Consistently steady pitching, strong defense and a relentless attack at the plate is a formula for victory at any level of baseball. The NJ Renegades of Wyckoff plugged into all of the above on the way to the 12U Fall Classic championship this past weekend at Diamond Nation.
The Renegades followed three mercy rule victories with a hard fought 6-2 decision over the Diamond Jacks Super 12U in the final to close out their impressive tournament championship run.
“We had some shutdown kids out there on the mound,” said NJ Renegades coach Mike Bellovich. “We used five or six different kids in the four games and went into the championship game with our two aces available.”
Jack Portman worked the first two innings of the final before Nico Bradley closed out the championship victory with four innings of sterling relief. The Renegades (4-0) struck for a pair of runs in the second inning and two more runs in the third to take the early lead on the Super 12 (3-1).
“We didn’t play many innings in the first three games, so we were able to minimize our pitchers’ innings. And there we were with our top two guys in the final,” said Bellovich. “Jack and Nico pitched great against a very good team.”
At the plate, the Renegades were a relentless force using an assortment of avenues to reach their intended goal. “We got key hits in spots, we bunted, we just found ways to score runs,” said Bellovich. “We did a good job against what is always a tough team. It was a collective effort and we worked for it.”
Alex Bellovich, the coach’s son, had a huge tournament at the plate, going 7-for-9 (.778). The young Bellovich cashed in on some big hits and delivered defensively as well as the team’s catcher. That said, the depth of Renegades’ contributors made the coach’s MVP decision an easy one. He simply bestowed the honor on the entire team.
“Every kid pitched in,” said coach Bellovich. “It seemed like it was a different kid each game or each rally. There were a lot of big plays made by a lot of different players.”
Cameron Perez, Kyle Wenckus and Portman had big tournaments at the plate and Andrew DeLorenzo, Nick Atme, Richie Rosa, Forrest Mitterbauer, C.J. Anzaldo, Evan Radoncic, Chad McConnell and Zach Broderson all chipped in to the Renegades’ championship effort.
The NJ Renegades opened the tournament with a 13-2 victory over the Fair Haven Diamonds before picking off the Diamond Jacks Gold 12U, 10-2, and the Bucks County Generals Red, 12-3. The Renegades outscored their four tournament opponents by a staggering 41-9. The Diamond Jacks Super 12U held a 29-9 runs advantage on its opponents.
“Teams take different approaches in the fall,” said coach Bellovich. “This is a play to win team. There is a ton of development in the fall and we practice a lot. But when we go to tournaments the kids want to win and we go after it.”
The Renegades had four more fall tournaments this month, two of which are at Diamond Nation. “After that it’s a wrap for the fall,” said Bellovich.
Weekend recaps
11U Fall Classic
Stars Baseball-Colangelo 8, Bucks County Generals 0
Stars Baseball-Colangelo defeated the Bucks County Generals, 8-0, in the 11U Fall Classic Championship game. Chase Colangelo of Stars Baseball was named the 11U tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Stars Baseball (4-0) outscored its opponents 49-1. Bucks County Generals (3-1) held a 41-25 runs advantage on its opponents.
Super 17 Fall Invitational – powered by Victus
The top eight teams qualified for the Columbus Day Showdown. Wladyka Baseball 2020 top the qualifiers with a 3-0 record and a 19-0 runs advantage on its opponents. The other seven qualifiers are; the Long Island Hawks (3-0, 25-3), Baseball U. NJ (3-0, 16-3),
Diamond Skills Dodgers (3-0, 16-3), Northeast Pride Scout (3-0, 30-4), Time to Sign Prospects (3-0, 20-4), Pro Skills 17U Select (3-0, 21-5), and the NJ Rising Rebels (3-0, 17-6).