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DIXIE AAA MAJORS BASEBALL

Photo by JOE DiCRISTOFALO

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! - Spring Hill American’s AAA Majors (ages 11-12) All-Stars demonstrate who is No. 1 following Saturday’s double-header sweep of San Antonio. Members of the team include, first row (left to right): Cody Kimble, Michael Ivers, John Peloro, Jacob Arnett, Sean Nascimento, Jonathan Brosher and C.J. Martinez. Back row: Assistant Coach Howie Woop, Scott Dwyer, Austin Franz, Head Coach Vito Tambasco, Vito Tambasco, Trevor McKenna, Steven Woop and Assistant Coach John Peloro.

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By TONY CASTRO SPORTS EDITOR

Hernando Today

Published: July 4, 2009

You can call the Spring Hill American's AAA Majors (ages 11-12) All-Stars whatever you want.
Resilient. Deep. Maybe even The Comeback Kids.
But at 12:45 p.m. Saturday afternoon at Spring Hill's Anderson Snow Sports Complex – they were called the District 6 champions following huge come-from-behind 10-5 win.
Moments after the last pitch, there was even more controversy.
San Antonio chose not to play a winner-take-all final game in the 94-degree temperatures and forfeited the second tilt to Spring Hill American, giving the West Hernando club its second straight District 6 crown.
It marks Hernando County's ninth district title in 10 years in this age division.
"We competed well all week," explained the former Zephyrhills and Wesley Chapel High Head Coach Steve Mumaw, the current San Antonio skipper. "The kids were outstanding. Our right fielder came up a little short on a diving attempt in the (five-run Spring Hill rally) fifth, but everybody was hustling."
Why not play one more game for all the marbles?
"We did not think playing four games in 36 hours in this heat would benefit anybody," Mumaw said. "We wanted to play at 6 p.m. on Monday. We were told we couldn't, so we made the decision (not to play)."
Any regrets for San Antonio that finished 4-2 this week?
"Everybody on our team gave their best effort," Mumaw said. "And we had tremendous sportsmanship. I have no regrets, but I'd like to have seen what would have happened if we played at 6 o'clock on Monday."

All San Ann early on

For three innings, unbeaten San Antonio appeared en route to a Spring Hill American sweep.
On Monday, it was the East Pasco crew that had handed Head Coach Vito Tambasco Sr.'s club its first and only tourney loss in seven innings, 4-3.
A first-inning walk to stud pitcher/catcher Austin Bergner was followed by a two-run homer down the right field line by Turner Stalnaker.
Two pitches later, Johnathan Coats deposited another Stephen Woop offering over the leftfield fence, 3-0 San Ann.
The rout was on, right?
Not quite. Bergner hurled zeros at Spring Hill (6-1 overall) for three frames. Bergner finished with six strikeouts and no walks. But he ran out of innings, thus forcing a change on the mound. With the switch, reliever Coats permitted a 3-run bomb by John Peloro and an RBI double by Trevor McKenna in a four-run fourth inning, 4-3 Spring Hill.
Peloro finished with a game-high 3-for-4 effort and two runs scored.
Yet, Bergner wasn't done.
Bergner lined a 1-2 Scott Dwyer offering off a mini van's roof over the leftfield seats, 5-4. It was Bergner's fifth homer of the tourney.
It was also the only runs San Antonio would score again off either Dwyer, who came in in the second, or Vito Tambasco, who hurled a scoreless sixth frame.
Besides the three homers, San Antonio enjoyed only one other hit in the stifling heat – a one-out single by Dylan Gobel in the fifth.
Dwyer faced 17 batters in relief of Woop permitting only two hits, including Bergner's bomb, while restoring order.
"When we were down all I was thinking was 'How can I get the team back and get them pumped up?'" said the 12-year-old Dwyer. "Offensively, once they (San Ann) changed pitchers, we got back in the game."
Meanwhile, Spring Hill American's offense broke the game open in the fifth with five runs on four hits and one error off reliever Corey Mumaw.
In the uprising, Tambasco drilled a two-run single to right. McKenna added his second RBI with run-scoring single before Jonathan Brosher parachuted a key two-run triple to right, 9-5 Spring Hill.
"When I got that last hit, I thought it was definitely foul," recalled the 12-year-old Brosher. "I was so happy when it dropped in and right fielder missed it."
How huge was the win?
"It was big because we all came together," replied Brosher. "This was so big for me. I've been on so many Spring Hill teams that never got this far, it was nice to finally win districts."
In the sixth inning off San Ann's fourth pitcher, Austin Alvarez, Cody Kimble scored on a two-out single by Tambasco and San Ann's game-high third error of the game to close the books, 10-5.

