By Michael Letendre
The ultra-successful Bristol American League 17U baseball program is looking for another big campaign under multi-time state title winner Bill Mason as Post 2 gets to work for its first game this season on Sunday, June 13.
Post 2 opens its 2021 campaign against West Hartford in a double dip, from Riley Field in Bristol, starting at 1 p.m.
The junior program will also play a few games from Muzzy Field this year on July 8 and July 11.
Zone 1 in 17U play has six teams as not every city/town in the state carries multiple programs like Bristol does.
The juniors from Post 2 square off against Newington, Simsbury, Torrington, West Hartford, and Naugatuck in Zone 1 action this year.
And, just like its senior counterparts, this program has a loaded schedule as well.
Next week, Bristol squares off against Torrington from Fuessenich Park on Wednesday, June 16 at 5 p.m., while on Saturday (June 19), Simsbury travels to Riley Field for a Zone 1 encounter against Post 2 – starting at 4 p.m.
Bristol’s squad wants to continue to build the same type of momentum it did last season in Connecticut Elite Baseball Association (CEBA) when the 17U program from Bristol won the state crown in convincing fashion.
The American Legion did not sponsor a season last year due to the pandemic.
During the CEBA 17U tournament, Bristol’s Matt Beaucar pitched a one-hitter over six innings to win the tournament MVP while Adam Caron was the top-hitter in tournament play.
He popped in four hits to lead the Bristol squad to a convincing 3-0 run through the postseason.
In the playoff round, Bristol blanked Naugatuck (2-0) in the quarterfinals, defeated Wallingford by a 3-1 in the semifinals while sinking Ellington in the championship game, 10-0.
It was another outstanding year for the program as the U17 crew from Bristol went 19-2 – allowing just 43 runs last season with one of those runs coming over postseason play.
Many of those kids will be back to play for Bristol at both the junior and senior levels and now,
back under the America Legion banner, the boys from Bristol are looking to repeat those good fortunes in 2021.
