It’s an ages-old baseball axiom that pitching and defense win championships. On Sunday evening under gray skies in Narrowsburg, the Tusten Chiefs proved the  truth of that proposition.

Coach Joe Curreri’s squad closed out a dominating run through the Wayne County Teener League play-offs with a 10-0 victory over Re-Max. The win was the Chiefs’ fourth straight and brought with it an all-season championship.

“I had a pretty good idea that this was a good team right from the start,” Coach Curreri told TWI Sports. “This is a great group of kids. They work hard in practice, play hard and never give up. I’m very proud of them.”

Tusten entered this summer’s post season tournament as the #4 seed behind the Renegades and Honesdale Eagles. The Chiefs opened their play-off run with a 3-0 victory over #3 Waymart, then eliminated both the Eagles and Re-Max to cop the crown.

The wins over Re-Max were particularly satisfying, for a very specific reason. 

“The Renegades knocked us out of the play-offs last summer, so this was a really nice win,” Coach Curreri said. “We were the #1 seed last year and they ended our season. It felt good to turn the tables on them a little bit.”

Setting the Stage
Tusten opened the regular season as one of the hottest teams in the entire Wayne County Teener League. The Chiefs reeled off five straight wins before tasting defeat for the first time.

“We had quite a few kids back from last year’s team, but we also had some new players who stepped right in and played well,” said Coach Curreri. “It was a nice mixture.”
This year’s edition of the Chiefs featured one of the strongest rotations in the league.

Led by ace Cody Fredo, Tusten’s pitching staff dominated opposition batters all season long.

Fredo started eight games this summer, far & away tops on the team. A 15-year-old righty who relies on a lively fastball, Fredo surrendered just seven earned runs all season and compiled an eye-popping 1.28 ERA.

Cody’s overall record was just 3-3, but he also recorded two saves and led the Southern Division with 59 strikeouts.

“We have some very good pitchers on this team,” said Coach Curreri. “But, anytime we had a really big game, I sent Cody out there. He’s our ace. Cody throws hard and has a nice little curveball. When he has command of both those pitches, he’s pretty much untouchable.”

Pat Ripa and Mike Pierce also turned in stellar mound performances this summer.

Ripa led the Chiefs with four victories and a save. Pat ended his campaign with a minuscule 0.62 ERA. He struck out 29 batters and walked just 11. Pierce paced Tusten’s staff with 12 appearances in 18 games. Mike posted a 2-1 record and carded a pair of saves. His ERA was also among the league leaders at 1.35.

Offensively, Tusten relied upon the leadership of veteran slugger Jeremy DeGori.
The Chiefs’ three-hole hitter dominated the year-end stats. DeGori recorded a robust .490 batting average. Jeremy ripped 24 hits in just 15 games, scored 17 runs and collected a team-high 19 RBIs.

DeGori struck out just four times all summer while compiling an on-base percentage of .577. He slugged at a Ruthian .796 clip with eight doubles, two tripled and a homer.

“Jeremy DeGori can pretty much do it all,” said Coach Curreri. “He hits for power and runs the bases very well. The best thing about Jeremy, though, is that he’s only 14-years-old. So, we’re going to have him back one more year.”

Fredo and Pierce were also among the Chiefs’ top offensive players this season. The former hit .414 with 15 RBIs, while the later batted .407 with a team-best 19 runs scored.

Mike O’Reilly also made his presence felt at the plate. He chimed in with a .339 average, stole 16 bases and tallied 16 times. O’Reilly was a clutch hitter all year, but never moreso than in Game One of the championship series.

“Re-Max decided to walk Cody Fredo in a big spot to get to Mike, said Coach Curreri. “And, he really came through for us. It was a one-run game at that point and Mike ripped a big single that gave us an insurance run. That was definitely one of the key at-bats in the game.”

Play-Off Run
Tusten took its first step along the road to a Wayne County Teener League title last week with a razor-thin win over Waymart.

The Chiefs used a couple of early rallied to hand the Warriors a 3-0 loss. This was no mean feat, especially considering the fact that it came against the loop’s top pitcher, Billy Gillette.

Ripa earned the win in this one, working three scoreless innings. He received relief help from Pierce and Alsdorf, who put the finishing touches on a masterful shutout.

This victory earned Tusten a spot in the semifinals opposite Honesdale. The Chiefs were equally impressive in their Maple City sojourn, rolling to a 6-0 decision.

Fredo earned the starting nod and pitched five stellar frames en route to the win. Cody struck out six Eagles and didn’t issue a walk. He was relieved by Pierce, who fanned four in two innings of work.

Tusten wasted no time seizing momentum in Game One of the championship series. The Chiefs scored a run in each of the second third and fourth innings off Re-Max starter Cody Dirlam.

Lucas Bauer came through in the clutch, going 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs.

Fredo and O’Reilly drove in the other two Tusten runs.

Alex Hicks paced the Renegade offensive attack with two of his team’s four basehits. However, Re-Max batters were overwhelmed at the plate by Tusten’s deadly 1-2 punch.

Fredo drew the starting assignment and worked into the fourth before Coach Curreri went to his pen. Pierce came on to kill off a Re-Max rally. Fredo & Pierce piled up 14 Ks between them, allowing just four hits along the way.

On Sunday evening in Narrowsburg, the Chiefs closed out their season with a dominating performance in Game Two.

Tusten erupted for five runs in the home half of the second, then cruised to a 10-0 victory that was shortened to six innings by the Mercy Rule.

“That definitely surprised me,” said Coach Curreri. “I mean, Re-Max is a very good team. They’re well-coached and they have some very good players. I thought that was going to be tough game. But, our kids came to play. They really wanted it.”

Wyatt Davis started for the Renegades, but lasted only into the second inning. The hero of Re-Max’s stunning 1-0 semifinal win over Hawley, Davis surrendered five earned runs on this day and suffered the loss.

Pierce opened for Tusten, but also ran into early troubles. Ripa came on to relieve in the second and eventually earned the win. Pat pitched 22/3 scoreless innings before handing the ball off to Fredo, who closed things out.

Fredo worked the final two frames and fanned all six batters he faced.

“Cody was amazing,” said Coach Curreri. “I brought him in there in the fifth and he struck out three kids on nine pitches. Then, he did the same thing in the sixth. He was overpowering.”

DeGori had a banner day at the dish. Jeremy led the Chiefs with three hits and four runs scored. He also drove in three runs and swiped five sacks.

Ryan Alsdorf erupted for two big basehits and four RBIs. O’Reilly went 2-for-2 and tallied twice.

Score by Innings...
Re-Max   0  0  0  0  0  0 -  0
Tusten    2  5  0  1  0  2 - 10