HAMILTON — Matteo Pandolfini picked the perfect time to be almost perfect.
Pandolfini fired his first career no-hitter with 10 strikeouts and allowed just one walk in pitching the Nottingham Little League 12-year-old All-Stars to a 2-0 win over Sunnybrae in a District 12 winner’s bracket final at Sunnybrae’s Ed Nevius Field Sunday.
If that wasn’t enough, as the game’s second batter he blasted the tournament’s first home run to give himself a 1-0 lead, and later scored a second run on Gennaro Salzano double for some insurance.
Gary Leonardo, a Pando pal, was the Brae’s lone baserunner when he drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the fifth.
“I knew I had a perfect game, then I walked one of my best friends,” the hurler said. “Then it was just a no-hitter and I figured I would keep on throwing strikes and let my defense work. I threw mostly fastballs.”
Pandolfini had never thrown a no-hitter before this, even in regular-season league play, and he nearly had had this one ruined twice.
Marco Girard led off the fifth by smoking a line drive to shortstop that Austin Marshall – one of the smallest guys in the field — leaped to grab. Hank Little led off the sixth with another line drive that Marshall backhanded going to his right to preserve the masterpiece.
“Unbelievable,” manager Adam Reymann said of the two players. “Matteo was almost unhittable, and when he was hit, the guys in the field, especially Austin Marshall, made outstanding plays. They didn’t get a lot of action but when they did they were ready to go.”
And did Reymann think the worst on the two line drives?
“Absolutely,” he said. “They were missiles.”
Pandolfini also had concern.
“Yeah it was pretty scary but I knew we had a good shortstop out there,” he said of the slick-fielding 11-year-old. “We picked him up for a good reason.”
The right-hander said “it feels pretty good” to pitch the gem, and claimed he wasn’t nervous going out for the sixth. After Little’s out, he finished with a flurry, striking out the last two. Pandolfini has faced 24 batters in district play, allowing one hit (Saturday) and one walk with 14 strikeouts.
He went to three balls on just three batters, and walked one.
“I just feel I gotta trust my defense and throw strikes,” Pandolfini said of his mindset when he falls behind.
His teammates respected the age-old rule of not mentioning a no-hitter to the pitcher in the dugout.
“I knew it in the sixth inning but I didn’t really say anything,” Salzano said. “He pitched amazing. I don’t think he could do much better than that.”
Pandolfini lifted his team early when he blasted one over the right field fence for a 1-0 lead. Asked if he’s usually a good opposite-field hitter, he said “I guess. Wherever the pitch is at I can go with it.”
He became the latest father-son tandem to collect home runs in District 12 play as his father Ryan hit three for Nottingham’s 1988 champs.
“Yeah, he tells me about that sometimes,” Matteo said with a smile.
As a slugger, Pandolfini felt he helped himself mentally as a pitcher by getting a lead before taking the mound.
“It lets me throw strikes and trust my defense,” Pandolfini said. “Even if they get hits we still have a run.”
Reymann agreed, saying “it just makes everything that much easier. Now you can relax. Once you get that first run it takes a load off your back.”
Nottingham got the second run in the fourth simply due to the threat of Pandolfini.
With one out and the bases empty, Sunnybrae opted to walk him intentionally and take its chances with Salzano. They were messing with a guy whose family rises to the occasion in district play. In 2023, his cousin Dom “The Bomb” Stillitano capped a 3-for-3 day with a two-out, two-run, walk-off homer in a 3-2 Section 3 victory over Milltown.
Salzano kept the family’s clutch hitting tradition alive, drilling one into the right-centerfield gap to plate Pandolfini with a big insurance run.
The third baseman said he took it “a little bit” personally, but “I wasn’t mad. I knew I could hit.”
So did Reymann.
“Unfortunately Matteo’s gonna get walked,” the manager said. “He walked two times yesterday (unintentionally). But when we have guys like that in the lineup, so what, let them walk him. I’ll take that all day. Matteo’s a menace on the basepaths, and then you got guys like Gene who hits line drives.
“He’s been hitting like that all year so I have no problem letting Matteo get on and letting Gene hit.”
From that point the no-hitter drama built. Unfortunately for Jon Wheeler it overshadowed his outstanding mound effort. The Sunnybrae hurler pitched 5-2/3 innings, allowing two runs, five hits and one walk with one strikeout.
Sunnybrae must now win three straight, and the quest starts Tuesday when it meets the winner of Monday’s Bordentown-Robbinsville game.
Bordentown stayed alive with a 6-2 victory over West Windsor Sunday. Trailing 2-1 West Windsor tied it in the top of the fifth but Bordentown scored four in the bottom of the frame to win it. Jake Bucci’s single helped bring home the go-ahead run.
While the remaining three teams battle it out, Nottingham can wait until Wednesday and keep it’s pitching in order.
“This is the most important game, absolutely,” Reymann said. “Now someone has to beat us twice. You gotta win this one and then everyone else is fighting to beat you.”
They won it all right, in historic style.
Nottingham (2-0) 100 100 – 2 5 0
Sunnybrae (1-1) 000 000 – 0 0 0
WP: Pandolfini (1-0). LP: Wheeler (0-1). 2B: N-Salzano. HR: N-Pandolfini. RBI: Pandolfini, Salzano.
Originally Published: June 29, 2025 at 4:11 PM EDT