Southampton Little League's Majors All-Stars Just Misses Advancing in District 36 Tournament

The Southampton Little League 12-and-under baseball All-Stars came close to advancing to the playoff round of the District 36 Tournament, but wound up being the first team out based on head-to-head play.

Southampton found itself in what was a little bit of a surprising win-or-go-home game against neighboring Sag Harbor on Saturday afternoon at the Bridgehampton Fire Department. Southampton manager Scott Armusewicz was under the impression that in the event of a tiebreaker, in the standings the run differential would be the deciding factor. But he got a call Friday night from district officials that Little League rules state head-to-head record is the first deciding factor, then run differential.

That changed things a bit for Armusewicz and his team. Southampton had Sag Harbor beat in run differential — it would have taken a monster offensive performance for Sag Harbor to catch up in that regard — but record-wise, Southampton was 2-1 going into Saturday’s game, Sag Harbor was 1-2, so all Sag Harbor had to do was win the game and it would leapfrog Southampton, in a sense, for that second and final spot into the district semifinals, and that’s exactly what it did.

Thanks to a six-run third inning — all runs unearned off of three errors — Sag Harbor defeated Southampton, 8-2.

“We didn’t realize the tiebreaker goes head-to-head first and that really changes things in terms of strategy and how you set yourself up for games,” Armusewicz explained. “That actually made one of the games we played earlier in the week more significant than we originally thought.

“I personally think and believe we were the better team,” he added. “But things fell as they did. And Sag Harbor played its cards right. It didn’t pitch its best pitcher against East Hampton, it saved him for us, which if I were them I would have done the same exact thing. So hats off to them.”

Southampton, as Armusewicz also explained, came into Saturday’s game shorthanded at catcher, which is a key position on most levels, but maybe none more than in Little League. The team’s starting catcher, Matthew Lesta, was away, and the team’s backup catcher Landry Trantolo was out with tendinitis in one of his wrists, so the team had to move a lot of players around the field. Still, Armusewicz was confident going into the game in the players that were in different positions that they hadn’t played in the tournament but had done so throughout the season, but things just didn’t work out.

And things were looking good early when Southampton jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Nathan Counihan Bishop beat out a ground ball for an infield single to get things started in the top the first, then Tre Armusewicz hit a two-run single down the left field line. Another infield single by John Jackson Radice brought in another run. But Sag Harbor struck for a run of its own in the first, then its starting pitcher, Thomas Perry, who had thrown 25 pitches or so in that first inning, settled in nicely and wound up pitching into the fifth.

This year’s 12U baseball team included Tre Armusewicz, Nathan Counihan Bishop, Teddy Fulweiler, Michael Lavinio, Matthew Lesta, Torin Lysogorski, John Jackson Radice, Ryan Sisco, Carter Stevens, Landry Trantolo, Wesley Warner and Read Wilutis. The team was managed by Scott Armusewicz who was assisted by Ken Sisco and Rob Wilutis.

Scott Armusewicz said that nearly half the team’s starters will be aging out into school ball going forward. That includes his son Tre, Nathan Counihan Bishop, Torin Lysogorski, Matthew Lesta, John Jackson Radice, Carter Stevens, Landry Trantolo and Wesley Warner. It also brings the conclusion of Scott coaching his son Tre after a seven-year run of being right by his side.

“It was an emotional time at the end of the game because I’ve been coaching my son, a lot of these boys, for seven years,” he explained. “I’ve coached him all the way until his last Little League game. I don’t see myself potentially coaching him again, but it’s been a lot of fun. Little League teaches you a lot of things. I know it did for me, and it’s something we’re going to miss.”

Minors Baseball

Finishes Tournament

Southampton’s 10U baseball All-Stars lost, 12-2, to North Shore American on June 27, lost, 12-0, to North Patchogue-Medford on Thursday, June 29, and then more recently lost, 11-0, to North Shore National on Saturday. Manager Vince Trantolo said his team fell behind early to North Shore American last week but were stabilized by a solid pitching performance by Niko Souhrada and a pair of hits by Brady Trantolo.

At 0-5, Southampton’s Minors won’t be advancing to the playoffs but will play its final game of pool play this Saturday, July 8, against Riverhead at Stotzky Memorial Park at 10 a.m.

This year’s 10U team includes Thomas Capalbo, James Crosby, Lucas Dimitropoulos, Josiah Escobar, Oliver Fulweiler, Keith Greene, J.T. Ingram, Donovan Lee, Connor Liebnitzky, Nash Lysogorski, Michael Ramirez, Niko Souhrada and Brady Trantolo. The team is managed by Vince Trantolo who is assisted by Chris Souhrada and Dan Lee.