3 FINALS
Wednesday’s Games
At Millville
South Vineland 4, East Vineland 1
Penns Grove 6, Millville American 3
Thursday’s Game
At North Vineland
East Vineland vs. Penns Grove, 7 p.m.
Saturday’s Championship Game
At South Vineland
South Vineland vs. Thursday’s winner, 7 p.m.
Sunday’s Game
At South Vineland
If necessary, 7 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

MILLVILLE – For four innings Wednesday night it looked like Penns Grove’s historic run in the District 3 Little League Tournament was going to end on a foreign field an hour from home. But then they came alive to stay alive.

After being handcuffed for four innings by Millville American starter Elijah Roman, Penns Grove used a combination of timely hitting and aggressive base running to erupt for five runs in the fifth inning against reliever Jackson Haley to pull off a 6-3 win to play another day.

Penns Grove, the No. 1 seed from the American pool, will play East Vineland, the No. 1 seed from the National pool, in another elimination game Thursday 7 p.m. at the North Vineland LL complex. That winner will play South Vineland for the district title Saturday (and Sunday, if necessary).

“We were 100 percent coming into this game to win,” Penns Grove manager Steve Raymond said. “They came with energy today, ready to win. The boys were ready to win 100 percent.”

But just like in their division-clinching pool-play win over the Americans here last Friday, it took them a while to get going.

The Salem County survivors couldn’t get anything going against Roman. They managed just one hit, four baserunners and struck out eight times before he was lifted after 68 pitches with the aim of having him available if the Americans made it to a Sunday championship showdown.

The strategy backfired. Roman hit Achillius Vong with his final pitch to start the fifth. The harder-throwing Haley walked S.J. Poindexter and then Tanner Raymond singled home Vong. Poindexter scored on a passed ball and Nolan O’Brien doubled home Raymond to tie the game.

“I’ve just been working on hitting the ball,” O’Brien said. “I know I was 0-for-3 Monday against South Vineland, but I got that out of my head, reset my mind at the plate and just went up there knowing I would hit the ball.”

O’Brien then stole third and Anthony Handte walked to put runners at the corner. Handte moved into scoring position with a stolen base and then things really got interesting.

O’Brien started doing his “Achillius Shuffle” down the third-base line, mimicking his teammate’s long, dancing leads on the basepaths just daring the Americans to make a throw. Millville catcher Nate Shelton obliged and when his throw went over Roman and down the left field line both O’Brien and Handte scored to give their team the lead.

They added another run in the sixth on Vong’s sharp RBI double down the left-field line.

“I knew they were going to throw the ball down to third base at some time and they were going to make a mistake some time, just like coach (Jeff) Robertson says,” O’Brien said. “Whatever team makes the most mistakes is the team that will go home, but today we didn’t make too many mistakes.

“We really try to be aggressive on the basepaths. Coach Robertson at third tells us to be aggressive every time we get on the bases and that’s what we were focusing on today.”

Supporting that mindset of coming in to win, Penns Grove allowed Vong to pitch a complete game, knowing it would burn him for the rest of the district finals. After a first inning in which nothing much went right, Vong settled in and gave up only one more hit, three base runners and struck out 12 over the final five innings.

Millville’s first three batters reached base safely against the Penns Grove ace and all three scored.

Haley drew a leadoff walk, Noah Rodriguez singled past third and Shelton reached on an error to load the bases. Haley scored when Penns Grove unsuccessful went to first on C.J. Tipton’s grounder to the right side of the infield and Rodriguez raced in right behind him from second. Shelton scored on Lucas Campachano’s infield single to make it 3-0.

“That first inning did take the wind out of our sails a little bit, but they just kept hacking and hacking and hacking,” Raymond said. “When we were down I told them we can’t give up. And when we were (in the outfield huddle) talking to them I told them that’s why you can’t give up until strike three is called on the last out or a ball’s out in the field. You just can’t.”

After that, Vong did his thing on the mound and in the late innings the Penns Grove hitters followed suit.

“I know why they scored three runs; they were teeing off on my fastball,” Vong said. “I realized that and in the second inning I started mixing in my curveball and slider. It started working out for me and shut (them) down for the last five innings.”

NOTES: Penns Grove entered the district tournament having not won a game since 2011 and hadn’t won a game in the finals since well before that. It is now 4-2 this year and three wins away from its first district title since 1965 (when it was in District 15) … The team sang “Happy Birthday” to O’Brien after the game and will likely do the same for Aiden Robertson Thursday. O’Brien’s birthday actually was Tuesday, but the game was postponed because of inclement weather … Penns Grove is expected to use multiple pitchers Thursday in hopes of holding Jimmy LaPalomento “unless we need him” to have him available for Saturday … East Vineland lost to South Vineland 4-1 in the continuation of their suspended winner’s bracket game. South broke a 1-1 tie with three runs in the fifth and held on.

PENNS GROVE 6, MILLVILLE AMERICAN 3

Penns Grove	000 051-	6	4	2
Millville American	300 000-	3	3	4

WP: Achillius Vong. LP: Jackson Haley. 2B: Achillius Vong (PG), Nolan O’Brien (PG).

Penns Grove’s Nolan O’Brien is poised at third ready to run if Millville makes a play for him during their District 3 Little League Tournament game. Millville did make a play, threw wildly and it resulted in Penns Grove scoring its two go-ahead runs in a five-run inning.

District 3 LL rain out

Tuesday night’s second round of the District 3 Little League finals in Millville was postponed due to rain. Both scheduled games will be played Wednesday at the Millville LL complex.

Action will resume at 5:45 p.m. with the continuation of the East Vineland-South Vineland winner’s bracket game that was suspended with two outs in the top of the first and South Vineland leading 1-0. Elijauh Perez gave South Vineland the lead with a two-out homer on an 0-2 pitch.

The elimination game between Penns Grove and Millville will follow.

