It was business as usual for AM Penn Converting Thursday at the Hamlin Elementary School field.

The Red Soxx erupted for six first inning runs, then cruised to a 13-5 victory over the Hawley Diner in Wayne County Men’s Softball League action. With the win, the Red Soxx improved to 5-2 on the young season.

Next up for the three-time defending league champions is a Wednesday evening battle with Kestler’s. That contest is set for a 6:30 p.m. start in Hamlin.

Early & Often
AM Penn wasted no time jumping out to a quick lead on Thursday. The Red Soxx shelled Hawley starter Lee Holbert for six runs in their very first at-bat. The highlights of the frame were provided by Joe Yedinak and Russell Gregory.

Yedinak, the team’s clean-up hitter, ripped an RBI single. Joe would enjoy a 2-for-3 day at the dish. He drove in two runs and scored twice. Gregory, a scrappy second sacker with a penchant for delivering clutch hits, smoked a bases-clearing triple.

Wally Kulick was the starter and winner for AM Penn. The former Western Wayne diamond star went the distance, scattering nine hits and allowing just four earned runs in seven innings.

Mark Bell and Dave Bell paced the Red Soxx offensive assault. Shortstop Bell went 3-for-4 with a pair of singles and a solo homer, while AM Penn’s rightfielder lashed two hits and a homer of his own.

Holbert absorbed the loss for Hawley. The veteran righty worked into the sixth before yielding to the bullpen. Reliever Jim “Sixer” Simpson closed out the final two frames.
Jeff Swanick turned in the defensive “Play of the Day.” Hawley’s outfielder killed off an AM Penn rally by making a spectacular diving catch in short center.

The Red Soxx are off to a solid start in their quest to win their fourth consecutive Wayne County Men’s League title. AM Penn has suffered just two losses in its first seven games. The first was a 14-4 defeat at the hands of Orchard Tap House. The second was a wild & woolly HomerDome affair against Waymart Hotel that ended 27-25.

Building a Dynasty
Brian Warholic has been around since the very beginning and has earned the title of AM Penn’s unofficial historian. Warholic and several “green” young ballplayers got together to form the Red Soxx eight years ago.

Frank & Debbie Kulick lent their unwavering support to the enterprise as sponsors that first year and have been around ever since. AM Penn took the field for the first time in ‘01 as an entry in the Lake Ariel Modified League. The Red Soxx struggled at times, but still managed to forge a highly respectable 10-10 record.

A year later, AM Penn was back in action and champing at the bit to erase the memories of a “one & done” play-off appearance. The Red Soxx once again finished with a .500 record (11-11) and were eliminated in the first round.

Those quick play-off exits became a thing of the past beginning in ‘03. That summer, the Red Soxx went 14-6 and advanced to the LA Modified semifinals. This was just a hint of things to come. AM Penn won two of the next three league titles en route to an eye-popping overall record of 85-35 (.708 winning percentage).

“It takes a little bit of adjustment when you switch over from softball to baseball,” Brian told TWI Sports. “Once we learned to appreciate the game for what it is, that’s when we really took off. It’s the best thing we ever did.”

In softball as in baseball, pitching is a crucial piece of any championship puzzle. Simply put: you can’t win a title without a solid, reliable staff...and the Red Soxx were blessed with just such a staff.

Russ Curtis, Ken Rizzi Sr., Joe Williams Sr. and Frank Kulick each contributed crucial wins to the AM Penn legacy.

Curtis compiled a mind-boggling 21-0 record during the 2005-’06 seasons. Russ was also on the hill when the Red Soxx won their lone Bursis Tournament crown three years ago.

Rizzi Sr. has always been the staff workhorse. Ken also put up gaudy numbers for AM Penn, winning 45 games and losing just 16 (.738).

“Not bad for a guy who’d never pitched before,” said Warholic. “Ken Rizzi Sr. gave us great veteran leadership when we were just a young team.”

Williams Sr. and Kulick each jumped in whenever necessary. Joe toed the rubber consistently during the ‘04 campaign, while Frank went 3-0 as an emergency spot starter.

Warholic is credited with building this ballclub from scratch. Brian recruited nearly every single player, including original Red Soxx: Wally Kulick, Brian Bolduc, Dave “Curly” Bell, Len Wargo, Mark Bell, Jay Farnelli and Kyle Rizzi.

Other players who came along a bit later, but who are now also part of the AM Penn lore include: Brain Blaum, Ryan Federico, Frankie Thomas, Joe Williams Jr., Kenny Morris, Dan Gumble, Rich Bergsma and Edwin Martinez.

Gumble turned in one of the truly amazing performances in LA Modified play-off history. In ‘06, Dan went 20-for-26 (.769 batting average) in leading the Red Soxx to their second league title in three years.

The Next Step
After dominating the LA Modified scene for three straight seasons, AM Penn decided to take the next logical step in its softball evolution. In the summer of ‘05, the Red Soxx applied for membership in the Wayne County Men’s League.

From the very start, AM Penn made its presence felt on local diamonds. The Red Soxx went 13-3 that first season, then rolled to a 6-1 play-off record. With Russell “Rusty” Gregory calling the shots, the Lake Ariel lads defeated perennial powerhouse Hesslings in the finals.

Just to prove that result was no fluke, the Red Soxx repeated as Wayne County League champs in ‘06. AM Penn dominated in this campaign, winning 13 regular season games and going undefeated (4-0) in the play-off tournament.

The Red Soxx won their third consecutive crown last summer, posting a 14-4 record and tacking on six more victories in the post season. AM Penn swept hard-hitting Kestler’s in the championship series, but needed a pair of extra inning decisions (12-11 and 13-12) to seal the deal.

Rizzi Sr. and “Smiling” Jack Roettger shared the bulk of the mound chores during this amazing run. Ken has put together a sparkling 26-9 regular season record in Wayne County competition. He’s also 10-2 in the play-offs. Jack is 13-3 overall and a perfect 5-0 in the big money games.

“I would like to thank all the guys from AM Penn,” Rusty said. “They’re great softball players, but they’re even better people. They make it easy to manage this team. I’d also like to show my appreciation to Frank & Debbie Kulick: we couldn’t have done any of this without their support.”