Philip Amelio Tournament Bomber baseball loses in finals, softball takes third

PINE PLAINS — Pine Plains baseball came up short in the finals game at last weekend’s fifth annual Philip Amelio Memorial Tournament, losing to Red Hook 6-2 after a narrow 9-8 first round victory over Webutuck. Softball lost 5-3 in its opening round game to Rhinebeck, which went on to a finals victory, but defeated Millbrook 6-2 for third place.

The tournament was rescheduled to May 1 after the original weekend in late April was rained out. It was held later in the afternoon because of the morning’s SAT testing at the school.

Eight varsity teams participated, with Pine Plains, Millbrook and Red Hook entering both softball and baseball teams. Webutuck added the fourth baseball team and Rhinebeck rounded out the softball lineup.

The tournament is held every year in honor of Phil Amelio Jr., who died in 2005 and was the son of Pine Plains baseball head coach Phil Amelio. The event is free to the public, but the entrance fee for teams, as well as any food profits, benefit the Philip Amelio Jr. Scholarship Fund, which is distributed to graduating Stissing Mountain Senior High School seniors.

Pine Plains 9, Webutuck 8

Bomber Marquis VanDewater went three for four at bat with two RBIs and a double, including the winning run-scoring single in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Pine Plains went into the seventh inning trailing by two. With the bases loaded, Pine Plains scored with three consecutive singles by Will Van Kleek, Charlie Nicolich and Marquis VanDewater.

“The Webutuck team that came here was vastly improved [from last year],� Amelio noted. “They’ve been beating teams this season that no one really expected them to be able to. They had 15 hits against us, and at one point they had six infield hits in a row. Never in my life have I seen that, and you’re generally not going to beat that. Their coach [Rick Stackow] is magnificent, and I hope [their school] realizes what they have there.�

Red Hook 6, Pine Plains 2

“We didn’t do much of anything,� Amelio acknowledged of his team’s play in the finals game. “They out-pitched us and we only collected three singles. However, the highlight was that Seth Knickerbocker actually pitched quite well for us and it was a relatively close game.�

A big fifth inning for Red Hook put the game out of reach for the Bombers.

Rhinebeck 5, Pine Plains 3

Pine Plains softball lost its opening game to Rhinebeck. Bomber highlights included Sarah Lima going three for four and Skyler Nuccio batting three for three with a two-run home run. Pitcher Alexis  Boucher struck out six and walked four over six innings.

The game was tied 2-2 going into the sixth inning, until Rhinebeck scored three runs off two singles and a ground out.

Pine Plains 6, Millbrook 2

In the runners-up game, Cassandra Inserillo went two for three and Sarah Lima went two for four.

Again the score was tied 2-2 late in the game, but this time it was Pine Plains with the scoring burst, scoring four in the seventh inning off a double from Mikala McCauley and a triple from Nicole Killmer.

Fundraiser statistics

Amelio said the tournament raised between $1,500 and $1,700 for scholarships to graduating seniors. Because the event was held later in the day, food sales were down about $400 from what they have been in the past, which Amelio said unfortunately would have translated into another scholarship. The awards are given out to any graduating senior going on to any school, either academic, athletic (or both, as Philip Amelio Jr. was “as much of an English major as anything else,� according to his father). Five-hundred dollars automatically goes to Duanesberg High School, where Amelio was a teacher.

“Considering the amount of people that were there, we didn’t do too bad,� the senior Amelio said. “Everyone was quite pleased, and although it wasn’t as good as some years, it still turned out alright.�

Anyone who would like to contribute to the Philip Amelio Jr. Scholarship Fund can send donations to 93 Hoffman Road, Pine Plains, NY 12567. One hundred percent of donations benefit the student scholarships.