The rescheduling moves the loser’s bracket final to 7 p.m. Thursday at North Vineland and a potential “if” game for the championship to 7 p.m. Sunday at South Vineland.

Held in check

Penns Grove comes alive late, but it’s not enough to overtake South Vineland in District 3 Final Four opener

DISTRICT 3 FINALS
(Double-loss elimination)
Monday at Elmer
South Vineland 7, Penns Grove 3
East Vineland 9, Millville American 4
Tuesday at Millville
G3: South Vineland vs. East Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
G4: Penns Grove vs. Millville American, 8 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

ELMER – The Penns Grove All-Stars were one of the highest scoring teams in District 3 pool play, but it took them a little while to get going in their bracket opener Monday night.

The Salem County survivors scored three runs in the fifth inning, but it wasn’t enough to climb out of an early hole and they fell to South Vineland 7-3 in the first round of the District Final Four at Elmer LL.

“It just took us a little bit to get the bats going and it just wasn’t enough,” Penns Grove manager Steve Raymond said. “They got down on themselves early. A lot of them have never been in a position to where they’re playing for a championship. I think there was a lot of undue pressure on them.”

They’ll look to stay alive in the double-loss format against Millville American Tuesday at 8 p.m. on their opponent’s home field. Penns Grove won the pool play game between the teams there (7-3) and are expected to send Achillius Vong to the mound against them again.

If they had been a little sharper early they might have made it to the winner’s bracket. Now they’ll have to win four games and beat one of Tuesday night’s winners twice to claim the district title.

Penns Grove hit .329 and scored 32 runs in four American Division pool games, but South Vineland starter Justin Chin held them to just one hit and struck out seven over the first three innings. But they came to life against reliever Mylus Moore in the fifth, scoring three runs, to keep their hopes alive, but by then South Vineland had opened a 7-0 lead.

Bryce Myers and Lucas Vong had RBI singles for Penns Grove in the winning and Lucas Ware scored on error as they started swinging the bats and being aggressive of the bases.

“They started waking up,” Raymond said. “As soon as we started putting pressure on them they started breaking. We needed that chain reaction earlier. That’s what we needed. One person steps up big and we usually build off that and keep going.”

It just wasn’t enough. South Vineland scored a run in the first and two in the second off Penns Grove starter Jimmy LaPalomento, then broke it open with four in the fourth.

EAST VINELAND 9, MILLVILLE AMERICAN 4: The top seed out of the National pool parlayed six walks and three hits into a six-run fifth inning that broke a 3-3 tie. Four of the walks came with bases loaded and Ricky Bones hit a two-run double for the big hit of the inning.

It was a come-from-behind win as Millville scored three runs in the top of the first. The Americans scored the final run of the game as well on Noah Rodriguez’ solo homer in the sixth.

SOUTH VINELAND 7, PENNS GROVE 3

Penns Grove	000 030-	3	6	1
South Vineland	120 40x-	7	9	2

WP: Justin Chin. LP: Jimmy LaPalomento. 2B: Achillius Vong (PG), Derek Cuba (SV), Mylus Moore (SV). RBI: Bryce Myers (PG), Lucas Vong (PG), Mylus Moore (SV), Derek Cuba (SV) 2, Matthew Ramos (SV), Luca Lopez (SV), Matthew Saunders (SV) 2.

EAST VINELAND 9, MILLVILLE AMERICAN 4

Millville American	300 001-	4	6	0
East Vineland	102 06x-	9	6	1

WP: Jonah Schaffer. LP: Elijah Roman. HR: Noah Rodriguez (MA)

District 3 LL finalists

Here are the pool play batting and pitching statistics for the four teams in the N.J. District 3 Little League Tournament finals bracket

DISTRICT 3 TOURNAMENT
Monday at Elmer LL
N2 South Vineland (2-1) vs. A1 Penns Grove (3-1), 5:45 p.m.
A2 Millville American (3-1) vs. N1 East Vineland (2-1), 8 p.m.
Tuesday at Millville American LL
Monday’s winners, 5:45 p.m.
Monday’s losers, 8 p.m.

Batting

PLAYER, TEAM	AB	R	H	BI	BB	BA
Matthew Ramos, SV	7	1	6	3	2	.857
Nolan O’Brien, PG	7	2	5	5	1	.714
Noah Rodriguez, MA	10	8	7	7	1	.700
Achillius Vong, PG	6	6	4	4	3	.667
Derek Cuba, SV	7	4	4	0	2	.571
Nate Shelton, MA	9	6	5	5	2	.556
Jackson Haley, MA	10	3	5	2	1	.500
Ricky Bones, EV	8	1	4	5	0	.500
Tanner Raymond, PG	8	2	4	2	3	.500
Elijah Roman, MA	8	2	4	2	1	.500
Lucas Vong, PG	8	3	4	1	0	.500
SJ Poindexter, PG	9	3	4	2	1	.444
Elijauh Perez, SV	7	5	3	6	1	.429
Aiden Robertson, PG	7	6	3	2	3	.429
Lucas Campachano, MA	10	5	4	1	2	.400
Jonah Schaffer, EV	5	1	2	1	1	.400
Max Alvarez, EV	6	2	2	0	1	.333
Braylon Brooks, SV	6	1	2	0	1	.333
Ray Mass, SV	3	0	1	1	2	.333
Matthew Saunders, SV	3	2	1	0	2	.333
Brycen Zapar, MA	7	4	2	2	1	.286
Delcan Fry, MA	8	2	2	2	0	.250
Mike Lee, SV	8	1	2	2	0	.250
Cam Potts, MA	9	4	2	2	2	.222
Griffin Moore, MA	9	1	2	3	2	.222
Luca Lopez, SV	5	1	1	0	0	.200
C.J. Tipton, MA	5	1	1	0	2	.200
Justin Chin, SV	6	1	1	0	3	.167
Mason Harris, EV	6	1	1	0	1	.167
Jimmy LaPalomento, PG	6	1	1	2	5	.167
Mylus Moore, SV	6	4	1	0	3	.167
Jonathan Gonzalez, SV	7	1	1	0	0	.143
Sabastian Rodriguez, EV	7	2	1	1	1	.143
Lucas Ware, PG	7	3	1	1	0	.143
Jace Oliveri, EV	8	2	1	1	0	.125
Bryce Myers, PG	10	1	1	1	0	.100
Connor Shea, MA	8	1	0	0	1	.000
Anthony Handte, PG	6	2	0	0	2	.000
Bryce Magee, EV	6	2	0	1	4	.000
Timmy Moore, MA	6	3	0	1	3	.000
Clark Tietjen, EV	5	1	0	1	0	.000
Josh Amplas, PG	4	0	0	0	3	.000
Jace Echevarria, EV	4	0	0	1	1	.000
Ethan Rodriguez, SV	4	2	0	0	2	.000
Brody Sexton, EV	3	2	0	0	2	.000
Hunter Widen, PG	4	2	0	0	3	.000
Caleb Zimmerman, EV	4	0	0	0	1	.000

