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HISTORY

In the News

BASEBALL  or BASKETBALL

BASEBALL

Table of Articles
(Click on the listing to go to the article)

April 22, 2008:  Former Bulldog, Chris Manno, Duke pitcher, named Player of the Week by College Sportswriters.  August 2008:  And he led Duke's pitching staff in 2008 and was named to the all star team in the summer Cape Cod league

August 21, 2007:  Daily News & Home Reporter & Sunset New: Bulldog 10s Wins National Championship

December 10, 2007:  Daily News - Adam Ottavino on the way to the Majors

November 18, 2007:  JV girls participate in Ch 13 Cyberchase filming to air in April 2008

October 31, 2007:  Bay Ridge Home Reporter & Sunset News reports the Bulldog 10 year olds Win of Triple Crown Nationals

August 21, 2007: Daily News reports the Bulldog 10 year olds Win of the Triple Crown Summer Nationals

    Also reported in the Park Slope Courier on August 10, 2007

July 10, 2006:  Former girls' Softball player, Hannah Berner, becomes nationally ranked tennis player and is signed by Dunlop to an endorsement agreement

May 2006: Bulldog 10s win Hillsborough Tournament &
Bulldogs 9s make it to Washington Township Finals

April 24, 2006: New Yorker Magazine picture of Pee Wees

July 1, 2005: Daily News Column on Albert and Lussier

June 6, 2005: Park Slope Courier Article on Bulldogs and Lussier

April 6, 2003: NY Times Picture of our Opening Day

June 2003 & June 2006:  Adam Ottavino Drafted to Majors

 

 

FORMER BULLDOG AND BILLY ZITELLI AWARD WINNER, CHRIS MANNO, DUKE PITCHER, NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK BY NATIONAL COLLEGIATE BASEBALL WRITERS.

MORE IN AUGUST 2008:

The 78th Pct. Brooklyn Bulldogs instituted the Billy Zitelli Memorial Award in 2001 to honor the memory of one of the first and best Brooklyn Bulldogs players. The annual Zitelli winner, who is chosen each year by the Bulldogs director, is described as follows on this website under the Bulldogs section: One player from all the Bulldog teams who was the heart and soul of his team - a great competitor, a good winner, a feared opponent, and a good friend.  He/she is highly respected by teammates, coaches, and opponents and is a good role model for younger Bulldogs and an inspiration to all. The first recepient of the award, in 2001,  was lefty pitcher Chris Manno, now in college and living up to the spirit of the Zitelli . Chris, 6' 1" and 160lbs., recently completed a very successful sophomore season at Duke University, where he led the team with 80 Ks and a 6-2 record (3.38 ERA) in one of the toughest Division 1 conferences. And this summer Chris played for the Harwich Mariners in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League, where he went 2-0 in six starts (2.06 ERA), fanned 40 batters in 35 innings, and was named to the Cape Cod League All Star Game on July 26.  Way to go, Chris!!

 

Bulldog 10's win National Championship:

 

December 10, 2007:  Daily News - Adam Ottavino on the way to the Majors

November 18, 2007:  JV girls participate in Ch 13 Cyberchase filming to air in April 2008

Sunday Nov 18, many of our JV girls helped create a PBS Cyberchase episode.  The show uses basketball as a vehicle for teaching math.  The tallest girl is the show's star, Bianca.  The show is scheduled to aired April 9, 2008 at 5pm on Channel 13.

Click on the thumbnail to see a full sized view of each picture.  You can then download the full-sized picture by right clicking on it, choosing the "Save Image as..." option, and then selecting the folder in to save it on your computer.

 

October 31, 2007:  Bay Ridge Home Reporter & Sunset News reports the Bulldog 10 year olds Win of Triple Crown Nationals

 

August 21, 2007: Daily News reports the Bulldog 10 year olds Win of the Triple Crown Summer Nationals.  It was also reported in the Park Slope Courier on August 10, 2007.

21

Having won a bid to the Triple Crown Summer Nationals, by winning the 7th Annual Triple Crown Sports Spring Frost Tournament in North Branford, Ct., in April, the team accepted the bid and traveled to South Carolina in late July to face some of the country's best 10 and under teams.   After 5 days of play, the Dawgs brought the championship back to Brooklyn with excellent team play and a sparkling 5-1 tournament record. 

