Sports Roundup – Island hardballer plays for Aussies/Select soccer teams travel well

Published 1:00 pm Saturday, August 19, 2006

Island hardballer plays for Aussies

While the Bainbridge Babe Ruth teams didn’t make it to the World Series this year, they’ll be represented by a former islander who is at the big tournament.

Charlie Aznavoorian, a former Bainbridge Island Little League All-Star, is currently in Hamilton Township, N.J. as a member of the 13-year-old Australian Babe Ruth baseball team that is playing in the World Series.

Charlie lived on the island from 1996 to 2003 and was a member of the 10-year-old All-Star team. After moving to Australia, he got involved with the sport down there and became a three-time All-Star and a three-time MVP.

Currently the second baseman of the New South Wales winter development team, he was selected with 14 other players to make up the team.

They are the only international entry in the tournament.

“When we left for Australia in 2003, Charlie was very gloomy about leaving Bainbridge, (his) friends and playing baseball,” his father Sarkis wrote in an e-mail. Sarkis credits the coaches on the island giving Charlie all the tools to succeed in Australia.

“One of the most intriguing things about this whole baseball journey was how accepting the Australians were to Charlie’s arrival,” Sarkis wrote. “It’s a very competitive group and he bumped out some of the kids that would normally have had a chance to play if he had not been on the scene.”

While Charlie plans to eat a lot of Mexican food and buy some baseball equipment (bats and gloves are expensive Down Under), he also wants to win.

“In his player bio he wrote that he wants to prove to his American friends that the ‘Aussie’s can play as well the Americans,’” Sarkis wrote. “Humility not being one of his strengths.”

The team started pool play against Hamilton Township on Thursday. To follow the team, see www.hamiltonworldseries.org/worldseries/index.rock.

Select soccer teams travel well

Two local select soccer teams came back from successful runs at several national tournaments in the past month.

The Westsound Wanderers, a U-15 team consisting of players from around the area, made it to the quarterfinals of the Schwan’s USA Weekend tournament and the Schwan’s USA Cup during a 10-day trip in late July to Blaine, Minn.

Four players from Bainbridge –Chandler Foster, Charlie von Reis, Sam Mutty and AJ Peter – helped the team defeat the Bangu Tsunami, one of the top-ranked teams in Minnesota, during the week-long USA Cup.

They’ll play in the Pacific Coast Challenge next weekend and participate in the second division of the Washington State Youth Soccer League this fall.

The U-13 Azzuri took second place in their division at the 2006 Adidas Cup on the weekend of July 23 in Beaverton, Ore.

The Azzuri didn’t lose a game and only tied once as they won four games in the 100 plus degree heat.

Goalie Hannah Depew led the way with four shutouts while Kate Jameson, Haley Godtfredsen, Carly Burt, Sarah Dacquisto, Hanna Newman and Marit Brevik all scored.