State finals bound: Negaunee wins sectional, advances to Little League Juniors baseball tournament near Grand Rapids this weekend
Negaunee’s Junior Little League baseball team won wins their two sectional games in Pellston on Friday to advance to the state tournament this weekend. Front row from left, Griffin Leece, Ty Niemi, Waylon Harvala, manager Terry Tincknell, Mason Swenor, Brayden Gleason and Connor Munson. Top row from left, coach Mike Dellangelo, Drake Ayotte, Ethan Gaston, Peyton Black, Vince Tincknell, Evan Dellangelo, Killean Ryan, Max Frustaglio and coach Keith Swenor. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
Negaunee’s Killean Ryan pitches against Petoskey in a Little League Junior baseball sectional tournament game played in Pellston on Friday. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
Negaunee’s Max Frustaglio takes a break while pitching against Petoskey in a Little League Junior baseball sectional tournament game played in Pellston on Friday. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
Negaunee’s Junior Little League baseball team won wins their two sectional games in Pellston on Friday to advance to the state tournament this weekend. Front row from left, Griffin Leece, Ty Niemi, Waylon Harvala, manager Terry Tincknell, Mason Swenor, Brayden Gleason and Connor Munson. Top row from left, coach Mike Dellangelo, Drake Ayotte, Ethan Gaston, Peyton Black, Vince Tincknell, Evan Dellangelo, Killean Ryan, Max Frustaglio and coach Keith Swenor. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
Negaunee’s Killean Ryan pitches against Petoskey in a Little League Junior baseball sectional tournament game played in Pellston on Friday. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
Negaunee’s Max Frustaglio takes a break while pitching against Petoskey in a Little League Junior baseball sectional tournament game played in Pellston on Friday. (Photo courtesy Terry Tincknell)
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PELLSTON -- The Negaunee Junior baseball team will be heading to the state Little League championships this weekend in Grand Rapids.
After winning their District 11 tournament a week earlier in Marquette, the Negaunee squad then had to defeat District 13 champion Petoskey in a best-of-3 series last weekend held in Pellston.
The Upper Peninsula representative needed just two games to advance, both played Friday, as Negaunee won both games.
The first win was the most notable -- a 5 1/2-hour battle played out over 14 innings. Due to the Miners' iron-fisted defense strategy, they were able to keep the game going long enough to finally pull ahead and win 10-9.
The second game, in comparison, went by in a flash with the Yoopers winning 7-1, according to manager Terry Tincknell.
"We had a couple outstanding pitchers (in) our second game," Tincknell said. "Max Frustaglio threw a two-hitter and was the winning pitcher.
"We had amazing defense behind him…. (His) pitching is always just awesome."
They will have to keep that trend going to make a run at a state championship.
The eight-team state tourney is being hosted by the Georgetown Little League in suburban Grand Rapids.
It opens with three games against the other squads in Negaunee's Pool B -- vs. the District 9 team at 3 p.m. Saturday, the District 7-District 14 sectional winner at 9 a.m. Sunday and against the District 3-District 16 sectional winner at 3 p.m. Monday.
District 9 is the host district centered around Grand Rapids, Holland and St. Johns; District 7 includes Port Huron and the southern Thumb area; District 14 has Bay City and the northern Thumb; District 3 is Lansing, Jackson and Ann Arbor; and District 16 includes Monroe, Adrian and Hillsdale along the Ohio border.
Should Negaunee be either the winner or runner-up in Pool B, it would advance to the semifinals at 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. Tuesday, with the state championship game scheduled for 4 p.m. that day.
Coin tosses will determine the home team in each game, according to the state Little League website at www.michiganlittleleague.org.
"Our key contributors are Killean Ryan (and) Evan Dellangelo," Tincknell said. "I think (Dellangelo is) one of the best players in the whole tournament -- no question. That kid is just tremendous. He does it all … he's gotta be one of the best players in the state…. People are going to remember him after the tournaments."
He also called out some unsung heroes he thinks will play a big part in the games to come, including Peyton Black, Ty Niemi and Waylon Harvala among outfielders, and Mason Swenor as well as Brayden Gleason -- the player who caught 11 innings straight.
"Obviously there's going to be great teams down there but if we stick together, we'll compete," Tincknell said as he reflected upon the team's already successful season.
Alexandria Bournonville can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 506. Her email address is abournonville@miningjournal.net.