The Dawgs opened the Nationals with a 10-8 extra innings loss to the North Wake Hurricanes, then came back to win their next five games, 21-18, 15-0, 7-3, and 9-8, culminating in a 4-1 championship game win against the Piedmont Braves from North Carolina.  Led by the hitting of Brandon Leftwich (14 hits), Danny Bakst (10 hits), Dennis Maddocks (9 hits), and Joe Fernando (8 hits), the Dawgs scored 64 runs in six games to back the big-game pitching performances of Caleb Kerbs (game 3), Mark Maguire (quarter finals), Joe Fernando (semi-finals), and Rafael Quezada (championship game). The Dawgs also received outstanding relief perfomances from Brandon Leftwich, Nick Dulchin, and closer Danny Bakst.  And Rafael Quezada won the division's home run hitting contest with a 229 foot bomb.  Congrats Dawgs!!

 Kneeling (l to r): Danny Bakst, Brandon Leftwich, Evan Layne, Caleb Kerbs, Milo Sklar

Standing (middle): Mark Maguire, Avery Hogue, Nick Dulchin, Ben Rothman, Michael Taormina, Joe Fernando, Ralfie Quezada, Dennis Maddocks

Last Row: Coaches Sid Fernando, Johnny Fernando, Andrew Bakst, Mike Dulchin, Steve Layne

 

Former long-time 78PYC girls' softball player, Hannah Berner, retired her mitt for the tennis racquet and in a few short years has turned into a world class tennis player.  At 14, she is ranked in the top 20 in the US for 14 year olds.  Her obvious talent has caught the eye of many, including Dunlop, who recently signed her to an endorsement agreement.   (Hannah is the girl who is the softball pitcher in the picture on our site's home page and baseball page.) Her dad, Dan, is a board member and was the director of basketball until he found that travelling around the country to junior tennis tournaments took up all his spare time.   Hannah's, Daniel, is also an excellent athlete, having played baseball (intramural and Bulldogs) and basketball ino the 78 for years.   As her proud papa, Dan, points out "it takes a community of nurturing adults and coaches to introduce sports to girls at a young age so they can be lifetime participants…thank you 78th pyc coaches!!!!"  Dan hopes that Hannah's success will help to spur other girls onto more active participation in sports.  Go Hannah!

May, 2006: BULLDOG 1Os WIN IT ALL AT THE HILLSBOROUGH NJ MEMORIAL DAY TOURNAMENT:

Front Row: Vincent Amato, Avery Hogue, Kelvin Sparks, Giovanni Dingcong, Tyler Paull, Gabe Zimmerman, Dillon Sparks (Batboy);
Middle Row: Adam Ginsberg, Jesse Burnham, Jack Cleary, Eric Dreises, Julian Rolof, Daniel Segan; 
Back Row Coaches Jeff Ginsberg, Bryan Albert, Eddie Albert, Mike Toro & Daryl Dingcong.

Facing some of the toughest NJ LIttle League All Star teams, the 10 year old Bulldogs won 3 straight to reach the finals against the favored Somerset Hills All Stars.  In 90 degree heat the Bulldogs played a most exciting, nail-biter of a game.  Up 3-1 after the first inning, Somerset came back to take a 7-3 lead.  But the dogs never gave up, every inning chipping away at the lead.  Finally, at the top of the last inning (6th), the dogs tied the game 7-7 and held Somerset to take the game into extra innings.  On a roll, the dogs scored 2 in the top of the 7th and held Somerset to none (with 2 on) to take the championship.  When catcher Giovanni caught the last batter's pop up, pandamonium broke lose and the team mobbed closer Adam.

Every player made important contributions.  It was a total team effort, especially by coaches Daryl, Mike, Bryan, and Jeff and the bench moms who helped keep the boys cool in 90 degree heat for two days.  And coach Bryan had to keep his promise and carry Giovanni around the bases if the team won, which he did.

See Articles in the NY Daily News and the Brooklyn Eagle about the teams (Click on the thumbnails):

 

BULLDOG 9s MAKE IT TO THE FINALS IN A TOUGH NEW JERSEY TOURNAMENT:

Front Row: Sean Levin, Juwon Moore, Caleb Kerbs, Elijah Gonzalez, Mark Steelman;
Middle Row: Evan Layne, Joe Fernando, Tino Tsanos, Dennis Maddocks, Nick Dulchin, Ben Rothman, Rafael Quezada, Brandon Leftwich; 
Back Row Coaches Peter Levin, Juan Moore, Sid Fernando & Steve Layne.