HR: Noah Rodriguez (MA) 2, Achillius Vong (PG), Elijauh Perez (SV), Ricky Bones (EV).

Pitching

PLAYER, TEAM	G	PIT	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA
Nate Shelton, MA	3	61	4.2	0	0	0	1	8	0.00
Josh Amplas, PG	1	2	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
Jace Oliveri, EV	1	86	6.0	5	1	1	1	9	1.00
Ricky Bones, EV	1	88	5.2	5	1	1	0	9	1.06
Elijah Roman, MA	3	134	7.1	4	4	2	4	18	1.64
Achillius Vong, PG	2	134	9.2	4	3	3	2	18	1.86
Jimmy LaPalomento, PG	2	109	6.1	1	2	2	4	15	1.90
Lucas Ware, PG	1	53	2.0	2	1	1	3	3	3.00
Brycen Zapar, MA	3	75	3.2	3	4	2	3	3	3.27
Justin Chin, SV	3	214	12.0	10	10	10	9	17	5.00
Jackson Haley, MA	1	36	2.1	4	2	2	0	2	5.15
C.J. Tipton, MA	3	83	3.0	3	3	3	6	5	6.00
Mylus Moore, SV	2	57	3.0	1	3	3	4	5	6.00
Sebastian Rodriguez, EV	1	81	2.2	5	6	4	2	9	8.99
Tanner Raymond, PG	1	55	2.2	2	4	4	4	1	10.90
Derek Cuba, SV	1	18	1.0	3	3	3	1	0	18.00
Aiden Robertson, PG	1	45	1.0	5	6	6	3	3	36.00
Clark Tietjen, EV	1	14	0.1	3	3	3	1	0	54.55
Bryce Magee, EV	1	31	0.1	1	5	5	4	0	90.90

NOTE: ERA based on 6 inning games; stats compiled from team Gamechanger app.

Pennsville denied

Millville American edges Pennsville in winner-take-all pool game to claim second division spot in District 3 bracket stage

DISTRICT 3 TOURNAMENT
Saturday’s Games
Millville American 5, Pennsville 2
North Vineland 5, Buena 3

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – As Pennsville manager Jay Weatherbee watched the final out of the game disappear into the glove of the right fielder from the third base coach’s box, his head slumped and his body bent at the waist. He was hoping his Little League All-Stars could add to the legacy set by their predecessors last year, but they just couldn’t pull it off.

The Little Eagles had a shot to advance to the District 3 Tournament finals and were in it to the end, but fell to Millville American in a winner-take-all game for the second seed out of the American Division 5-2. Millville now plays National No. 1 East Vineland in Monday’s 8 p.m. opening round bracket game at Elmer Little League.

When Penns Grove rallied from a two-run deficit to beat Millville Friday and win the American Division pool, it set up Saturday’s last-day showdown between Millville and Pennsville for the final playoff spot. The winner also would be 3-1 in pool play, but Penns Grove held the head-to-head tiebreaker over whichever team won to earn the division’s No. 1 seed.

“They beat us,” Weatherbee said. “Again, small mistakes we make early on in the game come back to bite us, just like every game.

“This time we just couldn’t overcome it.”

Millville took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, but Pennsville tied it in the bottom of the inning. Chase Dolden led off with a double, moved to second on Pat Galloway’s ground out to short and scored on Brayden Weatherbee’s ground out to third. Starting pitcher Trey Sam followed with a solo homer to tie the game.

“That felt great,” Sam said. “I thought we had a chance, but our defense …”

After the home run Pennsville managed only four hits (all singles) and five baserunners the rest of the game against three Millville pitchers. Hard-throwing Nate Shelton, who finished the Penns Grove game Friday, pitched the final three shutout innings, giving up two infield hits, walking none and striking out four.

“The kids bounced right back after last night’s (loss),” Millville manager Dan Shelton said. “I was definitely a little worried about it, but they came with the heads ready to go and they got the job done.”

Dolden followed Sam to the mound for Pennsville in the third “really hyped” and threw only three pitches to get his first three outs. He kept Millville off the board in the fourth and fifth innings before the visitors pushed a final run across in the sixth.

“Just come in and do what I normally do,” Dolden said of his mindset. “I really wanted to win because I wanted my revenge on Penns Grove.”

Millville manufactured its other three runs to get and extend the lead. C.J. Tipton raced home on a wild pitch in the second inning to break the tie, Lucas Campachano scored on Noah Rodriguez’ sacrifice fly in the third and Nate Shelton stole home in the sixth.

Sam said the Americans were “probably the most aggressive team” he’s faced. They had seven hits in the game and took nine extra bases.

