Westfield Blue ousts Warren 4-3

Pitching, defense and timely hits allowed Westfield Blue to avenge their loss earlier in the season to Warren by beating them 4-3 in Warren Tuesday night.

WB put several base runners on in the 1st but was unable to score. Warren threatened in the bottom of the first with runners on 1st and 3rd and only one out. However, the next batter hit a grounder to pitcher Justin Lin, who threw to Rowan Oberman at first. Oberman saw the runner at 3rd going home and fired to catcher George Devanney Murray who put the tag on, completing a double play and ending the inning.

WB was able to record their first run of the game in the bottom of the 2nd when Daniel Criscuolo singled, was advanced by a hit from Lin and a walk by Will Stern and was then able to score on a sac fly to center by Liam Loughlin. Warren was held scoreless in the 2nd and 3rd but WB put up another run in the 3rd when Tyler Roth smashed a ball over the left fielder's head and into the next county for a home run.

In the top of the 4th, Parker Hess drew a walk, stole 2nd and was advanced to 3rd on a grounder by Devanney Murray. When Lin hit a "swinging bunt" that landed a few feet in front of the plate, Hess took advantage of Warren's indecision and came sliding into home, putting WB up 3-0. Unfortunately, Warren came back in the bottom of the 4th with 3 runs of their own to tie the game 3-3. Neither team scored in the 5th. In the top of the 6th, Owen Colwell singled up the middle and stole 2nd. With 2 outs, Hess drilled a single to bring home Colwell with what turned out to be the game winning RBI. Warren tried to rally in the bottom of the 6th but some excellent defense from WB shut them down.

Pitching from Justin Lin and Parker Hess was dominant, striking out 11 batters and allowing only 4 hits.

Criscuolo singles to set up 1st run

Loughlin sac fly

Roth's HR

Hess drives in the winning run

Westfield Blue loses rematch with Branchburg 10-0

After previously being able to shatter Branchburg’s undefeated record of 10-0, Westfield Blue didn’t have their usual Mojo flowing in their second matchup with Branchburg on July 16th. With a few exceptions, Tyler Roths’s single in the bottom of the 1st and Dan Criscoula’s double and Justin Lankler’s single in the second, the well was dry when it came to capitalizing on hits. Branchburg robbed Tyler, George, Dan, and Owen C, of some hard hit balls and the opportunity to get on base. The boys made a pact to boost Branchburg’s confidence for the state/regional championship by letting them get on base and score runs without too much trouble and it must have worked because Branchburg won the state championship!

Game Recap by F.Byrne

Defense key in 6 – 2 win over Union

Strong pitching, solid defense and timely hitting propelled Westfield past Union to bring their record to an impressive 13 – 7.

After Owen Murray retired the side in order in the top of the first, Westfield posted three big runs in the bottom of the inning. Tyler led off with a single and stole second. Rowan singled to drive him in. With one out, Owen Murray walked and Parker then singled to drive in one run. After Parker was caught stealing, George followed with a single to left to drive in the third run.

Union responded with a run in the second on two hits, but Owen closed the door with a strike out and a soft grounder to the mound. Westfield did not score in the bottom of the second despite a double by Daniel Criscuolo and three walks in the inning. Daniel was thrown out attempting to steal second, and Westfield Blue stranded three runners in the inning.

Union got the first two runners on in the top of the third, but both runners were stranded as a result of three fine outfield plays. Westfield struck again in the bottom of the third. Rowan led off with a walk, but was the thrown out trying to steal second (the third runner thrown out attempting to steal). Owen Colwell then walked and advanced to third on a double by Parker. George then scored both runners with a 2 RBI single to left. Score after 3 – Westfield 5…Union 1.

Rowan Oberman took the mound in the fourth and limited Union to one hit in the inning. Fine plays by Justin at second and Tyler at short kept Union in check. Westfield went down in order in the bottom of the fourth.

Union threatened to make it a game in the fifth. After a leadoff single, Rowan retired the next two batters, but then the 10th hitter in the lineup hit a sharp grounder up the middle. Daniel dove for the ball but only got a piece, knocking the ball sideways and allowing the batter to stretch the hit into a double. With two outs and the potential third run in scoring position, Union’s 11th hitter lofted a soft fly ball down the right field line. Daniel got a good jump from second base and made an outstanding catch going back on the ball, saving a sure run and ending the rally. Westfield pushed through an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth on singles by Owen Brancatella, Justin Lankler and an rbi double by Tyler. Score after 5 – Westfield 6…Union 2.

In the sixth, Rowan retired the side in order on two fine plays by Tyler and one by Parker. Westfield did not bat in the bottom of the sixth. Final Score – Westfield 6…Union 2.

