The Newtown Sandy Hooks wrapped-up the 2008 season with gutsy play and a spirited team effort at South Windsor Heritage Day on Saturday as they took on the local Hartford Dark Blues on a glorious afternoon under autumn skies.

The games were closely played and hard fought to the very end, and once the makeshift nine from Newtown accustomed themselves to each other and the unique style of 1861 play they dominated much of the afternoon.

Paes, Zulli, Weiner, Brandt, Toomey, Hazelton, Figueroa, and Wheat took the field while Snyder handled the pitching duties for Newtown.

After a month layoff and a few newer members on the roster, it took the Sandy Hooks a number of at bats to re-acclimate themselves to the task. But, in spite of that fact, a stout Newtown defense anchored by the sure hands of Bryan 'Nut' Hazelton at the hot corner and Joel 'Bean' Figueroa at short scout kept the Newtown's in the match while the club retuned its hitting effort to the odd game. In the early going, a number of potential scoring opportunities were quickly quashed by the Dark Blues as the brute force hitting style (typified by the highly suspect 'soft-balling' technique) failed to deliver the desired affect.

After falling behind 5 to 2 with one inning to play, a concerted attack of strategic hitting and aggressive base running by Hazelton (who rivals 'Pops' & Ryan Pendergist records for running through 'stop signs'), 'Muhl' Snyder, 'Rock' Zulli and Figueroa rallied the Hooks to knot the game at five. The team realized late that 'small ball' was the only way to accumulate runs in this game, and when push came to shove, the top of the order pushed three aces across the dish to draw sweat on the Hartford brows. Unfortunately, the excitement was short-lived as the Hooks were unable to secure the effort in the ninth as the home club walked-off with victory on a 'Gunner' Frank base hit, stolen base and long bound out to left beyond the reach of Tris Toomey. Game 1 ended in a 6 to 5 decision for the Dark Blues.

In game two the Sandy Hooks exhibited their true potential as Toomey lead the hitting barrage with two doubles and a triple that catapulted the Newtowners to a decisive 8 to 3 win. The Hooks scored three aces in the third off the bats of Hazelton, Toomey, Zulli and Weiner and struck for two more in the sixth and three in the eight sparked by knocks and steals by Brookfield's 'Bullet' Brandt. Toomey's impressive long ball in the eight, which landed well beyond the reach of any Hartford fielder, cemented the victory for the Hooks. Zulli went the route for Newtown maintaining decorum and style in his final pitching effort of the season. 'Pops' Toomey donned the Sandy Hook colors in the closing game and showed who put the pop in the younger Toomey's bat.

	Newtown Sandy Hooks - Back Row: Zulli, Spencer Toomey, Tristan Toomey, Bryan Hazelton, Joel Figueroa, Front Row: Wheat, Snyder, Paes, Brandt, Weiner

As '08 comes to a close, the club looks back to the great performances (at events like Old Bethpage), the success of Hits for Harmon and the struggles of the later months of the season, and looks forward to the new season in hopes of recruiting new talent and shoring-up holes left by old age, injuries and the loss of the Pendergist family who moved to Pennsylvania mid-Summer.

The Sandy Hooks close the season with a 10 and 14 record.

	Newtown slugger Tristan Toomey was 5 for 8 for the day.

A year-end meeting will take place in the coming weeks to map out the '09 campaign and thank all the members who took part. A membership campaign is underway in search of new players who wish to play the overhand game in anticipation of splitting the season between 1860 and 1880 rules games in '09.