St. James/Smithtown and Port Washington Little League baseball teams ready for state tournament
The Port Washington 12U Little League baseball team won the Section 4 West Championship Game to advance to the state tournament. Credit: David Gabriel
Two Long Island Little League teams are ready to take the next step on the road to youth baseball’s biggest stage.
The St. James/Smithtown and Port Washington 12-and-under teams will represent Long Island in the New York State tournament, which begins Saturday in West Nyack in Rockland County.
Both teams will compete in three rounds of pool play, with the top two teams in each of the two four-team pools advancing to the semifinals on Wednesday. The championship game is on Friday.
The state champion advances to the Metro Region Tournament in Bristol, Connecticut, starting on Aug. 8. The winner of that tournament will earn a spot in the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, starting on Aug. 19.
St. James/Smithtown, representing District 35, enters the state tournament on a run that league president Brian Erni said has become a source of pride throughout the organization.
“We are so proud of the way we’ve been able to move this program forward and set a new standard for what it means to be a baseball player from Smithtown,” Erni said. “After making it through districts and sectionals, they’ve proven that they are resilient, they’re battle-tested and they’re extremely motivated to prove that the road to the Metro Region goes through Smithtown.”
Last year, the St. James/ Smithtown 12U team won the state championship and advanced to Bristol. The team reached the Metro Region championship game but lost to Fairfield National (Connecticut), 12-1, finishing one win shy of reaching Williamsport.
Manager Tom Viggiani said his team has embraced an underdog mentality throughout this summer.
“We’ve had the motto from the beginning, why not us?” he said. “We’ve been talking about it every practice, every game and just living by that. Why not this year? Why not our team? A lot of these kids have never won a district before, so it was special for these kids to have the opportunity to be on this stage.”
Port Washington, representing District 28, arrives at the state tournament carrying momentum of its own and looking to make the summer season last as long as possible.
League president Eric Trenaman has seen firsthand how postseason success can shape a community. His son was part of Port Washington’s sectional championship team a decade ago.
“My son’s team won sectionals 10 years ago and these guys just won [on Monday], so it’s full circle,” Trenaman said. “It’s been part of the fabric of our community and the baseball program itself. It’s been great to see the older kids pass it down to their younger siblings and see it trickle down to the kids after that. It’s just gotten so contagious.”
Port Washington manager Dave Gabriel said for his team to advance to Bristol, it has to keep playing by the core values that got it to the state tournament.
“Making it to the state tournament is an incredibly special moment for our players, their families and the entire community,” Gabriel said. “What makes this so meaningful isn’t just winning, it’s watching this group of boys create lifelong memories together. They earned this opportunity through hard work, dedication, teamwork and an unwavering belief in one another.”
Tess Ferguson is a reporter on Newsday's high school sports staff. She joined the team after graduating with a journalism degree from Ithaca College in 2025.
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