Naugatuck Dogs Stan Musial State Champs Again

Tri-State League occupies final 4 spots left standing in state tournament
After a two year hiatus, the Naugatuck Dogs have reclaimed the status of “State Champions” knocking off the defending champion Tri-Town Trojans by a 6-1 final score on Sunday August 2nd. Naugy won the state title in 2011 and 2012 while Tri-Town held the honor each of the last two years in 2013 and 2014. Heading into the 12 team state tournament, Tri-State sent 4 teams into battle and heading into the quarter-finals had eliminated every other team outside the league leaving just the 4 Tri-State teams to battle it out.
Naugy ran the table in the winners bracket and was automatically placed into the championship game undefeated. Wolcott drew the first bye into the semi-finals leaving Tri-Town and Terryville to battle it out in the quarterfinals. In a pitcher’s duel between two of the league’s best, Miles Scribner and Billy Armstrong, the Trojans scored runs on sacrifice fly-outs by Chris Comeau and Sam Shurberg in the second and third inning. Steve Price and Chris Comeau both had two hits each, and Landon Gardella had a triple. Miles Scribner pitched 6 2/3 innings as James Cramphin came on to record the final strike out with runners on first and second for Terryville to end the game. Scribner had also pitched 6 innings in Tri-Town’s 1st game of the day as the Trojans knocked out the Wilton Barons. Cramphin picked up the save in that victory as well.
The next day in the semi-finals, Connor Murray pitched 6 innings and James Cramphin came on for his 3rd save in 2 days as Tri-Town eliminated Wolcott 2-0 and the head-to-head champions matchup was on for the finals between the last two state champions. Mike Fabiaschi had an RBI single in the first inning versus Wolcott and Casey McDonald added a solo homerun in the 5th inning.
In the state championship finals – The Naugatuck Dogs batted around, sending 11 men to the plate in a six-run first inning on their way to a 6-1 win over the Tri-Town Trojans to take home the Stan Musial Crown on a brilliant afternoon at Fuessenich Park. Lefty Bryan Wyrebek took that first frame safety net and ran with it. Wyrebek struck out four and walked two in going the distance. Bobby Chatfield took the ball for the Trojans and ran into trouble right off the bat in the bottom of the first when he walked the first two batters before giving up RBI’s to Kyle Murphy and Devin Murphy. The wheels continued to come off in the frame with a pair of errors and a booming two-run double by Macky Ciancilo that left a large hole and a six run, 11-batter frame for the Trojans to try and climb out of.