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Community Corner

This Week's Spotlight: NLL River Bandits

Freddy Massa leads team to minor league championship!

Team: Nanuet Little League River Bandits

Manager: Freddy Massa

Coaches: Tom Davis and Michael Brenner

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River Bandits Roster:
1--Cody Massa
2--Logan Zivec
3--Thomas Ryan
5--Michael Mackin
7--John Cirilli
8--Ronald O
9--Kevin Davis
13--Christopher Fisher
24--Tyler Gallagher
27--Dylan Toto
40--Matthew Shinder
42--Jacob Brenner
49--Joseph Ottaviano
99--Sean Ryan

Managing a team of 14 boys ages 9-11, with 14 different personalities, is no small undertaking, but Freddy Massa handled his team with such ease.

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The first thing Freddy taught his team was to have fun but have respect. Respect the game, the players, and the coaches.  

"We started our season with a very rough start and when you start off losing your first five games, it is very hard to keep the kids focused. After our first month of play our record was 1-8 and the kids were very sad, but I continued to keep a positive outlook on things, I made some changes on the field and told the boys and their parents that it will all be okay. I told the kids every practice and every game if you stay focused, I promise good things will follow. And it did.  After we won our first game the kids started playing together as a team which is very amazing at this age level.  They started to help one another, it was truly like a big family."

Because of the tough start in the beginning of the season, the River Bandits remained in last place. In the minor leagues all four of the teams make it to the playoffs. The River Bandits had to play the first place team in round one. 

"I told the boys I trust you to play with all your heart and I will coach with all of mine. We all played our part and there was not one game we won or lost that this team did not play as a team. Even though we had to play the first place team I knew we were up for the challenge," said Massa.

Lo and behold, the River Bandits pulled through with an upset. Word spread of the River Bandits' comeback and the fan base began to grow. 

"The positive feedback from the players and their families was amazing and breathtaking," said Massa.

The River Bandits moved on to play the second place team. It's the best out of three games in the series to capture the championship title.

It wasn't an easy series by any means but the team came together under Massa's leadership. He kept them focused, calm and ultimately brought the best out in each player. 

The River Bandits won the Nanuet Little League Minor Championship! The boys, parents and coaches were ecstatic.

"We were the underdogs all season, we were in last place and won it all. That was a great feeling," said Sean Ryan.

"We never thought we'd get this far but we worked together and were able to win the championship," said Thomas Ryan.

After winning the NLL championship, the River Bandits went on to play Pearl River in the MacRobbie Tournament of Champions. After beating Pearl River they moved on to the next bracket. They traveled to Stony Point where they gave it their all.  It was a close game up until the last pitch, and in the end Stony Point walked away with the win. 

"Even though we lost, it was with class and style and with our chins up. All the boys once again played outstanding and I hope to coach most of them again next year," said Massa. 

In addition to staying focused and having fun, Massa started practice at the beginning of the new year. 

"We started practice indoors in January and practiced every week between games even if it was just using the batting cages.  At the indoor practices it wasn't always about baseball.  The boys would ask to play running bases at the end of practice. I always agreed in order to show and remind them that it's about having fun. I learned a lot from each one of them also," said Massa.   

Massa began coaching five years ago when his oldest son entered the league. When his youngest son started he began to juggle coaching two teams. He is also a NLL Board Member.

"The Nanuet Little League is family oriented and a wonderful community. I coached both boys teams, it was a lot of work and many hours but I love every minute of it and would not change it for the world," said Massa.

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