A well-knit Brick American 13-year-old all-star team found ways to win, all the way to the championship of the prestigious Berkeley Tournament.
"The kids played together," said coach Kevin Morris. "It was not the most talented team. Defensively they were good, but they did just enough to win."
Brick American nailed down the championship for the second straight year with a 5-1 victory over Toms River as right-hander Jason Gordon mixed his fastball and curve for a one-hitter and won the Most Valuable Player award.
John Bennett drove in a run and Chris Smith and Tom Murray had timely hits.
Last year’s 13-year-old champions moved up to the 14-year-old bracket and won the District 18 Junior League championship last month, advancing all the way to the section championship game before losing.
Brick American went 5-1 in the Berkeley Tournament, going 3-0 in the double-elimination bracket. That included a victory over Barnegat that avenged the only loss in pool play.
The Americans also beat Toms River East, but in that game, third baseman Kevin Marvin broke his leg in a collision with the catcher on a pop-up.
Despite losing one of its best players for the final game, Brick American showed great cohesion in knocking off Toms River. Along with Gordon, Smith and Sean Breeden pitched well.