by Ethan Marshall
Rebels head coach Bob Mascia on the team’s championship-winning performance. pic.twitter.com/WvN4GXZ8vL
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 30, 2020
The LIB Rebels, behind a six-run rally with two outs in the bottom of the fifth, beat Titans Schiff 10-6 to win the Summer League Championship. The Rebels’ 4-7 hitters: Nick Lombardi, Sam Kay, Cooper Schramm and Chase DeSantis; combined to go 8-for-9 with two walks, a hit batsman, six runs scored and nine RBI. Kay’s two-run double in the fifth broke a 4-4 tie and was the first of three straight RBI hits.
“I was just looking to get a hit,” Kay said. Kay also credited his team for keeping the line moving throughout the game. “When one [player] got out, we just picked them up and got hits. Rebels head coach Bob Mascia was really impressed with the way his team played leading up to the championship. “We played like a team,” Coach Mascia said. “We have guys that always pick each other up and that’s why we’ve been good all summer long.”
The Rebels went ahead 1-0 in the second inning on a RBI single by Chase DeSantis, scoring Cooper Schramm, who doubled and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Rebels starting pitcher Ronan Keely worked his way out of trouble through the first two innings and struck out the first two batters in the third, for a total of seven. However, a walk by Kyle Zinger and single from Sal Ansaldi set up another scoring opportunity for the Titans. Tyler Comastro drilled a three-run homer over the left field fence, putting the Titans up 3-1. Jason Creegan then reached on a throwing error and Ryan Fiscella followed with a single to put runners on the corners for Eddie Schiff. He hit a bullet to left field that looked like it was going to land for a hit, but left fielder Connor Umstead made a terrific diving catch to stop at least one run from scoring. In the bottom of the third, back-to-back one-out singles by JP Perlman and Robbie Mascia and a two-out walk by Nick Lombardi loaded the bases for Kay, who came through with a RBI single to cut the deficit to 3-2. Schramm followed with a two-run double to right-center, putting the Rebels back in front 4-3. After a single by Schiff and a wild pitch in the top of the fourth, Jase Weiner tied the game at 4-4 with a RBI
single to right field.
The Rebels’ Sam Kay on his big day at the plate, including the go-ahead hit in the fifth. pic.twitter.com/R1Efe0EMxl
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 30, 2020
Back-to-back walks by Liam Carley and Perlman to start the bottom of the fifth set the table for the Rebels. After the next two batters were retired, Nick Lombardi worked a walk to load the bases for Kay, who laced a two-run double to right-center. Schramm followed with a RBI single to make it 7-4. Then Schramm successfully drew a throw to second on a stolen base attempt, allowing Kay to steal home before Schramm made it back to first. DeSantis then crushed a two-run homer over the center field fence to make it 10-4. The Titans put together a two-out rally of their own after Ryan Fiscella was hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Tyler Donohue followed with a RBI single before Eddie Schiff connected with a RBI double, cutting the deficit to 10-6. However, the Rebels were able to record
the last out and win the championship.
