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STAMFORD, Conn. National Lione All-Star pitcher Jay DeVito was tired of losing to North Stamford. So Thursday night, he did something about it.
Lione pitched a complete-game six-hitter to lead the Lione All-Stars to a 4-1 victory over North Stamford in a Pool A game in the District 1 Little League tournament. Lione improved to 4-0 in the tournament, while North Stamford fell to 3-1.
"I'm happy to beat them,'' said DeVito, who struck out seven and walked three. "It's just not fun losing. Two years in a row they knocked us out."
North Stamford had won 10 straight games against National Lione in District 1 All-Star competition over the past few years, in 10-and-under, 11-and-under and 12-and-under age groups. Lione knew it had its work cut out Thursday as it faced North Stamford ace Grant Stone.
The pitchers matched zeroes until the third, when Lione scored on Donnie DePina's RBI single. Chipper Howe singled to start the inning, took second on an error and stole third. DePina, who had two hits, followed one out later with a single for the game's first run.
Lione added to its lead in the fifth on Michael Tufano's two-run double and Kieran Duncan's RBI single. North Stamford's run came in the sixth on Ryan Cahill's home run leading off the inning.
"I thought it would be a low-scoring game,'' North Stamford manager Dave Grafstein said. "Jay pitched a very smart game. He kept us off-balance. We never seemed comfortable at the plate."
Stone pitched well in a losing cause. He struck out 10 and walked one. Lione touched him for 10 hits, including two each by DeVito, DePina and Duncan. "We have a coach that throws as fast as him at practice,'' DeVito said. "That geared us up."
Telly Colarossi had three hits for North Stamford, which stranded seven runners. Lione also played solid defense, including a nice play by DeVito to cut down a run at home in the first, a neat running catch in right by Anthony Frangiose and an excellent throw by Tufano, who nailed a runner trying to stretch a single into a double.
Lione's work is not done. It still has games against Redding on Saturday and Stamford Northrop on Sunday. The team would probably advance with a split, but a loss could throw it into a tiebreaker.
North Stamford, the two-time defending District 1 champion, faces Stamford American on Saturday and Ridgefield American on Sunday. "We need to win out,'' Grafstein said. "We have some work to do. It's going to be all hands on deck on Saturday."
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