Sports
Winchester Little Leaguers Prepare to Host Regional Tournamet
Opening ceremonies begin Friday night with first pitch Saturday. Winchester kicks off its tournament at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.
For the next week, the best 11-year-old Cal Ripken teams in the Northeast will battle it out in Winchester to determine who will becrowned regional champion.
The action starts Friday at noon at Nutile Field with a Home Run Derby, followed by a throwing accuracy contest at 1 p.m. and a team relay baserunning contest at 1:45. The teams will attend a champions banquet at night, followed by the opening ceremony.
The opening ceremony, which is scheduled to start at 7 p.m., will feature a parade of player, a martial arts performance, a band and appearances by the Lexington Minutemen and the Lexington Militia color guard.
Find out what's happening in Winchesterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
As the host site, Winchester gained automatic entry into the eight-team tournament.
"The team is so excited, it's hard for them to contain themselves," manager Greg Fuccillo said. "Last year we won the district championship and went to the state championship, so this is another step up for us."
Find out what's happening in Winchesterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Fuccillo said his top three pitchers are injured now, so he doesn't have a clear-cut rotation for the tournament, but the team's strength is its balance.
"We have a bunch of steady players everywhere and no superstars," Fuccillo said. "We have three new kids (out of 15), and everyone else has been on the team since they were nine years old."
The host will play Raynham, the Eastern Massachusetts representative, Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the first round. The winner of that game will play Sunday at 2:30 p.m., while the loser will play Sunday at 7:30 p.m.
The other teams in the tournament are New Fairfield (Conn.), Skowhegan (Maine), Marlborough (Mass.), Barrington (N.H.), Hudson (N.H.) and Cranston (R.I.). There is no World Series in the 11-year-old age bracket, so this is the furthest any team will advance.
"It's a great thing for the community," Fuccillo said of hosting a regional. "It brings in a little revenue and people get to see what a great community we live in. The kids are enjoying it, and it's good to see the little guys happy."
Winchester hosted the Cal Ripken 12-and-under World Series tournament last year, and will host another World Series in 2012.
There are still volunteer opportunities available for the week. Anyone interested should visit the Sachem youth baseball and softball website, sybs.org.