“I play baserunning, baserunning is my thing,” Millville manager Shelton said. “I manufacture runs by baserunning. If a man gets on base, my job is to score them any way possible. That’s just my job. I teach it hard.”

MILLVILLE AMERICAN 5, PENNSVILLE 2

Millville American	211 001-	5	7	1
Pennsville	200 000-	2	6	3

WP: Jackson Haley, LP: Trey Sam. S: Nate Shelton. 2B: Lucas Campachano (M), Jackson Haley (M), Chase Dolden (P). HR: Trey Sam (P). RBI: Noah Rodriguez (M), Nate Shelton (M), Brayden Weatherbee (P), Trey Sam (P).

District 3 standings

AMERICAN		NATIONAL
Penns Grove	3-1	East Vineland	2-1
Millville	3-1	South Vineland	2-1
Pennsville	2-2	Elmer	1-2
North Vineland	1-3	West Cumberland	1-2
Buena	1-3

DISTRICT 3 FINALS
(Double-loss elimination)
Monday at Elmer
G1: Penns Grove vs. South Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
G2: East Vineland vs. Millville American, 8 p.m.
Tuesday at Millville
G3: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2, 5:45 p.m.
G4: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2, 8 p.m.
Wednesday at North Vineland
G5: Loser G3 vs. Winner G4, 7 p.m.
Thursday at South Vineland
G6: Winner G3 vs. Winner G5, 7 p.m.
Friday at South Vineland
G7: If necessary, 7 p.m.

SECTION IV TOURNAMENT
At West Deptford LL
(Double-loss elimination)
(Opening games)
July 11
District 3 vs. District 16, 6 p.m.
District 14 vs. District 15, 8 p.m.
July 12
District 3-District 16 winner vs. District 13, 5 p.m.

Penns Grove wins pool

Program that hadn’t won a district tournament game or gone to district finals in 14 years completed 3-1 run in pool play to claim top seed from American Division

DISTRICT 3 LL TOURNAMENT
Friday’s Games
Penns Grove 7, Millville American 3
South Vineland 11, Elmer 1

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

MILLVILLE – A Penns Grove Little League program that hadn’t won a district tournament game or gone to the district finals since 2011 – two years before any of their current players were even born – completed a 3-1 run in pool play Friday night to claim the No. 1 seed from the American Division into next week’s District 3 finals.

Penns Grove rallied from a two-run fourth-inning deficit to beat Millville American 7-3 to win their division and set up a winner-take-all showdown between Millville and host Pennsville Saturday for the pool’s second spot. The winner also would be 3-1 in the pool, but Penns Grove owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over both.

Penns Grove will play National No. 2 South Vineland in Monday’s opening round of bracket play at the Elmer LL complex. The Millville-Pennsville winner gets National No. 1 East Vineland. It’s the first time in 18 years they won more than one game in pool play.

“I just told them it’s the first time in 14 years (they’d won in the tournament), 29 straight losses, and now we’re going into the bracket,” Penns Grove manager Steve Raymond said. “I told them they’ve got to realize what they got here. It’s a good team and you saw tonight it’s not just one person. Everybody comes in clutch.”

Penns Grove, which had to win Friday to advance after laying an egg in its last game at Buena, took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Aiden Robertson get it started with a leadoff triple into the right field corner and scoring on Achillius Vong’s RBI ground out.

Vong made his first start since no-hitting Pennsville last Saturday and held Millville scoreless for three innings with the help of five strikeouts and a couple nice defensive plays by his teammates. But Millville reached him for three in the fourth to take the lead and get him off the mound.

Vong came out after 61 pitches so Penns Grove could have him available Monday.

“We had a gameplan that we came in with (and) we ended up sticking with it,” Raymond said. “Towards the middle when they were starting to get to Achillius, I was kind of bouncing around like should we leave him in and let him finish it and we lose him for the bracket, or do we save him and we get him for the second game.

“We decided to save him. It was a group thing. When I went to the mound I told him we’re thinking of bringing Jimmy (LaPalomento) in so we can have you for the bracket. He was he was good for it. Everybody’s a team player … As long as they come out here fired up with energy they’re going to win. They find a way to win. Whatever we need it happens.”

**Manager Steve Raymond tells his Penns Grove LL All-Stars the historical significance of their win over Millville Friday night.**

LaPalomento kept Millville off the board for the rest of the game. He threw 2 1/3 innings of no-hit relief and struck out four of the eight hitters he faced.

“I was a little scared at first, but I had the bottom of the lineup so I just tried to gun them all down,” LaPalomento said.

Penns Grove gave their reliever the lead in the bottom of the fourth when they went through three Millville pitchers to score three runs. The runs came on consecutive bases-loaded walks to Tanner Raymond, LaPalomento and Nolan O’Brien (for the lead). They had only two hits in the game but took advantage of nine walks and a hit batsman.

Their other hit, S.J. Poindexter’s two-run bases-loaded double, broke it open in the sixth, a hit for which manager Raymond dug into his bag to present the left fielder a brand new game ball. Vong drove in the final run with another infield out.

“I thought it was going to be caught at first until I saw it heading toward the fence and finally hit the fence,” Poindexter said. “I didn’t think I was going to hit. I struck out a lot of times and lost all my confidence, but once I gained my confidence back by getting the hit I felt good about myself.”

“Shawn hit like that during the season,” Raymond said. “That’s what we expect out of him. He’s a hitter. He’s fast. He’s a hitter. I saw it all season. I think now that he did that we’re going to start seeing a lot more of it.”

Each of the last three years Poindexter, his father and granddad have made the trip to Williamsport to take in some of the Little League World Series. After celebrating his team’s historic win Friday he readily stated his goal going forward.

“I just want to go to Williamsport,” he said.

And he wasn’t talking about as a fan.

“That’s awesome,” Raymond said. “They’ve got goals and hopefully the three of us coaches can get ‘em there.”

