60°
NORWALK, Conn. – Marinello’s Pizzeria has been the dominant team in Norwalk Recreation and Parks softball for nearly a decade. After it failed to win the East Division title last year, some thought the team might be in decline.
Monday, however, Marinello’s veteran lineup showed it still has some fight left. The pizza powerhouse outslugged the defending champion Aces twice, 25-22 and 26-20, to win the city championship at Calf Pasture Beach. Marinello’s, which was knocked into the losers bracket early in the tournament, defeated Smitty’s Softball, 20-8, on Monday in the losers bracket final. It then needed to defeat the Aces twice in the championship round to win the title. It took four hours and 71 runs, but Marinello's was back in its usual spot as the best recreation softball team in Norwalk.
“I feel pretty confident about our hitting,’’ manager Tony Cappuccia said. “We have a couple of new guys, but for the most part this is the same team that we’ve had in the past.”
Monday’s games against the Aces were like a great heavyweight fight, with both teams landing hard body shots during the two-game, 2½-hour slugfest. In both games, the Aces jumped out to leads with big first innings. Each time, Marinello’s responded with the lumber that is its trademark.
The Aces jumped on top Marinello’s with nine runs in the first inning of Game 2. Marinello’s responded with six in its half of the inning, and the fireworks kept coming. Marinello’s trailed 20-19 entering the bottom of the sixth when it scored six runs to take the lead for good. Johnny Kurdy’s RBI double tied it, and Brian Vickers ripped a two-run double to put Marinello’s ahead to stay.
Vickers went 5-for-5 with eighth RBIs in the nightcap, including a grand slam in the first inning. Kurdy also had five hits, including a grand slam, five RBIs and five runs scored. Kurdy and Vickers combined for 19 hits, 14 RBIs and 14 runs scored in the two games. Tim Arciola had eight hits over two games. Dave Dunkelberger was one of Marinello’s hitting stars in the opener, socking two home runs and driving home six runs. Marinello’s had 54 hits in the two games.
The Aces clubbed the ball, too. Doug Vroman had six hits, two home runs and eight RBIs in the opening game. In the nightcap, Vroman had four hits, and the only time he was retired was when he hit a home run. Teams are limited to the number of home runs it can hit per game. Anything beyond the allowable number is an out. The second game ended when Matt O’Brien hit a ball over the fence for the final out.
“The Aces do a phenomenal job,’’ Cappuccia said. “They’re a great team and they put up a great fight. They never backed down.”
Marinello’s lost just once during the regular season in the Tuesday Night League. The Aces went 11-3 in the Friday Night League and steamrolled through the city tournament. Until Monday night. “It feels great to get it back,’’ Cappuccia said.
Team members for Marinello’s on Monday included Dave Gregoire, Anthony Passaniti, Tim Arciola, Johnny Kurdy, Brian Vickers, Darren Opper, Kenny Mathews, Dave Dunkelberger, Kevin Remson and Tony Luciano.
