Johnston 13/14 All-Stars Win District I Title

Joe Bongiovanni stymied the Edgewood/South Elmwood All-Stars for six innings on July 17, and Johnston withstood a late-game rally to defeat Edgewood/South Elmwood, 5-2, and capture the District I Junior League crown.

With the win, Johnston moves on to the double-elimination state tournament, scheduled to begin July 23 at . The unbeaten Johnston All-Stars will meet 13- and 14-year-olds from Districts II, III and IV to compete for the Ocean State crown, and the last team standing will move on to represent Rhode Island at the regional tournament in Freehold, N.J.

The regional champion then advances to the Junior League World Series in Taylor, Mich.

Coach Ed Bedrosian said it's the second straight year that Johnston is headed to the state tournament — the team was "six outs away from winning the regionals" in 2010, he explained.

And for a squad that was only assembled before the district round — meaning they've only played three games as a team — Bedrosian said there's a lot of familiarity among the players.

"The thing with Johnston is, a lot of these kids stay together, they're friendly, so we're able to put together good teams because they don't go off playing in other leagues," Bedrosian explained. "They like playing this (kind of) ball, they like to go away together, and that's our goal — win the states and get to New Jersey again."

ESELL wraps up the 2011 campaign at 2-2 overall. Johnston finished the district tourney with a 3-0 record, includng two wins against ESELL and a victory over North Providence East.

Johnston produced its five runs with just four hits in its most recent outing, scoring on a bases-loaded walk and a wild pitch in the second, then doubling the margin with an RBI-ground out and a squeeze play in the third.

Armani Henderson’s run-scoring bunt in the sixth inning set the margin at five for Johnston, and Bongiovanni returned to the mound in the seventh, hoping to protect the lead and clinch the D-I title.

In June, Bongiovanni pitched the to a Division II-North postseason crown in Woonsocket, then lent his young left hand to the , and celebrated with the Panthers at McCoy Stadium after they defeated The Prout School to win the Division II state title.

Having that background, Bongiovanni said, "makes this seem like there's no pressure on me, because in high school there was a lot of pressure to be playing with the bigger kids as a freshman."

The lefty starter also explained that a few of his teammates from the junior varsity squad are on the current team.

"There were a lot of kids on JV, and I've been playing AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) baseball with these kids for most of my life, so we jell together well," Bongiovanni said. "We still haven't had a lot of practice time, so hopefully we'll get more practice this week and do better at the states."

On July 17, after surrendering a double, a walk, and two runs in the seventh inning, Bongiovanni kick-started another championship celebration, striking out ESELL’s Alex Whitney with a runner in scoring position and two down. Bongiovanni’s 11th strike out ended the game and secured another championship banner for Johnston.