PENNS GROVE 7, MILLVILLE 3

Millville American	000 300-	3	3	2
Penns Grove	100 33x-	7	2	3

WP: Jimmy LaPalomento. LP: C.J. Tipton. 2B: S.J. Poindexter (PG). 3B: Aiden Robertson (PG). RBI: Nate Shelton (M) 2; S.J. Poindexter (PG) 2, Achillius Vong (PG) 2, Tanner Raymond (PG), Jimmy LaPalomento (PG), Nolan O’Brien (PG).

Penns Grove catcher Tanner Raymond puts the tag on C.J. Tipton before the Millville runner can get his foot on the plate in the third inning of their District 3 Tournament game Friday night. Top photo, PG manager Steve Raymond presents S.J. Poindexter with a game ball for his clutch two-run double in the fifth inning.

SOUTH VINELAND 11, ELMER 1: South Vineland ended Elmer’s run in the tournament by taking advantage of seven walks and holding their visitors to two hits.

The winners took a 1-0 lead in the first with four walks and broke it open with four runs in the third. They eventually walked it off with four runs in the fifth.

Brandon D’Agostino and Cash Williams had Elmer’s two hits. Cayden Becker scored their only run when he led off the fifth with a walk, then stole second, third and home.

South Vineland will play Penns Grove in the opening round of bracket play Monday at Elmer.

SOUTH VINELAND 11, ELMER 1

Elmer	000 01-	1	2	0
South Vineland	104 24-	11	7	0

WP: Justin Chin. LP: Raylan Baldissero. 2B: Matthew Ramos (SV), Mike Lee (SV). RBI: Elijah Perez (SV), Mike Lee (SV) 2, Jonathan Gonzalez (SV), Ray Mass (SV). Scoring by Elmer LL Gamechanger.

District 3 standings

AMERICAN		NATIONAL
Penns Grove	3-1	East Vineland	2-1
Millville	2-1	South Vineland	2-1
Pennsville	2-1	Elmer	1-2
Buena	1-2	West Cumberland	1-2
North Vineland	0-3

Friday’s Games
Penns Grove 7, Millville American 3
South Vineland 11, Elmer 1
Saturday’s Games
Millville American at Pennsville, 5 p.m.
Buena at North Vineland, 5 p.m.
(End of pool play)

DISTRICT 3 FINALS
(Double-loss elimination)
Monday at Elmer
G1: Penns Grove vs. South Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
G2: East Vineland vs. Millville American or Pennsville, 8 p.m.
Tuesday at Millville
G3: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2, 5:45 p.m.
G4: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2, 8 p.m.
Wednesday at North Vineland
G5: Loser G3 vs. Winner G4, 7 p.m.
Thursday at South Vineland
G6: Winner G3 vs. Winner G5, 7 p.m.
Friday at South Vineland
G7: If necessary, 7 p.m.

Their stage is set

Pennsville holds District 3 LL Tournament destiny in their hands after walk-off win, combined no-hitter over North Vineland

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

VINELAND – Pennsville manager Jay Weatherbee could spend hours trying to figure all the scenarios that would get his team to the bracket round of the District 3 Little League Tournament, but he reduced it all to three words made famous by a legendary NFL owner.

Just win, baby.

Pennsville put itself in a position to advance to the next stage of the tournament with a 10-0 four-inning no-hitter over host North Vineland. As much as the next two days will have a bearing on the seedings, as near as Weatherbee can figure his team just has to win its pool play final against Millville to get in.

“(All those scenarios) doesn’t really matter,” Weatherbee said. “My boys have to come ready to play Saturday. I told them out there win-win, lose we go home. It might come down to run differential and all that, but they don’t need to know that. If we win, we’re good.”

But first Millville and Penns Grove play a huge game in the American Division Friday to set the stage for Saturday’s showdown. There are scenarios for any of the three teams to finish No. 1.

Regardless of what happens Friday, as long as Pennsville wins Saturday it figures to be in. There’s even a scenario that if they lose Saturday they could come out of a three-way tie with the 2 seed (if they give up fewer runs to Millville than Penns Grove).

The National Division pool is a lot less complicated. East Vineland is the 1 seed even after getting routed by West Cumberland Thursday, while the winner of Friday’s Elmer-South Vineland game will claim the division’s second seed.

In any event, Pennsville had to win Thursday to make any of the weekend scenarios possible. They jumped out to an 8-0 lead after two innings and Pat Galloway and Brayden Weatherbee combined on a no-hitter.

The defending district champs walked it off in the fourth when Trey Sam scored on Landon Nazar’s two-out shot into the right centerfield gap. Nazar produced the first two runs of the game when his speed forced a bad throw on a bases-loaded roller to short.

“They played well,” Weatherbee said. “Pat pitched well. He did what I asked him to. I told him he’d come out at 65, save him for Monday if we make it.

“I had him all year on Penn Tire. I relied on him a lot during the season. I know what he can do out here. I know what he had. I know I was comfortable with him putting him out there. He did his job.”

Galloway, who pitched the final two innings of the win over Buena Monday, threw 61 pitches over the first 3 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out seven. North Vineland put only two balls in play against him, a grounder to second baseman Mason Seaver for the final out of the first inning and a grounder to shortstop Sam in the third.

Brayden Weatherbee got the final two outs on a strikeout and a rundown on the bases.

“I felt amazing,” Galloway said. “Everything was going my way the whole day. I just had to throw strikes and try to get the team a win.”

PENNSVILLE 10, NORTH VINELAND 0

North Vineland	000 0-	0	0	8
Pennsville	350 2-	10	9	0

WP: Pat Galloway (1-0). LP: Anthony Ebner. 2B: Trey Sam (P). RBI: Brayden Weatherbee (P), Trey Sam (P), Landon Nazar (P) 2, Ayden Harris (P).

