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July 30, 2007

Sullivan, Walpole American top Peabody West for state title

Richard Slate

PITTSFIELD — At 5-foot-1 and weighing just over 95 pounds, Walpole American Little League second baseman Tim Sullivan doesn’t appear to be an intimidating force.

To the Peabody West All-Stars, though, Sullivan will always be remembered as a wrecking machine.

Sullivan hit three home runs and knocked in a whopping nine runs yesterday to lead his team to the Massachusetts Little League state championship as Walpole defeated defending champion Peabody West, 10-0, at Mark Belanger Field.

“I hit two home runs in a district game, but never three,” Sullivan said. “I was seeing the ball real well and just laying off all the junk and waiting for my pitch. And I got it every time.”

Walpole American, which beat Peabody West in the state’s final four tournament opener last Thursday (8-5), will now move on to the New England Regionals in Bristol, Conn., for a shot at playing in the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.

“If he doesn’t show up, it’s a 1-0 game,” noted Walpole manager Brian Oberacker of Sullivan. “This kid has been in the zone all summer long.

“Three home runs and nine RBIs? That’s something he’ll never forget. That’s unbelievable.”

Walpole pitcher Sam Faulkson was the other star of the game, as the right-hander with an unorthodox motion and slow delivery gave up only one hit (a Genaro Ciulla double in the first) and struck out seven Peabody West hitters on just 49 pitches.

The game ended after five innings due to the 10-run mercy rule.

Playing its fourth game in four days — not to mention their third must-win gme in a row — Peabody West couldn’t force an “if necessary” final game against unbeaten Walpole (14-0) yesterday. Ciulla struggled to get through three innings as the Americans tagged him with four runs in the second and four in the third.

“I had trouble with the mound. I kept slipping and I was never comfortable out there,” stated Ciulla.

Regardless of the final outcome, Peabody West manager Danny Marchese was proud of his pitcher’s effort in the loss.

“That’s guts that you saw out there, because Genaro throws more than anyone on this team,” said Marchese.

A single and two walks loaded the bases for Walpole’s leadoff man, Sullivan, who crushed a grand slam to left field in the second to open the scoring.

“I was up there and already nervous,” said Sullivan, “but I knew he was going to throw a fastball, so I was looking for it and got it.”

In the third, Peabody looked like it was about to get out of trouble when it caught Walpole baserunner Mike Rando in a rundown between first and second for the second out. But the next batter, catcher Kyle Donnelly, hit a solo home run to right-center field. Two more runners reached base (on an error and a single) and Sullivan proceeded to take a 1-0 pitch over the center field fence for a three-run blast, making it 8-0.

That deficit, coupled with Faulkson on the mound for Walpole, proved to be simply insurmountable for Peabody West. Using his superior curveball mixed with a decent fastball, Faulkson kept Peabody off-balance and constantly guessing. He also didn’t walk a batter.

“Faulkson pitched himself one heck of a game,” Marchese said. “We have some great hitters, and to completely silence these bats is quite a feat for that young man. “Ninety-nine percent of Little League players, if it’s a good overhand curve, they can’t lay off it. Faulkson threw a 12-to-6 curveball, not a sweeping curve like we practiced with.”

Michael Gould relieved Ciulla at the start of the fourth and pitched a scoreless inning for Peabody West. Walpole came back with two more in the fifth, however, on a line-drive homer by Sullivan, his third of the game. Jacob Freeman got Peabody West out of the inning as he recorded three outs on the hill, but Faulkson retired Peabody 1-2-3 to officially end it after the bottom of the fifth.

Sullivan finished a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs scored and nine RBIs, while Faulkson added two hits and a run. P.J. Hayes and Donnelly each scored two runs for Walpole.

For Peabody West, a team that advanced to the New England regional last year, it was an extremely disappointing last game of their season. Marchese, however, was quick to let his team know that being second-best in the state is still something to be extremely proud of.

“There’s something like 276 (Little League all-star) teams in Massachusetts, and to be one of the two best teams in the state — you can’t take that away from them,” Marchese said of his players.

“I’m sure they’re hurting right now, but they need to know that they’ve got nothing to hang their heads about. They’re a great group of kids, and I got great support from the parents.”



Baseball

Massachusetts Little League championship game

Walpole 10, Peabody 0 (5 innings)

Walpole (10): Sullivan 2b 4-3-4, Bender 3b 4-0-0, Adams ss 4-0-0, White rf 4-0-0, LaVita 1b 3-0-0, Faulkson p 4-1-2, Donnelly c 3-2-1, Rando cf 2-1-0, Hayes lf 2-2-0, Guarino ph 1-1-1, Wolpe ph 1-0-1, Cabral ph 1-0-0, Donovan ph 1-0-0. Totals 34-10-9

Peabody (0): Buonopane 2b 2-0-0, Ciulla p/c 2-0-1, Borrelli 1b 2-0-0, Freedman cf 2-0-0, Turco ss 2-0-0, Arnott rf 1-0-0, Noe 3b 2-0-0, Gould lf/p 1-0-0, Bornstein c 1-0-0, Cappuccio rf 1-0-0. Totals 16-0-1

Walpole (14-0): 044 02 — 10

Peabody (12-3): 000 00 — 0

RBI: W — Sullivan 9, Donnelly

WP: Faulkson; LP: Ciulla

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