Ridgewood 9-10 Little League valiant in State Final Four
FRIDAY JULY 27, 2012, 1:11 PM
BY RON FOX
CORRESPONDENT
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
GLASSBORO — Reflecting on the Ridgewood 9-10 Little League team’s trip to the State Final Four, manager Matt Sullivan had nothing but positives to deliver.
The Ridgewood 9-10 Little League team won the Skills Competition at the New Jersey State Final Four. FRONT ROW, from left: Jack Wittmaack, Michael Lia, Peyton Mikita, Luke Notaro, Matt Crawford and Brian Skettini. MIDDLE ROW, from left: Big Ben Reinke, Cameron Blair, DJ Sullivan, Matt Favieri and Will Calandra. BACK ROW, from left: coach Doug Calandra, manager Matt Sullivan and coach Bob Mikita.
“There’s a learning curve, and this was a really positive experience,” Sullivan said after his team was eliminated. “We went so far, and now the kids realize the potential that they have.”
He knew there would be a period of adjustment playing at such an elite level, and his kids adjusted extremely well.
“It’s going into the unknown,” he said. “You expect to see Andy Pettitte on the mound, but then the kids saw that the pitchers were kids like them and that every pitcher they faced, they hit hard.”
Ridgewood won the opening game in the double-elimination tournament with a potent attack, 11-3, over Elmora. They then lost the next two and it was over. Yet the team did not go down without a fight.
