Coginchaug All-Stars Fall to South Windsor 1-0

By Ted Glanzer 

South Windsor's Zach Donahue was nearly unhittable and Robert Williams broke out of a slump in a big way as the South Windsor American 11-12 All-Stars advanced to the Section II championship game with a 1-0 victory over Coginchaug on Saturday in Harwinton.

Donahue overcame a shaky first inning to retire 14 batters in a row, striking out 13 in a rare complete-game shutout in all-star play. Williams, who had struggled at the plate of late, accounted for the game's only run with a Titanic home run with two outs in the fifth inning.

And with the victory, the beat goes on for South Windsor American, the District 8 champions who have yet to lose a game.

"I told the kids, winners find ways to win," said South Windsor head coach Jason Donahue. "We had a breakdown at a couple of points, and we knew [Coginchaug] was loaded with hitters."

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Zach Donahue neutralized Coginchaug's big bats with a lethal fastball/curveball combination. He yielded just two hits on the afternoon - one in the first to TJ Vallone and another in the sixth to Hayden Rovelli.

Coginchaug loaded the bases in the first with two out, but Donahue pitched out of it with a ground out to first. 

Coginchaug didn't threaten again until the sixth, when Rovelli advanced to third with two out.

Coginchaug's No. 3 hitter worked the count to 3-0, but Zach Donahue came back with three straight strikes, including a gutsy 3-1 curveball that was fouled off.

When Donahue got the third strike, South Windsor's bench emptied onto the field in celebration.

Anthony Conaci and Jack McCluskey got hits for South Windsor, while Matt Sanchez laid down a gorgeous two-strike sacrifice bunt to put runners on second and third in the fourth inning. 

Though nothing came out of that rally, Jason Donahue said that the theme for his team is to have every player do his job.

"If that happens, we're a pretty good team," Jason Donahue said.

Coginchaug pitcher James Salemme was terrific, yielding just one run on three hits in five innings of work. The defense was also sharp.

In the third inning, Coginchaug shortstop Cole Neidmann fielded a sharply hit ground ball, threw to first base for the out and Griffin Saks' throw to third baseman allowed John John Jose to tag out a South Windsor baserunner for a double-play. 

Coginchaug head coach Ken Vallone was gracious in the loss.

"That was a big league game right there," he said. "Somebody has to be at the losing end of it."

Coginchaug, the District 9 champion, will play in the Section II losers' bracket on Sunday. With a victory, it will play South Windsor again on Tuesday.

Vallone said that he'd look forward to the chance.

"I like my kids' chances every game," he said.