BASEBALL

Nashua Babe Ruth

Braves 4, Tigers 3

Braves pitcher Nick Reed and the Tigers’ Kyle McCarthy were in a pitchers’ duel for seven innings, but the top-seeded Braves put that one extra run on the board for a 4-3 win over the No. 10 Tigers in the Nashua Babe Ruth city championship game at Ledge Street Field.

Reed struck out nine on the hill and added a 300-foot home run to center field for the Braves.

The Tigers made a move in the sixth inning to get within one run, but the Braves held them off thanks in large part to the defensive efforts of Jeremy Bishop, Brendan Martin and Joey Crowley.

Members of the 2010 champion Babe Ruth Braves are: Head coach Adam Dobrowolski; assistant coaches Dave Meyer, Jacques Gagnon and Jeff Stack; and players Reed, Shannon Martin, Brendan Martin, Brandon Phinney, Crowley, Christian Stack, Bishop, Ryan Morrissey, Anthony Capillo, Chris Byers, Jacob Latham, Dominic Lebel and Sam Root.

Nashua South Cal Ripken

South 9-year-old All-Stars win Kittredge Memorial Tournament

The Nashua South 9-year-old All-Stars won the 2010 Tom Kittredge Memorial Tournament.

South jumped out of the gate quickly in Game 1 with a 13-0 win over host team Roger Allen. South received solid pitching from Zach Finkelstein (five strikeouts) and offense from Owen Mooso (two hits), Casey McNally and Chris Haley.

Nashua then tied Dover 8-8 in Game 2. The game was highlighted by big hits from Andrew Penkala, Stephen McLendon (home run), and a home run-saving catch in center field from Finkelstein.

Nashua South played a doubleheader against the Hampstead Heat and Stratham. South took both games, scoring a total of 30 runs – beating Hampstead 10-0 and Stratham 20-3.

In Game 3, Nashua received big offensive performances from Penkala (two hits), Finkelstein (two hits) and Jake Fitzpatrick, while McLendon and Kavim Bhatnagar combined on a one-hit shutout.

In Game 4, Nashua received a great pitching performance from Finkelstein, who threw four innings and struck out eight batters. Offensively, South was led by Penkala (three hits), Finkelstein (two hits), Robby Pavlas, Seth Bridge, Nathan Cormier (two walks) and Bhatnagar.

Nashua’s record of 3-0-1 qualified it to play in the championship game against Seacoast, who entered the game undefeated at 4-0. The South All-Stars played a great game, winning 11-3.

In the championship game, McLendon and Finkelstein combined for the win, striking out 10 batters. The offense was led by Finkelstein (three hits), McNally (double), Mooso, Bridge, Bhatnagar, Haley, and McLendon. Penkala played stellar defense at shortstop, while Haley continued to be extremely solid behind the plate.

Brennen Bergerson also came up big during the tournament in several critical pinch-hitting situations. The team is now preparing to compete in the upcoming District Tournament in Keene.

AAU

NH Grizzlies 5, Maine Blizzard 3

The NH Grizzlies U14s beat the Maine Blizzard, 5-3, at Old Orchard Baseball Park in Maine.

Warren Silver pitched a complete-game, striking out four and allowing three runs on five hits over seven innings.

The Grizzlies offense was led by Michael Martinez and Sam Kaston with two hits each.

BASKETBALL

Granite State Rockettes U11 goes 4-5 at Junior Nationals

The Granite State Rockettes U11 girls basketball team competed this past weekend in the Junior National Hershey Showcase.

The Showcase, organized by the U.S. Junior Nationals, was held at the Pennsylvania Expo Center in Harrisburg, Pa.

After fundraising for three months prior to offset travel and expenses, the team was strong against well-recognized, highly-competitive national and regional teams.

Of their five games, the Rockettes defeated the NYC Bulldogs, the Long Island Lightening, the Pennsylvania Wizards and the Connecticut Rough Riders.

Their only loss came against the New Jersey Shore Shots.

The Rockettes have played together for the past two seasons, and currently hold the title as the 2010 U11 state champions. They decided to travel outside of New England for an opportunity to play more competitive teams and expand their overall team experience.

Making up the Rockettes, which are coached by Matt Olsen and Brian Mackey, are Danielle Mackey, Jessica Baker, Hannah Cutherbertson, Marissa Stacy, Elizabeth Graveline, Faolain Harrington, Madison Olsen, Halie Martineau, Allison Young and Brianna Purcell.