Throgs Neck Little League’s 12U Allstars (12 and under) team is really on a tear.
The District 22 team defeated a powerhouse team from the South Shore of Staten Island 8-1 to win Section 5 of the Little League Tournament, which covers New York City and Nassau County, on Thursday, July 17.
They have now moved on to the New York State Little League Baseball Tournament in upstate Cicero, New York, where the early results as of press time have been equally as good.
According to TNLL president Frank Eisele, the Throgs Neck All Stars defeated a team from Whitestown, N.Y., near Syracuse N.Y. by a score of 7 to 1 on Monday, July 21.
Then, on Tuesday, July 22, they defeated another team from the Buffalo, N.Y. area 5 to 3 behind two home runs, said Eisele.
“It is nice to see our boys are doing well,” he said, adding the parents are excited. “One of our mom’s streamed the game live.”
Parents and boosters are getting behind the boys from the Bronx, and team manager Mike Hangan said that it was a team effort all the way.
“It is not a one-man show,” he said. “It is all about the team playing together and working hard for the same common goal. It is a team sport.”
He said that the team was confident.
“The team is ready to go play,” said Hangan. “They are not afraid of anyone, and they are confident that they are going to be able to defeat anybody.”
It was the first time since 1967 that a team in the Distict 22 12U age range, which covers the east Bronx, has gone this far in the little league tournament baseball, said Hangan.
The last time that happened was with another Throgs Neck Little League team that three years later, in 1970, went to the finals of the little league World Series, said Eisele.
The Little League World Series is held every year in Williamsport, PA.
Hangan said that he was congratulated by the manager of the 1967 team Joe Routan.
“He said go get ‘em and beat my record,” said Hangan, who lives in Throggs Neck and who said he has been with the TNLL for about 10 years.
Hangan sees the strengths of his team as pitching and power hitting.
“The believe, they work very hard, and they are not afraid of anybody,” he said.
Update: The Throgs Neck Little League team is advancing to the semi-finals of the State Tournament. They will play a team from Wappingers Falls, New York on Thursday, July 24.
