In its Little League World Series debut, Bridgewater gets walked off by New Jersey

With one swing, Mason Rincon put a significant dent in Bridgewater’s quest for a Little League World Series title.

With Bridgewater and Metro champion Bayonne Central (N.J.) knotted at 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth inning Wednesday night, Rincon sent a 1-1 pitch high into the night air at Lamade Stadium in Williamsport, Pa. When it finally landed, deep in the bushes beyond the center-field fence, the New England champion was left to shuffle off the field and into the loser’s bracket of the double-elimination tournament with a 2-1 defeat.

Metro will play the Mid-Atlantic champion, East Side of Westchester, Pa., on Friday, while Bridgewater will play Saturday against the loser of Thursday’s Great Lakes vs. Mountain matchup.

Bridgewater’s LLWS debut got off on the wrong foot when Metro scratched a run across in the bottom of the first with a single, an error, two walks, and a wild pitch.

But Anthony Sullivan led off the top of the third with a home run to right-center, the first for a Massachusetts player at the LLWS in 13 years. From there, defense and pitching took over.

Bridgewater ace Dominik Mombeleur struggled early with control, walking three in 3⅓ innings, but he struck out eight with an overpowering fastball, including a whiff to end the third inning with the bases loaded after he initially fell behind, 2-0. His inefficiency forced him from the game after reaching the 85-pitch maximum, allowing one run on four hits.

With two on and two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Bridgewater left fielder Tristyn Lee broke in on a sinking liner to make a diving catch and preserve the 1-1 score.

Outside of Sullivan’s homer, Bridgewater managed just one hit off Rincon, who went 4⅓ innings, allowing just two hits and one run before being pulled at 65 pitches to limit his required rest to three days.

Metro’s Gabe Garcia Jr. earned the win in relief, striking out two and allowing two hits and a walk in 1⅔ innings. Jude DeSimone took the loss for Bridgewater, surrendering two hits, including Rincon’s homer, in 1⅔ innings.