When the Teaneck 10U Fall Travel team first practiced back in September, words such as redemption and revenge were on the minds of the kids. After losing the summer travel championship in heartbreaking fashion, the team had one goal, reaching the top of the mountain and not settling for another second-place finish.
The fall season started off against the Highland Bulldogs. Led by three runs batted in from Shua Goldenberg, the team headed to a 7-4 victory. With a loss to Old Tappan, the team bounced back into the win column against Northern Valley, which included multiple hits from both Benny Leben and Joseph Ash and four RBIs from Elisha Rauzman. The team then settled on a 9-9 tie vs. Leonia. In the following game, led by Judah Last and his three RBIs, the team handled Oradell and improved to 3-1-1. In the next game, Teaneck’s speed was on display in an 11-8 victory vs. Paramus as the team stole multiple bases, including a steal of home by Naftali Soloveichik. With strong pitching by Jonas Shapiro and Judah Last, Teaneck ended the regular season with a victory. The team improved to 5-1-1 heading into the playoffs as the number 2 seed, a first-round bye and a path straight to the semifinals.
The playoff matchup pitted them against Northern Valley. Teaneck was first to get on the board with a bases-loaded walk from Tzvi Selevan and a third-inning sacrifice from Max Hagler. Shutout pitching from Elisha Rauzman and Jonas Shapiro led to a 4-0 advantage heading into the final frame. However, Northern Valley stormed back for four runs to tie the game heading into the bottom of the inning. With runners on second and third and two outs, Benny Leben crushed a ball to right field for the walk off victory, sending the Teaneck 10U team to the championship in dramatic fashion.
The team was fresh off their walk off win, but after last season’s end, they knew that they had one more game to win before they could truly enjoy the taste of victory. The matchup would be their toughest task yet, as they faced Old Tappan, the team that had handed the Teaneck squad their only defeat of the season. The game was a back-and-forth affair between the two teams. After a scoreless first, both teams scored two runs in the second and Old Tappan took the lead, 3-2, heading into the bottom of the third. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the third, Max Hagler drilled a two-run single to center field, scoring Benny Leben and Judah Last, giving Teaneck a 4-3 lead, which turned into 5-3 after three. Old Tappan bounced back to tie the game in the top of the fourth with clutch hitting with runners in scoring position. With a tie game after four, Teaneck called on Shua Goldenberg who delivered two invaluable innings of lights out pitching, taking the team into the bottom of the sixth and final inning with a tie score.
Dovid Siskind started the bottom of the inning with a lead off walk to put the pressure on Old Tappan. The team’s key ingredient, base stealing, was on full display this inning. Siskind was able to steal both second and third and with one out, the winning run was only 60 feet away. With Jonas Shapiro at the plate, Siskind kept a close eye on the pitcher and catcher and noticed that neither was focused on him at third. On a 2-2 count, Siskind took his shot. As the ball was thrown from the catcher back to the pitcher, he sprinted towards home. The pitcher quickly recognized the action and fired the ball back towards home. With a bang-bang play at the plate, Siskind slid in, just safe. With a walk-off steal of home, Teaneck became the NEBAS Fall 2024 10U champions in the most dramatic fashion.
Congratulations to the champion Teaneck 10U Fall Travel team: Joseph Ash, Shua Goldenberg, Max Hagler, Judah Last, Benny Leben, Elisha Rauzman, Tzvi Selevan, Jonas Shapiro, Dovid Siskind and Naftali Soloveichik. Coaches: Shua Last, Oren Leben and Jonathan Siskind.