**Pennsville manager Jay Weatherbee encourages the hitter at the plate with his son Brayden standing on third. Top photo, starting pitcher Pat Galloway throws a pitch early in his combined no-hitter.**

District 3 standings

AMERICAN		NATIONAL
Millville	2-0	East Vineland	2-1
Penns Grove	2-1	South Vineland	1-1
Pennsville	2-1	Elmer	1-1
Buena	1-2	West Cumberland	1-2
North Vineland	0-3

Thursday’s Games
Pennsville 10, North Vineland 0
West Cumberland 11, East Vineland 1
Friday’s Games
Penns Grove at Millville, 5:45 p.m.
Elmer at South Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
Saturday’s Games
Millville at Pennsville, 5:45 p.m.
Buena at North Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
End of pool play

AMERICAN DIVISION PLAYOFF BREAKDOWN

On Friday:
if Millville beats Penns Grove: Millville 3-0, Penns Grove 2-2, Pennsville 2-1
If Penns Grove beats Millville: Penns Grove 3-1, Millville 2-1, Pennsville 2-1

On Saturday:
Millville beats Penns Grove and Pennsville (and Buena beats North Vineland): No. 1 Millville 4-0, Penns Grove/Pennsville/Buena 2-2 and the 2 seed determined by run ratio (fewest runs allowed based on 6-inning game. Pennsville would be 2 if it gives up fewer runs to Millville than Penns Grove).

Millville beats Penns Grove and Pennsville beats Millville: No. 1 Pennsville 3-1, No. 2 Millville 3-1

Penns Grove beats Millville and Millville beats Pennsville: No. 1 Penns Grove 3-1, No. 2 Millville 3-1

Penns Grove beats Millville and Pennsville beats Millville: No. 1 Penns Grove 3-1, No. 2 Pennsville 3-1

NATIONAL DIVISION PLAYOFF BREAKDOWN
No. 1 East Vineland, Elmer-South Vineland winner No. 2

**North Vineland catcher GianniLewis Gordillo awaits with the ball to put the tag on Pennsville’s Dante DiMarco in the third inning of their district tournament game Thursday.**

Not the same team

Shorthanded Buena erupts for 10 runs in final two innings, scores its first win, hands Penns Grove first loss in District 3 LL Tournament

DISTRICT 3 TOURNAMENT
Buena 11, Penns Grove 6

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

BUENA — Penns Grove was on a generational run in its first two games of this year’s District 3 Little League Tournament, but there was something different about it on a hot Tuesday night.

Shorthanded Buena erupted for 10 runs in the final two innings to score its first win of the tournament and hand Penns Grove its first loss, 11-6.

Penns Grove rallied from deficits to 1-0 and 5-3 to tie the game in the home fifth before Buena, down to 10 players due to injuries, erupted for six runs in the top of the sixth to take ultimate control.

Before Buena came to life in the fifth, Penns Grove had given up just three runs in its first 14 tournament innings.

“I think they dealt with same thing last night (at Pennsville) we did tonight,” Penns Grove manager Steve Raymond said. “My guys were flat. They were flat and made some mistakes on the bases … it all adds up.

“We weren’t the team we were the other two games, I can tell you that. But I’d rather get it out of the way now so they know how much it sucks (to lose).”

Penns Grove tied the game 1-1 in the third on Lucas Vong’s RBI single, but had two runners thrown out at home plate. They took a 3-1 lead in the fourth on Achillius Vong’s solo homer and Jimmy LaPalomento’s RBI triple and it looked for a time it was going to stand the way Tanner Raymond was dealing in relief on the mound.

The manager’s son put up zeroes on 23 pitches in the third and fourth innings behind starter Lucas Ware. But Buena solved him in the fifth, scoring four runs with timely hitting and the kind of aggressive base running Penns Grove has been known for early in the tournament to take a 5-3 lead.

Shawn Poindexter, Lucas Vong and Nolan O’Brien all had two hits for Penns Grove. Jace Nimohay had three hits and was a homer shy of the cycle for Buena.

The loss knocked Penns Grove out a tie for first place in the American Division with Millville. They play Millville in their final pool game Friday night, but Millville has a date with Pennsville the next night that could decide everybody’s fate.

“We told them we’ve got to forget this one,” Raymond said. “It’s done.”

BUENA 11, PENNS GROVE 6

Buena	100 046-	11	9	0
Penns Grove	001 221-	6	9	0

WP: Dalton Maldonado. LP: Aiden Robertson. 2B: Jace Nimohay (B), Levi Myers (B), Shawn Poindexter (PG). 3B: Jace Nimohay (B),Jimmy LaPalomento (PG). HR: Achillius Vong (PG). RBI:Jonah Matos (B), Jace Nimohay (B) 2, Stephen Pollock (B) 2, Levi Myers (B) 3, Bryce Hutnick (B) 2; Aiden Robertson (PG), Achillius Vong (PG), Jimmy LaPalomento (PG), Lucas Vong (PG).

District 3 standings

AMERICAN		NATIONAL
Millville	2-0	East Vineland	2-0
Penns Grove	2-1	South Vineland	1-1
Pennsville	1-1	Elmer	1-1
Buena	1-2	West Cumberland	0-2
North Vineland	0-2

Wednesday’s Games
No games scheduled
Thursday’s Games
Pennsville at North Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
East Vineland at West Cumberland, 5:45 p.m.
Friday’s Games
Penns Grove at Millville, 5:45 p.m.
Elmer at South Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
Saturday’s Games
Millville at Pennsville, 5 p.m.
Buena at North Vineland, 5 p.m.
(End of pool play)

Locals stay alive

Pennsville, Elmer keep their hopes for advancing in the District 3 LL Tournament alive with their first wins of the tournament

DISTRICT 3 LL TOURNAMENT
Monday’s Games
Pennsville 16, Buena 6
Millville 22, North Vineland 1
Elmer 3, West Cumberland 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Of all the players in the Pennsville Little League All-Stars’ dugout this year, Brayden Weatherbee is the only one who knows what it’s like to win the prize they are chasing this week.

