Sunday, November 10, 2013---The #1 seed Angry Leprechauns squared off against the #2 seed Insects at Mama Johnson Field in Hoboken, NJ for the Carlton Fisk Division Championship.  There were gold gloves, big bats, and all-star players who were laying it all on the line for one game. The game had all of the elements needed to make your hair rise for an electrifying championship game. 

The excitement started with the very first pitch of the game with Insect’s leadoff hitter Greg Betancourt, who crushed a ball to right field for a solo homerun to give his team a 1 to nothing lead. The Angry Leprechauns looked to answer back, but Insect shortstop Ryan Arcadia and 2^nd baseman Teddy Link did what theyve done all season long.  They made a remarkable double play, and the team looked like they were going to take control of the game early on.  However, the Angry Leprechauns had a huge 2 out rally in the bottom of the 1^st inning.  Angry Lep Jon Polonitza and Bryan Giannecchini both hit 2 run home runs to give their team a 4 to 1 lead.  Jon and Bryan finished the game with a combined 9 RBIs.

It looked like the Angry Leprechauns were going to exterminate the Insects with the score 9 to 1 after two innings.

But as the game went on, the Insects started to settle down.  The momentum started to shift in the bottom of the 3^rd inning. 

Greg Betancourt launched a pivotal grand slam to get the ball rolling.  His teammates Ryan Arcadia and Gus Guida followed with two solo homeruns.  The three of them accounted for 14 RBIs and Gus had 3 homeruns in the game.

After getting off to a rocky start, the Insects’ defense started to click.  They shut out the Angry Leprechauns 6 out of the 9 innings played.  Joseph Torre and Alexandra Elkas made it look easy in the outfield, making hard plays look routine.  Their 3^rd baseman Andrew Thurmond made a tough play off a hard hit ball hit down the line by Bryan Giannacchini to get the out at 1^st base.

The crowd really got their money’s worth because the score was tied 11 to 11 in the 7^th inning and the players really stepped up their game with highlight after highlight.  Insect’s left fielder Greg Betancourt really impressed the crowd with his arm.  He threw out Angry Leprechaun Tommy Johns sliding into 3^rd base.  The highlight of the game goes to Angry Leprechauns’ outfielder Bryan Giannacchini.  He made a ridiculous catch at the top of the fence in left field which left the crowd stunned in amazement.

The tie game was broken in the 7^th and 8^th innings with the Insects hitting in 5 runs.  Amanda McKinlay and Melissa Manganelli both gave their team some breathing room with their RBI singles and their ace Leo Ehrline made life easy for his defense by striking out 2 of the 3 batters in the bottom of the 9^th inning to end the game. 

The Insects defeated the Angry Leprechauns 16 to 11.

After having a slow start to the season, the Insects established their team’s identity of great offense complimented by strong defense.  They finished the season with a 7 game winning streak, finishing with an 8 and 2 record and accomplished the only statistic that matters.  They are the Carlton Fisk Champions and ABL congratulates them on a superb season.