North Bellmore, NY – The Three Village Yankees topped the North Bellmore North Merrick Rebels Wednesday in the first contest of the NJBL Summer League.

Over the first five innings, the Yankees chipped away to a 4-0 lead as the Rebels played less than stellar defense, struggled to put hits together and could not execute their usually effective ‘small ball’ when they did have men reach base.

NBNM showed their tenacity, however, when their bats awoke in the bottom of the sixth and they plated 4 runs to force extra innings.

In the top of the seventh, though, the Yankees scratched out one more, which held up for the 5-4 final.

In post-game comments, preparing the team for next week’s tournament, Coach Bob Delaney noted, "This was like a typical Williamsport game where the team that makes the most mistakes loses and today we made more mistakes."

The Rebels next game is Monday 6/28, 5:30pm at Burns Park in Massapequa as they kick-off their bid for the 2010 Williamsport Tournament.