Titans impressive in winning Classic title

The Dayton Titans 10U baseball team won five games this past weekend against teams from New Jersey and New York to win the Triple Crown Sports July 4 Classic in Parsippany.

This was the Titans' second time around in the Triple Crown Classic, and they came away with their second title. The Titans outscored their opponents 43-13 in five games, using their booming bats, strong arms, and an airtight defense to carry them through to the championship.

The first game on the road to the title was against the New Jersey Mariners from Lodi, and the Titans registered an 8-6 victory. Jimmy Matt began the tournament on the mound for the Titans, and combined with Vic Dudka in relief for the win. The Titans' lineup shared in the hit parade, with Matt Von Roemer and Matt each leading the way with two hits.

The Titans' second game of the tournament was a tough 6-2 victory over the Brooklyn Bonnie Braves. The game was tied 2-2 going into the sixth inning, but the Titans struck for four runs in the top of the inning to seal the win. Jack Spillane led off the inning with a single and was knocked in by Von Roemer with the go-ahead, and winning, run. Kyle Adams nailed a big double in the inning, driving in two insurance runs. Trevor Risdon recorded the win in relief, coming on for Anthony Lavigne with two outs in the third.

The New Jersey Bandits were the next team to challenge the Titans, but the Titans rode into the semifinals behind a one-hit pitching effort by Mark Bobko, with a final-batter relief appearance by Colby Redfield. Dudka led the Titans' bats, knocking in two runs, as the Titans spread the RBIs through the lineup.

The Titans met the New Jersey Mariners in the tournament semifinals, where they sent Ethan Collins to the mound to secure a berth in the championship game. Collins camped out on the mound for a complete-game 7-2 victory.

The Titans faced the Brooklyn Bonnie Braves (3-1) for the championship, and claimed a five-inning, 11-3, mercy-rule victory. Although playing their fifth game in two days, the powerful Titans came out hungry and motivated. Spillane took the hill for the Titans, and with some final-inning relief help from Kyle Adams, scored the victory. The Titans jumped out on top in the bottom of the first inning, going up 4-0, and never looked back. Key hits in the inning were supplied by Dudka and Lavigne with consecutive triples, each knocking in a run. The Titans claimed the mercy-rule victory in the bottom of the fifth inning when Chucky LaSala worked the Braves pitcher for a bases loaded walk to force in the winning run.