The 9u Brooklyn Bulldogs went 3-0 to reach the championship game at the 9th annual Washington Township Baseball Memorial Invitational tournament in New Jersey over the Memorial Day weekend.

 

The Dogs got things rolling against one of the best travel teams from Maryland, the Baltimore Blueclaws, scoring 9 runs in the bottom of the 6th for a come-from-behind 17-16 victory.  Next, they defeated host Washington Township Red 10-5 and then reached the finals beating the tough Bear, Delaware, team 6-4.  In the finals, the Dogs went down fighting 13-9 to the undefeated Piedmont Baseball team, also from Delaware.

The runner-up Bulldogs received numerous compliments from the tournament organizers and opposing teams for outstanding displays of sportsmanship and competitiveness.

April 24, 2006:

NEW YORKER MAGAZINE has a picture of our Pee Wee team sponsored by Two Boots Restaurant - click on this thumbnail to see it:

July 1, 2005: The Daily News wrote an article in its "Great People" column about our organization and baseball program.  Or click here for a printable pdf.

June 6, 2005: Brooklyn Heights Courier and Park Slope Courier: An article about our Bulldogs and their leader, Marc Lussier.  Click here for a printable pdf.

NY Times April 6, 2003 - Our Lions teams holding our banner in the April 5, 2003 Opening Day Parade down 7th Avenue.  

JUNE 2003: Former 78PYC player, pitcher Adam Ottavino was chosen in the 2003 MBL draft by the Tampa Devil Rays and was chosen on the 1st team All City and All Brooklyn teams by Newsday.  Adam decided to pitch for Northeastern instead.  Adam's 78 PYC Barons teammate, Gerard Friedman was chosen to the 3rd team All City and the 1st team All Brooklyn teams.  Jake Becker, former Bulldog, received All Brooklyn Honorable Mention.

Here is a picture of their 78th PYC Barons (11-12 year old ) team and Adam when he played for us at the age of 6.  Congratulations!

Left to Right: Bottom Row:  Adam Pflantzer, Gerard Friedman, Adam Lopez
Middle Row:  Leony Henriques, Sean Babb, Geno Gibillaro, Danny Bousquet, Joey Castelano
Top Row:  Adam Ottavino, Elliot Ramos, Andrew Sabba, Sonny Visco
Coaches:  Danny Lopez, Paul Friedman, John Ottavino

Adam Ottavino (Age 6)

On June 6, 2006, Adam was chosen again in the Major League Baseball draft, this time in the first round, as a pitcher for the St Louis Cardinals.  His Dad, John, was a long-time board member and coach and is the instructor on our baseball instructional DVD.

ST. LOUIS -- Long known as a team with a taste for college pitchers, the Cardinals got away from that draft tack in the past couple of years. On Tuesday, they returned to that modus operandi, selecting right-hander Adam Ottavino from Northeastern University in the first round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft.

Ottavino, a 6-foot-5 right-hander, posted a 2.98 ERA and a 4-5 record for the Huskies, pitching 93 2/3 innings over 14 games (13 starts). He struck out an impressive 120 batters against 33 walks and permitted four home runs. Ottavino reached double figures in strikeouts in five starts.

The Cardinals characterized Ottavino as a player who still has some development left to do, but far from a project.

"He's one of those college pitchers that still has some upside remaining," said Jeff Luhnow, the Cardinals' vice president of player procurement. "He's got a very good fastball, he's got some secondary stuff, he has excellent mechanics.

"He's put up good numbers at sort of an off-the-beaten-path school. We've scouted him a lot this year and we were excited that he was there. He's a big guy with plus tools that's definitely got some upside left in him."

Ottavino, a native of New York who played college ball in Boston, has seen plenty of the American League East. He's looking forward to making his way toward the National League Central, though.

"It's awesome," Ottavino said. "I've been speechless the whole day and really excited. I feel great about it. I'm just hoping to get started."

Both Ottavino and the Cardinals expect that a contract will be worked out in rather short order. He's likely to head to short-season State College of the New York-Penn League at first, once a deal is done.

"I guess I'd like to get it done as soon as I can," said Ottavino. "I don't have a specific date in mind. I haven't talked to them yet about exactly when that's going to happen, but I would like to get it done as soon as possible.

