Derry area youths to contend for regional baseball titles

By Shawn Cunningham
© 2017 Telegraph Publishing LLC

Two Manchester Youth Baseball teams will be heading to Massachusetts this weekend as Vermont state champions. In a tournament earlier this month, the 12-year-olds and under and 10-year-olds and under teams won the right to play in the regional competition of the Cal Ripken Baseball League.

The winner of the regional tournament will play for the national titles in August in Clemmons, N.C., (for the 12 and under) and Hammond, Ind. (for the 10 and under.)

The 12 year olds  — who played teams from Bellows Falls, the North East Kingdom and the Winooski area on July 1 and 2 and was undefeated – included five players from the Londonderry area. The tournament was played in Manchester.

The 10 year olds played in South Royalton and, after one loss, came back to defeat the Dresden/Montshire region team twice to take the title.

The older boys will go to Raynham, Mass. for a tournament that will seed the winners on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and the winners will compete Monday through Thursday. The younger team will participate in a similar tourney in Marlboro, Mass.

The Vermont teams will be facing teams from Connecticut, Rhode Island, Eastern and Western Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire.

The players from the Londonderry area are Sebastian Dostal, Shea Smithwick, Evan Smilko, Tor Borgia, Charlie Cyr, Ryan Kramer, Jakob Crossman, Wyatt Teaford, Coleman Reese, Nathan Smilko and Dillion Poddick.

Last weekend, the teams worked to raise funds for the trip, holding raffles and taking donations at the West River and Dorsest farmers markets, Clark’s IGA in Londonderry and Shaw’s in Manchester. The $4,600 raised will help defray travel expenses for the teams.