Looking back

"We were down early against their first pitcher," explained the 13-year-old McKenna, who finished 2-for-3. "He was a one-man show. He's pretty good, but once he ran out of innings, the game changed."
Is he disappointed in not playing the final game?
"I'm disappointed to a point," said McKenna. "But you know I'll take first place any time."
"Give credit to Scott (Dwyer)," summed up the 12-year-old Tambasco. "He threw four big innings to help save our pitching. I will say I wanted to play San Antonio one more time. The way we finished gave me a lot of confidence going into the second game."
"No matter what happened, we were ready to play," added Coach Tambasco. "Dwyer pitched great after Stephen (Woop) was a little nervous in the first inning. And John (Peloro) hit a huge homer to give us some momentum in the fourth.
"Today showed how good this team can be," added Coach Tambasco, who was Gatoraded by his players afterward. "We can run, we can field, we can hit and we can pitch. Once we got started today, we became a dominant force. I'm so proud of every one of these guys."

SPRING HILL AMERICAN 10, SAN ANTONIO 5
123 456 R H E
SHA 000 451 -- 10 10 0
SA 300 200 -- 5 4 3
SH – Woop, Dwyer (2), Tambasco (6) and Kimble, Ivers (3).
SA – Bergner, Coats (4), Mumaw (5) and Alvarez (6) and Mumaw and Bergner (4).
W – Dwyer. L – Mumaw.
2B – Tambasco, McKenna (SHA).
3B – Brosher (SHA).
HR – Peloro (SHA); Bergner, Stalnaker, Coats (SA).
Records – Spring Hill American (6-1), San Antonio (4-2).

DIXIE YOUTH LEAGUE BASEBALL DISTRICT 6 AAA MAJORS (AGES 11-12) TOURNAMENT RESULTS
at Spring Hill's Anderson Snow Sports Complex (double elimination)

06-27:
Spring Hill American 7, Spring Hill National 5
San Antonio 1, Hernando 0 (11 Inns.)
Wesley Chapel 11, Ridge Manor 0
Bushnell 14, South Lake 10
Oak Griner 5, Wildwood 3
Sumter – received a bye

06-29:
Oak Griner 7, Sumter 6
Spring Hill National 10, Hernando 9
South Lake 26, Ridge Manor 2(4 Inns.)
San Antonio 3, Spring Hill American 2
Bushnell 16, Wesley Chapel 4

06-30:
Spring Hill American 14, Wildwood 4
Wesley Chapel 5, Sumter 4
Bushnell 11, Oak Griner 1
Spring Hill National 6, South Lake 5 (8 Inns.)
San Antonio – bye.

07-01:
Games rained out.

07-02:
Spring Hill National 11, Oak Griner 1 (3 1/2 Inns.)
Spring Hill American 5, Wesley Chapel 0
San Antonio 7, Bushnell 1

07-03:
San Antonio 11, South Lake 9
Spring Hill American 9, Bushnell 2
Spring Hill National (eliminated on reversal of Tuesday's protested call).

07-04:
Spring Hill American 10, San Antonio 5
(Championship)
Spring Hill American wins by forfeit over San Antonio.
NOTE: District 6's top 3 teams: Spring Hill American, San Antonio,
and Bushnell each advance to State Championship in Mulberry.

Sports writer Tony Castro can be reached at 352-544-5278 or acastro@hernandotoday.com.

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