He experienced that thrill of winning a district title last year as Pennsville won its first District 3 title in five years and he’d like nothing better this hot summer than to share that feeling with the next generation of all-stars this year.

On Monday the team experienced its first win in this year’s tournament, routing a Buena team that suddenly finds itself undermanned 16-6.

As a seasoned playoff veteran at the ripe age of 12, Weatherbee holds a unique position on this year’s team and is always willing to share his wisdom when his teammates ask what it’s like. Most of what he tells them is while it’s “nothing” like the Little League regular season, keep playing your game.

His manager/father Jay Weatherbee acknowledges his son’s experience is a valuable resource, but is quick to point out there are leaders throughout the lineup.

“As a manager I rely on him,” Weatherbee said. “I rely on some of the boys I’ve had all year on (league team) Penn Tire to come through a little bit and be my leaders. They’re all 12. I tell them all the time everybody’s a leader. If we all follow the same mindset everybody is going to follow. The whole team is a leader to me.”

Brayden Weatherbee doesn’t hit a lot of home runs like some of the stars of last year’s district champions – “I’m an every once in a blue moon (home run) hitter,” he said – but he connected on a big one Monday. His three-run shot to left center in the fourth inning broke the game open and gave Pennsville a 10-5 lead. It came right after Mason Seaver broke a 5-5 tie with a two-run double.

“It was really cool and it meant a lot because I haven’t hit one in a while, so it felt really good,” Brayden said. “I just went up there to try to drive the ball, like I always do.”

Weatherbee had three hits in the game, as did Trey Sam. Pennsville pounded out 17 hits two days after being no-hit in their tournament opener. Everybody in the lineup had at least one hit or an RBI.

“The boys were a little bit better, their mindset was a little better,” manager Weatherbee said. “They’d never seen a pitcher like that kid from Penns Grove (Achillius Vong). It might have been in their head a little bit. This is more like Pennsville baseball … This is better. Now, we’ve got to keep rolling.”

The big fourth inning came immediately after the teams returned from a 15-minute heat break. Pennsville scored 11 runs and had 14 hits in the three innings after the break.

“That was a good call on (the umpires’) part,” manager Weatherbee said. “If they called that off the cuff that’s a good call because it was deadly out here. It was hot. It definitely helped. It gave us a little bit of a second life out there.”

PENNSVILLE 16, BUENA 6

Pennsville	104 542-	16	17	2
Buena	302 010-	6	7	2

WP: Chase Dolden (1-0). LP: Jude Harvey. 2B: Trey Sam (P) 2, Matthew Walker (P). HR: Brayden Weatherbee (P), Jace Nimohay (B). RBI: Mason Seaver (P) 2, Brayden Weatherbee (P) 3, Trey Sam (P) 3, Pat Galloway (P), Landon Nazar (P), Jackson Sedlak (P), Tyler Colony (P), Dante DiMarco (P); Stephen Pollock (B), Levi Myers (B), Dalton Maldonado (B), Bryce Hutnick (B).

Elmer gets a gem

ELMER – The Elmer Majors All-Stars needed a clutch performance to keep their hopes of reaching the bracket finals alive and Brandon D’Agostino delivered.

D’Agostino pitched five innings of shutout ball, allowing one hit and striking out 11, as Elmer blanked West Cumberland 3-0 for its first win of the tournament. The win sets up a do-or-die showdown with South Vineland Friday to advance from the National Division to the District 3 double-loss playoffs.

“He gave us an outstanding game; I couldn’t ask for anything more,” Elmer manager Bob Baldissero said. “He was really on.”

It was really hot, but D’Agostino was prepared. He had a cooling towel, access to a water hose and whole jar of pickle juice to get him through the day.

He struck out the side in the first, got through a bases-loaded jam in the second and had a no-hitter until two outs in the third. He then retired seven of the last eight batters he faced before giving way to Raylan Baldissero in the sixth after throwing 87 pitches.

“I just felt like I had great command of my fastball,” D’Agostino said. “It was a hot, muggy day. I sweaty, it was hot, I was tired. After the first couple innings I just want to lay down and go to bed, but I just kept pumping strikes.

“I’ve had great games this year and I’ve had not-so-great games and I think I came in from that same state I had in those great games and not those OK or bad games. I knew even if I were throwing strikes right down the middle and they were hitting me, my fielders would make up for it. I knew my hitters would hit and my fielders would field. I think as a whole we did absolutely stunning.”

The hitters rewarded their starter for his strong first inning by scoring three in the bottom of the inning for the only runs of the game. Clayton Bishop opened the game with a triple and rode home of D’Agostino’s sacrifice fly. Grayson Bingham later scored on a wild pitch with Roman Allen at the plate and Allen made it 3-0 with an RBI single.

“The bats came out hot,” Baldissero said. “Starting the game off with a triple, that’s a big deal. Just to get those three runs right off the bat in the first inning gives us the momentum for the game, it sets the tone and enables us to play our game.”

ELMER 3, WEST CUMBERLAND 0

West Cumberland	000 000-	0	1	1
Elmer	300 00x-	3	6	0

WP: Brandon D’Agostino (1-0). 3B: Clayton Bishop (E). RBI: Brandon D’Agostino (E), Roman Allen (E).

