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Rebels 2010 Independence Open Champs!

Posted by Mike Conry at Jul 5, 2010 7:03PM PDT ( 2 Comments )

Bethpage, NY – The North Bellmore North Merrick Rebels won the 2010 Independence Open Tournament championship game in convincing fashion today, 18-3, against the East Meadow Mustangs.

The Mustangs, the only other undefeated team in the tournament to date, grabbed an early lead with one unearned run in the top of the first.

But the Rebels went ahead in their half of the first and never looked back.

The combination of East Meadow’s failure to execute and a barrage of Rebels hits led to yet another dominant and run-rule-shortened victory for the Rebels –- their third of the four games they played in this tournament. The Rebels totaled 64 runs-for and 15 runs-against.

Rebels starting pitcher Jack Delaney had a strong outing going the full four required innings for the complete-game victory.

The champs celebrated their victory at a pool party graciously hosted by Coach Sam and Mrs. Acri where players and parents alike had a great time.

Having savored their victory for a day, the Rebels will get right back on the road to tournament championships tomorrow at 5:30 pm when they return to the 2010 Williamsport NY District 31 play-offs and face Merrick LL at Merrick Road Park.

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Rebels Advance to Final at Independence Open

Posted by Mike Conry at Jul 4, 2010 10:56AM PDT ( 0 Comments )

Bethpage, NY – The NBNM Rebels defeated the host Bethpage Eagles for the second time in as many days to advance to the championship final.

Rebels starting pitcher Matt Conry got touched up for two runs in the top of the first after yielding a walk and a double but threw shut-out ball his next three innings.

Rebels hitters needed to make some adjustments as they saw five different Eagles pitchers in the course of the game. They settled in in innings two and three when they put their hits together scoring 3 and 8 runs, respectively.

With the score 11-2 after four, Alec Acri came on in relief and quickly sat down Bethpage in the fifth.

After a long day in the hot sun, the Eagles had scratched out four runs in the sixth, the beneficiaries of some free passes and shaky defense with several players out of their regular positions. With the bases loaded and two out, the Eagles managed a well-struck single up the middle. As one run scored, centerfielder Tyler McPartland played the ball cleanly and fired a beautiful one-hopper to catcher Mike Proios who was in perfect position. Proios completed the execution of the great play when he gathered the throw while blocking the plate and applied the tag for the final out with the sliding baserunner never reaching home.

The Rebels move on to play the Plainedge Red Devils in the Independence Open final tomorrow July 5, 11:30 am at Borella Field. Players should arrive by 10:30.

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Rebels Off to Quick Start in Independence Open

Posted by Mike Conry at Jul 3, 2010 8:47AM PDT ( 0 Comments )

Bethpage, NY – The North Bellmore North Merrick Rebels are off to a flying start in the 2010 Independence Open going 2-0 and outscoring their opponents a combined 35-5.

In game one against the Massapequa Cyclones yesterday, the Rebels cruised to a 15-2 run-rule-shortened victory on the backs of solid pitching from Nick Valeriano and Kevin Weber and hits throughout the lineup.

Similarly, when they took the field today against the host Bethpage Eagles, the Rebels, behind hurlers Brian Porricelli and Eric Solomon, had an easy go of it in another run-ruled game, 20-3.

Despite these easy wins, the Rebels need to keep things in perspective and never look past their next opponent nor take them lightly. They need to have the discipline to not allow any bad habits to creep into their game play even when a matchup comes along that doesn’t push them to their limits. This is yet another hallmark of a successful team and part of the lessons learned in getting there.

The Rebels next game in the Independence Open is tomorrow July 4, 11:00 am at Borrella Field. Players should arrive no later than 10:00 am.

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Thank You

Posted by Sam Acri at Jul 3, 2010 3:25AM PDT ( 1 Comment )

Mike:

Your recaps are like our team, second to none. Thank You
As for the team, to them I would also like to say Thank You.
Win or lose, they make me proud to be there coach.

Sam

Massapequa, NY – With a mammoth walk-off hit in the 11th inning, before a riveted, gathering crowd, the North Bellmore North Merrick Rebels won an epic battle with the Massapequa International Braves yesterday, 12-11.

