Berlin slips past Avon to win Section II title and advance

Avon third baseman McKenna Bastin tags out Berlin runner Callie Szymanski to end the fourth inning in Wednesday night’s Section II championship at Rockwell Park.

BRISTOL, July 10, 2024 – The Berlin Little League softball team likes to put pressure on the defense with some aggressive running on the basepaths.

That aggressiveness helped Berlin beat Avon, 2-0 in the Section II championship game Wednesday at Rockwell Park to advance to the Final Four of the Major Division (ages 11-12) state tournament.

It was a scoreless game in the fifth inning when Berlin’s Grace Burke singled up the middle. After teammate Charlotte Brasile hit a hard line drive into the glove of Avon left fielder Avery Witcoskie, Berlin’s Jordyn Eckert singled.

One pitch later, Burke stole third base and Eckert swiped second base. Berlin’s Bella Gavallas hit a hard ball right back at Avon pitcher Lena Stortz. But as soon as the ball was hit, Burke took off for home. Stortz glanced at Burke but went for the sure out at first base as Gavallas moved to third base.

Berlin’s Ella Rose Lenois hit a ground ball to second base but again, Gavallas took off for home. The infielder hesitated for a second and threw to first but Lenois just beat the throw to the bag and Gavallas scored for a 2-0 lead.

That was enough for the undefeated District 5 champions (7-0), who have had three one-run victories and a pair of two-run victories so far this summer.

Berlin head coach John Szymanski said baserunning is part of every practice. “When we get on base, we’re pretty smart and aggressive,” he said.

Berlin used their outstanding pitching duo to their advantage. Alexis Gorneault (2-0) pitched the first three innings, giving up three hits and striking out six. Callie Szymanski (5-0) came on in relief in the fourth inning, gave up one hit and struck out seven to earn the win.

“We have two outstanding pitchers who put in a ton of time in the offseason (to get ready for this season),” John Syzmanski said. “But it’s not just them. In every game, we’ve won, the whole team has contributed, all 12 players.”

Avon pitcher Lena Stortz fires the ball to the plate in Wednesday’s Section II championship game against Berlin.

Avon (4-2) was making just their second-ever appearance in the Major Division state tournament and for the second year, they advanced to the Section II championship game. They had four hits and some nice defensive plays.

Third baseman McKenna Bastin tagged out Callie Szymanski to end the fourth inning when the Berlin runner got caught in a rundown trying to score.

With one out and a runner on third base, Avon center fielder Jamin Lee caught a fly ball off the bat of Charlotte Henderson and fired the ball back to catcher Meredith Parker. Szymanski stopped short of home plate and was caught in a rundown.

Szymanski managed to safely get back to third base but thought she heard the umpire call her out so she wandered off the bag. Bastin chased her down and tagged her out.

Avon threatened to score in the second inning. With one out, Lee reached base on a bunt single. With two outs, teammate Jadyn Jacobi reached on an error. Both runners moved up to second and third base, respectively, after a passed ball. But Gorneault got a strikeout to end the inning.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Avon’s Jackie Funderburk singled and moved to second base when Meredith Parker drew a walk. That brought Callie Szymanski to the mound. She got two strikeouts and a ground ball out to get out of the jam.

“We’re all very sad just because we want to keep playing,” Avon head coach Tim Banks said. “Every single one of these girls had such an amazing time in practice and games They all played their best. I will miss them all.”

Funderburk, Stortz, Lee and Jacobi each had hits for Avon. Stortz allowed six hits and struck out three. She walked just one.

“It’s been a great run,” Banks said. “We wish we could keep it going but it doesn’t work out every time. But they played great.”

It is believed to be Berlin’s first sectional championship for a Major Division team. Berlin last made the state tournament as the D5 champion in 2010. They did go to the Section I finals in 2007 before losing. In that year, there were just two sectional tournaments with six teams each participating.

Berlin 2, Avon 0
At Bristol
Berlin (7-0)                     000  020  — 2-5-1
Avon (4-2)                      000  000  — 0-4-0
Alexis Gorneault, Callie Szymanski (3) and Charlotte Henderson; Lena Stortz and Meredith Parker; WP: Syzmanski (5-0); LP: Stortz (4-2); 2B: none; 3B: Callie Szymanski (B); HR: none

Major Division
Section 2
At Bristol (Rockwell Park)
Friday, July 5
Avon (D6) 4, Shelton (D3) 2
Monday, July 8
Berlin (D5) 3, Avon 1
Tuesday, July 9
Berlin 10, Shelton 0 (5)
Wednesday, July 10
Final: Berlin 2, Avon 0