Game Recap by S.Criscuolo

Devanney Murray picks up 2 RBIs

Guest commentary by MJ and Mitchell Bryk

Westfield Blue tops Union 12-8 in extra innings

Westfield Blue played 5 outstanding innings Thursday night in a league game against Union, but a bizarre 6th inning forced the game into extra innings. Fortunately WB prevailed 12-8 after 8 innings.

Union struck first, scoring 3 runs in the first inning on a series of hits and walks. WB came back with 1 run in the top of the 2nd after Justin Lin worked a walk , stole 2nd and 3rd and scored on a grounder by Justin Lankler. Union was held scoreless in the bottom of the 2nd making the score 3-1 after 2 innings of play.

WB rallied in the top of the 3rd. After Daniel Criscuolo and Rowan Oberman drew walks, Owen Murray hit a blast that bounced just before the 200 ft center field fence. Unfortunately, the ball bounced over the fence limiting Murray to a ground rule double and Oberman to 3rd base. Not wanting to leave his teammates stranded, Parker Hess next ripped a double to send both runners home and take a 4-3 lead.

WB added to its lead in the top of the 4th. Lin drew a lead off walk, followed by a single from Will Stern. Dan Criscuolo and Owen Brancatella followed with singles of their own allowing WB to add 2 more runs. Union added one run themselves in the bottom of the 4th. Both teams went quietly in the 5th leaving WB with a 6-4 lead after 5.

In the top of the 6th, WB got a rally started with walks by Lin, Stern and Justin Lankler. Liam Loughlin then worked another walk to score Lin and take the lead. Criscuolo added to the lead with an RBI single to put WB ahead 8-4 going into the bottom of the 6th.

In the bottom of the 6th, things started to get ugly. The WB defense momentarily forgot how to catch the ball. When they did finally remember, the umpire wasn’t looking. Union took full advantage of this lapse and tied the game at 8-8, sending it into extra innings.

Neither team score in the 7th but in the top of the 8th WB said “enough is enough –let’s end this”. Lin started it off with a single but Union retired the next 2 batters. Loughlin drew a walk and Criscuolo singled to pick up another RBI. OB followed this with an RBI single of his own and then Oberman crushed Union’s hopes with 2 RBI double putting WB up 12-8. The WB defense regained their composure in the bottom of the 8th and shut Union down to win the game 12-8.

Pitching duties were shared by Owen Colwell, Owen Murray and Rowan Oberman.

O. Murray smashes ground rule double to center

O. Murray tags runner on the butt at 2nd

Oberman knocks in 2 with 2B

Colwell was so dominant he pitched from his knees

OB picks up an RBI

Lin singles

Hess rips a 2 bagger

Stern singles

Westfield Blue hands defeat to Branchburg 11-10

The summer is in full swing as is the league play of the Westfield
Blue travel baseball team. On a hot afternoon, they traveled on
the road to play the yet undefeated Branchburg team, the same team
that Westfield Blue lost to in last year's finals. With a sense of
revenge in mind, the Westfield Blue boys had a quick start
offensively. In the first inning, Colwell reached base after 2 outs
thanks to good defensive plays of Branchburg. Murray then drew a
walk, Hess hit a two RBI double, and the Westfield Blue lead 2-1
after one inning. After a scoreless 2nd, the Westfield Blue had an
explosion in the 3rd, swinging their bats well. Roth reached first, Oberman drew
a walk, and Colwell hit a double scoring Roth. After Oberman stole
home on a wild pitch upping the score to 4-1, Murray also drew a
walk. Colwell and Murray each stole a base, and Hess then hit his 2nd
two RBI double. But the Westfield Blue was not done, Lin would add
one more score after reaching base, and Stern tagged on another run
on a hit by Loughlin. After held scoreless in the 4th, Hess led off
in the 5th reaching base on a walk. Devanney Murray hit a line drive
to the middle for a double. After Hess stole home, Lin hit a
fly ball to right field scoring Murray who came on as the pinch
runner, which turned out to be the winning run of the game.

Defensively, the Westfield outfielders, Loughlin, Murray,
Brancatella, Criscuolo and Lankier had a great day catching hard hit
fly balls, which were keys in the game to stop the high powered
offense of Branchburg. The pitching was handled by Murray, and Roth,
Lin and Oberman. Murray's fast ball was very effective limiting
Branchburg to one score after two innings. Roth, Lin and Oberman all
pitched well in relief. A scare happened in the 5th when Lin was hit
by a ground-ball. When asked by coach Murray, he said that he was hit
at his funny bone near his knee. But he was fine after Oberman
relieved him, who then held the opponent scoreless in the sixth
inning preserving a much needed win against the league leading
Branchburg team.

Recap by L. Lin