To be sure, the early part of this game featured lots of sloppy play, mostly by the Rebels who uncharacteristically yielded an abundance of extra outs and free bases on fielding errors, bad decisions, and ill-advised and poorly executed throws. To the Braves credit, they capitalized on the Rebels’ charity. While the Rebels hit hard and scored often in the early going, their poor defense combined with what appeared to be all the good breaks and fortune going to Massapequa, helped the Braves keep pace.

The Braves got on the board with an unearned run in the top of the first.

The Rebels came back in the bottom of the second to take the lead, 2-1.

On a day when starter Kevin McCleneghan didn’t have his very best stuff, he certainly pitched well enough to give the Rebels the opportunity to win if the defense played like they’re capable. He reached his pitch-count limit in the top of the fourth with no one out and NBNM leading 5-2.

Brian Porricelli came on in relief with the bases full of Braves. Without the defensive help he should have gotten, the inning ended with the Braves taking the lead, 6-5.

The Rebels offense stayed hot and their confidence high as they answered right back with four runs in their half of the fourth to regain the lead, 9-6.

The Braves bats had started to come alive by the fifth. Jack Delaney and then Mike Proios came on in relief of Porricelli but when the inning was over the Braves had posted another crooked number and the lead changed back to Massapequa, 10-9.

At this point, the quality of play took a 180-degree turn for the better. Both sides were now playing excellent defense and the Braves made a couple of great plays in the field to rob Rebels hits.

Proios kept the Braves scoreless in the top of the sixth.

With their backs against the wall, the Rebels came out in the bottom of the sixth needing a run to tie. Showing true grit and a never-say-die attitude, NBNM scratched out the tying run and forced extra innings.

At this point, solid pitching and defense took over. By now, the drama of this game drew the attention of passers-by and an interested crowd gathered. Despite the palpable tension and pressure, the Rebels’ Proios and the Braves pitcher exchanged three shut-out innings each.

In the top of the 10th, Matt Conry relieved Proios who had reached his pitch-count limit after an outstanding performance and the game still tied, 10-10. After getting ahead of the first batter, Conry lost control of an off-speed pitch that hit the batter and the Braves had their lead-off man aboard. Two pitches later, the baserunner advanced on a wild pitch and the go-ahead run was in scoring position. Conry settled down and struck out the next two batters he faced. With two outs and a man on second, the next Braves batter had a hard hit double into the left-centerfield gap to drive in a run and the Braves led, 11-10. Conry fanned the next batter for the final out of the inning.

Once again, the Rebels came up with their backs against it. Fresh off his clutch and gutsy pitching performance, Proios stepped in to lead off the bottom of the tenth. Mike dropped a bunt down toward third base. With both corners charging, the Massapequa pitcher fielded the ball and fired toward first where the second-baseman was late arriving to cover. The throw sailed past first and out toward rightfield as Proios hustled all the way to third and a break had finally come the Rebels way. Next, Conry came up and showed bunt. After failing to execute, the count reached 1-2. But the bunt remained on and Conry got it down on the first base side. The pitcher fielded the bunt, looked at Proios with a big lead at third, froze him and threw to first. As Conry was called out on a bang-bang play at first, Proios had broken for home on the throw. The Braves first baseman fired home but not in time to get the sliding Proios and the Rebels had again tied the score, 11-11. With the Rebels bench and fans all fired up, next up was Jack Delaney. On the first pitch, Delaney proceeded to slash a double right over the third base bag and down the leftfield line. With the winning run 120 feet away, the Rebels’ Alec Acri strode into the batter’s box. With the count 1-0, Acri turned on an up-and-in fastball and ripped a bomb deep into the left-centerfield alley to drive in the game-winner with a walk-off double. Acri was summarily mobbed by elated teammates, virtually all of whom contributed in some way to this exhilarating victory.

While it wasn’t the prettiest game the Rebels have ever won, it did show the guts and tenacity that a successful team must have. This may be a game that the Rebels look back on where they proved to themselves just how tough they can be even when things don’t appear to be going their way.

The Rebels followed the win with some celebratory burgers and fries at All-American compliments of birthday-boy Matt Conry’s grandpa.

The victory moves the Rebels into the third round of the Williamsport District 31 play-off winner’s bracket where they will face Merrick Tuesday July 6, 5:30pm at Merrick Road Park.