"I didn't know whether I was definitely going to be picked, but some things were discussed that I had an inkling of it early this morning. I think we've got a lot of the parameters pretty much set up."

"He's very projectable," said Cardinals scout Kobe Perez, who followed the right-hander all year. "He's 6-5, 225, wide shoulders, strong legs, fastball anywhere from 90 to 96 [miles per hour]. He's got classic mechanics and he's very deceptive."

According to scouting reports, Ottavino, 20, relies on a plus fastball and a quality slider, complementing them with a developing curveball. Over three years at NU, Ottavino went 13-13 with a 3.09 ERA, 290 strikeouts and 116 walks in 253 1/3 innings.

"He's the type of guy that has the ability to touch 96 [mph], but we don't expect him to pitch there," Luhnow said. "We expect him to pitch with an average [velocity] fastball, but the fact that there's a little bit more in there and that he has durable mechanics, for us, is exciting. We think he has the potential to be a 200-inning guy with multiple pitches."

Ottavino caught many eyes with a brilliant early season performance against national powerhouse Georgia Tech. In that game, his first start of the year, Ottavino held the Jackets to two runs on two hits, striking out 12 and walking three.

"To draft a pitcher like this who graded out very well across the board with us is a big plus for our organization," Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty said in a statement released by the team. "He'll be a great addition to the depth and quality of the pitchers in our Minor League system."

Ottavino also threw a no-hitter against James Madison University on April 7, striking out 14 and walking three in a 2-0 victory.

"That was a great game too," said the right-hander. "I had never thrown one of those before. When you're going through it, you don't really appreciate it because you're just trying to get the next guy out. When it's over, it's a great thing to look back on."

On Sunday, July 9, Adam Ottavino gives up only one hit while pitching six shut-out innings to beat the Cyclones 3-0 yesterday .  He has yet to give up 1 earned run in 19 2/3s innings pitched since turning pro!

As noted on the Cyclone website:

"Although both of Brooklyn’s hits were recorded by Jonathan Sanchez, the team still had a few chances because of patient at-bats that led to four walks. State College’s starting pitcher, Brooklyn native Adam Ottavino (2-0), threw an effective six innings. The Brooklyn native allowed only one hit and walked two batters. The Spikes’ bullpen relieved Ottavino and continued where he left off. Two scoreless innings by Kyle Sadlowski and one from Jason Motte sealed the game. Although the bullpen was effective, Brooklyn still had a chance to score runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. After two walks, Bobby Malek came to the plate with two outs as the potential tying run, but a groundout ended both the threat and the inning. "

From Adam's team's website (State College Spikes):

"Brooklyn, NY -- The State College Spikes held the Brooklyn Cyclones to only two hits on the way to the their first ever shutout, a 3-0 victory at KeySpan Park. Adam Ottavino continued to dominate New York-Penn League opponents tossing another six scoreless innings in his homecoming performance. The Brooklyn, NY native has not allowed an earned run in his first 19.2 innings as a professional...

With Ottavino on the mound and pitching in front of his hometown crowd which included over 200 family and friends, the lead was more than insurmountable. The tall right-hander allowed only one hit, while walking two and striking out seven over his 6.0 innings of work."

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BASKETBALL

Table of Articles
(Click on the listing to go to the article)

April 9, 2008 at 5pm on Channel 13: PBS Cyberchase episode

March 17, 2004:  Bklyn Eagle Article on Playoffs

March 17, 2003:  Mention is Sports Illustrated Article

1996: Daily News & Times Coverage of Our Permit Problems

April 9, 2008 at 5pm on Channel 13: PBS Cyberchase episode:

Sunday Nov 18, many of our JV girls helped create a PBS Cyberchase episode.  The show uses basketball as a vehicle for teaching math.  The tallest girl is the show's star, Bianca.  The show is scheduled to aired April 9, 2008 at 5pm on Channel 13.

Click on the thumbnail to see a full sized view of each picture.  You can then download the full-sized picture by right clicking on it, choosing the "Save Image as..." option, and then selecting the folder in to save it on your computer.

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle Article March 17, 2004, p.11:

Article in Sports Illustrated by a parent discussing his experiences in our program March 17, 2003.

Fighting for gyms has always been an uphill battle - Space, Time, Money and the gigantic bureaucracy - Daily New & NY Times 1996 articles chronicle our efforts and frustrations

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