Berlin's Owen Knerr walking out of Breen Field at the Giamatti Baseball Center following the loss to Staten Island.

Bristol, CT – First it was a rain-out and then it was the pitching of Staten Island’s Gregory Bruno that halted Berlin’s momentum and ended their season with a 4-0 loss in the Mid-Atlantic Little League Region Final and the right to play in the Little League World Series.

Bruno struck out 12 of the 18 Berlin batters he faced in pitching a perfect game.  The only threat to the no-hitter occurred with two outs in the fifth inning.  Berlin’s Nate Berzonski lined a pitch that reached the outfield.  Staten Island’s Robert Cavalieri played shallow enough that he was able to get a throw to first before Berzonski touched the bag for a rare 9-3 force out.

“We knew exactly who Gregory (Bruno) was.” Berlin manager Cameron McDonough said.  “He did not disappoint, my goodness. He was super efficient.”

After a Monday loss to Middletown, NJ, Berlin faced elimination.  In the three subsequent games, they outscored the opposition 35-18 including Friday’s 11-1 five inning win in the rematch against Middletown.  The Region Final was scheduled for Saturday night, but rain wiped out the game pushing it to Sunday afternoon.