West Side wins Red Andrews championship

William Geoghegan
Posted 8/12/14

A long summer of baseball had an unexpected addendum for 12 Warwick West Side Little Leaguers.

They were glad it did.

West Side was a late entry into the Red Andrews Tournament, but its squad …

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West Side wins Red Andrews championship

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A long summer of baseball had an unexpected addendum for 12 Warwick West Side Little Leaguers.

They were glad it did.

West Side was a late entry into the Red Andrews Tournament, but its squad didn’t look like a last-minute, on-the-fly project. With several players from the league’s 10-year-old all-star team and a few 11-year-olds, West Side surged to three straight victories and won the championship with a 6-1 win over Wickford on Saturday night at Warwick National Little League.

It’s only the second time in the 29-year history of the Red Andrews Tournament that West Side has won the title.

“Like I was just saying to the kids, very few teams get to end the season on a win, so it’s a big positive,” said West Side manager Ken Rix.

West Side’s only other title came in 2012, with a veteran team that was geared up to make a run at the crown. This team’s run didn’t have quite as much build-up, but it was just as enjoyable for the champs.

“For me, the idea of this tournament, when we got in it last minute, was to just kind of enjoy the game,” Rix said. “Everything’s been kind of high-stakes – trying to win a league championship, some of them went to all-stars. This is still tournament play, but our mindset was, ‘Let’s just enjoy it. We’ll try different positions and see where the chips fall.’”

West Side beat Warwick National in extra innings to open the tournament then knocked off Apponaug for the championship spot. There, it would meet a Wickford team full of 12-year-olds that had already played in several tournaments this summer. Wickford has also won more Red Andrews championships than any other league. It won title No. 9 in 2013.

On Saturday, Wickford raced to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on a single by Owen Embury and an RBI double off the fence by Ben Haberman.

But from then on, it was all West Side. It scored four runs in the bottom of the first and never trailed. Dom Brazeau tossed a complete game with nine strikeouts.

The first inning was key. After giving up the run, West Side quickly answered in the bottom half. Aaron Narcavage reached on an error and Brazeau was hit by a pitch. Dylan Gallagher then smacked a double to right to score two. Kenny Rix hit a ball off the fence for an RBI double and Chase Pariseau knocked him in with an RBI single, making it 4-1.

“They put the ball in play,” Ken Rix said. “It was really a solid inning.”

Wickford got base hits from Henry Hersam and Jack Bellemore to start the second inning, but Brazeau stranded them with three straight ground-ball outs.

That started a great stretch for the right-hander, who retired nine in a row before a leadoff single by Noah Quarella in the fifth.

“Dominic, we stretched him out,” Rix said. “He usually stays down around 50 pitches, but he got up into the mid-70’s today. He was strong. We weren’t going to change it. He’s very strong in the strike zone, and he’s a smart pitcher. He usually doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. He had good defense behind him. We were solid tonight.”

West Side had given Brazeau even more breathing room with two runs in the third on singles by Gallagher and Kenny Rix and a two-run double by Chase Pariseau.

Brazeau didn’t need the extra help. He retired three in a row after the leadoff hit in the fifth. Justin Gutkowski doubled in the sixth, but Brazeau didn’t let him score, finishing the game with a strikeout.

That sealed the title for West Side.

It was unexpected – but no less fun.

“To get into the championship and win it, there’s nothing better,” Ken Rix said. “It’s good for the kids to leave on a positive note and get ready for next year.”

West Side team members were Aaron Narcavage, Dom Brazeau, Dylan Gallagher, Sean Gallagher, Kenny Rix, Chase Pariseau, Gary Dombeck, Joey Izzi, Anthony Blade, Bryan Denton, Cullen McGrew and Danny Riccio.

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