Valley Sports ReportOWEGO - Sayre avenged a previous loss at the Owego Little League 10U / 12U Tournament, then dropped a one-run heartbreaker in the 12B2 championship game here Tuesday.
Brendan Cooke and Justin Koenig belted back-to-back home runs to highlight a 13-2 romp over Vestal (Morrissey) in the consolation finals. That earned Sayre a trip to the championship game where top-seeded Maine-Endwell (Brinsko) rallied to squeak by the boys from south of the border, 4-3.
Sayre 13, Vestal 2
Sayre scored nine runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back, avenging a 3-2 loss earlier in bracket play.
Following a leadoff walk to Brendan Cooke, Koenig and Shaine Strickland delivered RBI singles. Brady Flynn was hit by a pitch, Jordan Brown drew a base on balls. Following a pair of outs, Blake Zingeser added an RBI single, Brown scored on a wild pitch, and Cy Yeager made it 5-0 with an RBI single. That's when Cooke smacked a three-run dinger and Koenig followed with a solo shot.
In the second, Flynn singled, Brown reached on an error, Flynn would steal third and home, and Brown would push the advantage to 11-0 on a passed ball.
Cooke, Koenig and Strickland opened the third inning with consecutive singles with Strickland plating Sayre's final two runs of the game.
Vestal picked up a run in the third and another in the fourth.
Cooke finished the game 3-for-3 with three runs and three RBI while Koenig went 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBI.
Strickland was 2-for-3 with three RBI and Zingeser went 2-for-2 with a run and an RBI. Flynn chipped in with two runs and an RBI; Yeager recorded a hit, run and RBI; Brown scored a pair of runs and Ross tacked on a run.
Flynn went three innings on the mound to earn the win. He struck out five, walked one and gave up two hits. Ross fanned one and gave up two hits in one inning of relief.
M-E, Sayre 3
Maine-Endwell completed a perfect run through the tournament, loading the bases in the bottom of the sixth with two hits and a walk, then scoring on a passed ball with two away. M-E went 6-0 in the tournament, winning its 11th straight game to improve to 11-1 overall.
M-E scored the game's initial run on a hit batter, wild pitch and a single.
Sayre rallied to take a 3-1 lead in the third. Cooke hit a one-out single and Koenig followed with an RBI double. Koenig would reach home on a ground out by Strickland, then Flynn would belt his second homer of the evening.
M-E knotted the score in its half of the fourth on a double and a home run.
Koenig, Flynn and Ross each went 2-for-3, with Koenig and Flynn adding one run and one RBI apiece. Cooke tacked on a hit and a run, and Strickland added a hit and an RBI.
On the hill, Cooke scattered eight hits and two walks, allowing three earned runs while fanning nine batters.
""""""""""""
PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.
