Partners team wins Little League championship

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

This story was submitted by the Alpine-West Menlo Little League.

The Partners team of the Alpine-West Menlo Little League Majors Division faced as formidable a challenge as it had all season in Mike’s Cafe of the Menlo-Atherton Little League. But Partners scored two runs in the top of the sixth to earn a 2-0 victory June 19 at Burgess Park and win bragging rights in the 37th renewal of the Menlo Park city championship.

Conor Bonfiglio launched a two-out shot over the left-field fence and pitcher Kodiak Conrad put the finishing touches on a pitching masterpiece to give Partners a Little League tri-fecta: the Alpine-West Menlo league championship, the playoff championship, and the city championship on the way to a 20-3 record.

Mike’s Cafe earned its way to the championship by winning the M-A league playoffs.

Conrad struck out eight and faced just three batters over the minimum 18 on the way to a one-hit, 81-pitch complete game. Catcher Andrew Cox played a big role, throwing out two of those three base runners at second base.

Rio Zelayo delivered Mike’s Cafe’s lone hit, a single in the second inning.

Jackson Salabert limited Partners to four hits in five innings, but gave way to relief in the sixth. That’s when Bonfiglio struck.

Bonfiglio and Cox both had two hits for Partners.