JACKSON –The World Series may be coming up but members of the Jackson Little League All Star Team have already enjoyed their spotlight following their successful season.
The All Stars recently received a proclamation from Mayor Michael Reina during a recent Township Council meeting that was read by Council President Jennifer Kuhn.
As the team awaited their big night in the hallways of Town Hall – having arrived early during the Council’s executive session – their manager, Mat Wilder told The Jackson Times about the team’s exciting season and how a dozen Jackson boys made 9U Jackson Little League (JLL) history.
“The night of May 16, was a beautiful, cool night with not a cloud in the sky. However, for those watching the tryouts for the 9U Jackson Little League All Star team, the temperature was just a little bit hotter. They were watching some of the most promising little leaguers that Jackson Little League has ever seen demonstrate more than just the basics of baseball,” Wilder added.
He noted that “it was obvious to everyone at that time that this group of kids would be special. This team was trying to win the Barnegat 9U Little League All Star Tournament, something that no Jackson team has done in more than 20 years.”
Wilder noted that to accomplish the task, they would need to defeat some of the best little league teams in the area, including Toms River, Toms River East, Brick and Berkeley.
“Saying this team defeated all comers is underselling just how dominant they were. They went 6-0, outscored their opponents 64-5, had multiple players hit over 0.750, and saw their pitchers average more than two strikeouts every inning. Four of the six games played did not get past the fourth inning due to the mercy rule. This team was ready from the first pitch to the last out,” he added.
The Tournament
Wilder said, “the tournament opened with a 12-2 win over Barnegat that saw 9 of the 12 players score a run for Jackson Little League, demonstrating just how strong this team was top to bottom. The second game of the tournament was a 19-0 rout over SOBA where every single player scored a run and seven players scored at least two runs.”
“The first two games of the tournament were for seeding, and the kids from Jackson Little League landed in the #2 seed after outscoring their opponents 31-2. In the first round of seeded play, Jackson Little League took on Manchester and were victorious 14-3,” Wilder added. “Ten of the 12 players scored a run, yet again demonstrating the depth of the lineup.”
“What wasn’t known at the time was that this would be the last game that saw JLL surrender even one run to their opponents. In Jackson’s toughest game of the tournament, they defeated Toms River 3-0. Toms River did well to keep it close as Jackson continually had men on base and were putting the ball in play,” Wilder said.
He added that with a trip to the championship game on the line, JLL “took care of Berkeley 10-0 in the semi-finals. Yet again, seven players from Jackson scored a run. The kids from Berkeley would get another shot at Jackson Little League in the Championship game but Jackson was just too strong and won 6-0.”
Jackson put up three runs in the first inning and never looked back as they cruised to the championship and trophy presentation. There are only so many superlatives to describe this team of 8- and 9-year-olds. This team was as dominant as they were because not only are they special ballplayers, but they are special people and teammates,” Wilder noted.
Wilder described the team saying, “they continually pulled for each other no matter the circumstance. They would pick each other up if they struck out or made an error. When adversity reared its ugly head, it was quickly cast aside.”
He added that each of the “boys espoused the virtues of character, courage and loyalty which are the tenets of little league baseball.”
The Ballplayers
Wilder noted each player stating, “Luca Calise collected five hits along with two walks showing that age is just a number as he was one of only two 8U players playing up on the 9U team. Landyn Ernst was determined to be a tough out whenever his number was called, leading the team in walks with five.”
“Peter Ferraioli used his speed throughout the tournament to manufacture runs by stealing bases and taking the extra base but he was not only a force on the offensive side,” the coach added. “Peter was tasked with taking the mound on multiple instances, including in the championship game where he came on in relief with the bases loaded and got the final 4 outs without allowing a run to clinch the championship, showing that he has ice water in his veins.”
Wilder described Gage Fisher as a “brick wall at the catcher’s position where he caught 24 innings, allowing only one passed ball where opponents would regularly have 5-6 passed balls per game; Gage also put in work on the mound where he pitched the semi-final championship game, going four innings and allowing a measly three hits while striking out 11 and not allowing a run.”
“Jaxon Fucci was the jack of all trades for this team playing second base, left field and right field throughout the tournament but his biggest moment was in the first inning of the semi-final game with the first batter up where a ball bounced over the pitcher’s head, hitting the back of the mound and making its way up the middle, but not before Jaxon would grab it and fire a strike to first base getting the out and setting the tone for the game,” Wilder added.
As for Chris Gawler, “no player worked harder than Chris, and the championship was his time to shine as he fought off a tough pitch with two outs and a runner on third base which let him use his speed to beat out an infield single, driving in a huge insurance run for Jackson,” Wilder said.
Wilder said Ryder Hobbs had pitched 13 2/3 innings throughout the tournament allowing only eight hits, striking out 31 and allowing only one earned run. “If that wasn’t enough, he had a 0.750 batting average with a 0.813 on base percentage showing how complete a player he is.”
“Logan Lombardi may have had the biggest play in the championship game on a first inning line drive to left field where he snatched it out of the air for an out preventing at least two runs from scoring and showing that Jackson was there to win,” Wilder said.
Wilder added that during the semi-final game with Jackson needing only one run to end the game via the mercy rule, “Danny Olsen got a single down the third base line, moving the runner to third where he would be driven in two batters later to end the game and send Jackson to the championship game.”
“Angelo Salerno was the spark plug for the offense batting leadoff and getting on base to start the game in every single game, resulting in a batting average of 0.615 and an on base percentage of 0.737,” Wilder added.
Aside from playing a gold glove third base throughout the tournament, “Ben Wilder also had a huge double in the second game of the tournament that drove in two runs in the first inning setting the tone for the rest of the game,” Wilder said.
Wilder noted that Noah Zink “was a stalwart at shortstop throughout the entire tournament, converting all eight balls hit to him for outs without making an error, as well as leading the team in batting average and on base percentage at 0.833 and 0.889, respectively.”
JLL is a non-profit charitable organization and is a chartered member of Little League International, Inc. JLL is a member of Little League District 18 of New Jersey and operates as a volunteer-based organization that relies on the support of the families of players, local businesses and corporate and community sponsors.
The league has been a part of the community for more than half a century having been established in 1958. For additional information, e-mail the organization at JacksonNJLittleLeague@gmail.com.