District 3 standings

AMERICAN DIVISION		NATIONAL DIVISION
Penns Grove	2-0	East Vineland	2-0
Millville	2-0	South Vineland	1-1
Pennsville	1-1	Elmer	1-1
Buena	0-2	West Cumberland	0-2
North Vineland	0-2

Tuesday’s Games
Penns Grove at Buena, 7:15 p.m.
Thursday’s Games
Pennsville at North Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
East Vineland at West Cumberland, 5:45 p.m.
Friday’s Games
Penns Grove at Millville, 5:45 p.m.
Elmer at South Vineland, 5:45 p.m.
Saturday’s Games
Millville at Pennsville, 5 p.m.
Buena at North Vineland, 5 p.m.
(End of pool play)

Unhittable from any distance

Penns Grove goes to 2-0 in pool play after Achillius Vong no-hits Pennsville, issue raised about mound distance from plate

DISTRICT 3 LL TOURNAMENT
Saturday’s game
Penns Grove 7, Pennsville 0
Sunday’s game
East Vineland 9, South Vineland 4
Monday’s games
Buena at Pennsville, 5:45 p.m.
North Vineland at Millville, 5:45 p.m.
West Cumberland at Elmer, 5:45 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT — On Friday, Achillius Vong showed the way he can impact a game on the bases. On Saturday, he showed the other two elements of his game that justify Penns Grove All-Stars manager Steve Raymond calling him “our Shohei Ohtani.”

Vong delivered three hits at the plate, which was three more than he allowed on the mound as he spun his first career no-hitter in beating Pennsville 7-0 in the District 3 Little League Tournament at the Carneys Point Rec Center.

“You heard what we were calling him when he was on the mound,” Raymond said. “We were calling him ‘Shohei’ and he proved it today.”

“I think it’s really cool,” Vong said of the comparison to the Dodgers’ generational star. “I think it’s a huge compliment and it really makes my day. It brings my confidence up on the baseball diamond.”

Pitching for the first time in a couple weeks, the hard-throwing right-hander threw 69 pitches over six innings, faced one batter over the minimum and struck out 12. He never threw more than 15 pitches in any inning and covered the final four innings in 39 pitches, including just five in the fourth.

He only allowed three baserunners — a leadoff error in the first and a dropped third strike in the third who was swapped out by a fielder’s choice who was erased on an inning-ending double play.

“I felt really good, my arm was great, I haven’t pitched in a while,” Vong said. “Today I was really hitting my spots and I felt really good.

“(The no-hitter) feels really good because Pennsville’s our rival and it’s my first one ever – and it makes us big in the seeding.”

The win was Penns Grove’s second in 24 hours after not having won a district tournament game in 14 years. They sit atop the American Division at 2-0 with two games left in pool play. They can all but clinch a spot in the double-elimination finals with a win at Buena Tuesday that figures to be a bullpen game.

Pennsville hosts Buena on Monday in the rescheduling of Thursday’s washed-out tournament opener.

Vong anticipated celebrating the gem with his teammates in a dogpile, but tripped himself coming off the mound after getting the final strikeout and landed in a heap in the infield.

The gem wasn’t without some controversy. Pennsville supporters questioned the distance between the mound and the plate during the game. Pennsville coach Zach Sedlack satisfied their curiosity and raised their ire by independently taking a tape measure to the mound after the game and found it to be 42 feet, 2 inches to the front of the plate — four feet short of Little League standards.

There was talk of a protest immediately upon that discovery and a lot of raised voices, but Little League Baseball has protocols in place for such action and the rules don’t allow for it after a game is completed. For it to come into play, Pennsville would have had to have acted on its suspicions at some point in the game and made its intentions known to the umpire before play continued.

Pennsville manager Jay Weatherbee said he wasn’t aware if the issue until after the game, but would do “my due diligence and see if that was a legal game.”

Riverview Sports News has reached out to District 3 administrator Tom McCarville for clarification and is awaiting a response.

Pennsville sent three pitchers to the same mound. Starter Trey Sam went four innings and kept Penns Grove off the board in the first two. First reliever Pat Galloway threw a shutout inning in the fifth, getting out of a bases-loaded jam with an inning-ending double play.

“In the long run – I’ll play devil’s advocate here – we had our chance at throwing from shorter, too, and we still didn’t capitalize on it,” Weatherbee said. “Whether you move it back five feet, that kid’s a stud. It may not make a difference, but I have to do my due diligence as the coach.”

Raymond said the mound has been at the same distance “every game we’ve played here.” It is a temporary structure, however, removed as the field also is used for softball events such as last week’s East Coast Showcase. Saturday was the 12U all-stars’ final home of the baseball tournament season, so this mound is destined to “get put away in a crate.”

For his part, Vong said pitching from Saturday’s position felt “about the same” as throwing from other mounds in his experience.

It was the first district tournament game between the neighboring rivals since pool play in 2019.

Penns Grove took the lead with three runs in the third inning. Aiden Robertson had an RBI single and Lucas Ware and Vong delivered back-to-back RBI doubles. Nolan O’Brien’s two-run single made it 6-0 in the fourth and Tanner Raymond had an RBI single in the sixth.

Penns Grove pounded 10 hits in the game.

“The more comfortable they get, the better they’re going to hit,” Raymond said. “They hit, that’s what they do, the whole lineup hits. It’s just going to start happening more and more.”

O’Brien, who wears No. 13 for all-stars as an homage to two-way star Luke Pokrovsky on his dad’s Schalick baseball team, has three straight hits and four RBIs since striking out in his first tournament at-bat.

“I just think about going up there and hitting the ball hard,” he said. “My dad always tells me to do that and I keep that mentality going up to the plate.”

PENNS GROVE 7 PENNSVILLE 0
Penns Grove	003 301 0-	7	10	1
Pennsville	000 000 0-	0	0	3

WP: Achillius Vong (1-0). LP: Trey Sam (0-1). 2B: Lucas Ware (PG), Achillius Vogt (PG). RBIS: Aiden Robertson (PG), Lucas Ware (PG), Achillius Vong (PG), Tanner Raymond (PG), Nolan O’Brien (PG) 2.

District 3 standings

AMERICAN DIVISION		NATIONAL DIVISION
Penns Grove	2-0	East Vineland	2-0
Millville	1-0	South Vineland	1-1
Pennsville	0-1	Elmer	0-1
Buena	0-1	West Cumberland	0-1
North Vineland	0-1