When Gershkoff/Auburn Post 20 fell behind 6-1 last Tuesday in its first game of the season, manager Dave Schiappa had to wonder.

He had been optimistic in the preseason, but also a little unsure. This Gershkoff team is the youngest and most inexperienced squad he’s ever had. As the deficit grew against Providence Post 29, so did the uncertainty.

“It was 6-1 and I thought, alright, maybe we’re going to take some lumps this year,” Schiappa said.

A few hours later, the uncertainty was fading and the optimism was back in full force.

Gershkoff rallied for an 11-10 victory over Post 29 then topped NEFL 10-0 in the nightcap of the doubleheader. The team continued its hot start Wednesday with a 4-3 victory over East Bay. Their next two league games were postponed because of rain, but even bad weather can’t put much of a damper on a great first week.

“After the way things have gone, we’re very optimistic,” Schiappa said. “We were thinking that early on, we’d have to be doing a lot of teaching, but the kids have really come out and played well. We’ve got a lot of young guys who are hungry, and they’re playing well. We’re very happy.”

The victory over Post 29 set the stage for everything. Gershkoff’s rally was highlighted by a bases-clearing triple by Steve Beneduce. Post 29 eventually got the lead back, but Gershkoff again rallied. Newcomers Steve Lapatin, Matt Saccoccio and Sean Rabbitt all helped the cause with key hits.

“Offensively, the kids just didn’t give up,” Schiappa said. “They just kept coming back. I didn’t know how they would respond to a situation like that, but they stayed patient and kept working.”

The second game of the doubleheader wasn’t nearly as dramatic, but Gershkoff was happy to take it. The team hit up and down the lineup, and Omar Duverge turned in a strong outing in keeping a solid NEFL team off the board.

“That was really nice to see from Omar,” Schiappa said. “He had some rough outings for East, but he was great for us.”

Gershkoff got another strong pitching performance on Wednesday. Steve Larsson, the ace of the Junior Legion team’s staff last year, tossed a complete game in the victory over East Bay. He out-dueled Barrington’s Jacob Portugal, the son of former Major League pitcher Mark Portugal.

“Larsson is a kid who didn’t get a lot of time at West, but he’s excited to get this chance,” Schiappa said. “He came out and just threw strikes. He pitched really well.”

The game against East Bay was it for league play in the first week, but Gershkoff hosted Berlin, Conn., on Saturday in a non-league game. Though Gershkoff came up short in a 7-2 loss, even that result offered some reasons for optimism.

“Berlin was in the high school state championship and they’re a regional-caliber legion team every year,” Schiappa said. “I think we held our own against them. We left 14 or 15 on base and if we hadn’t done that, it would have been a much closer game.”

Even with the loss, things are shaping up nicely for Gershkoff. Considering the fact that Dan Hopkins and Joe Portukalian didn’t pitch in any of the first four games, the pitching staff’s performance was particularly impressive. Larsson shined every chance he got and the team’s three youngest pitchers – Lapatin, Mike Hayden and Dan Muncy – all had solid showings against Berlin.

The defense has also been impressive, especially on the left side of the infield.

“Steve Beneduce has been absolutely flawless at shortstop,” Schiappa said. “At third, Justin Costa is making big league plays out there.”

The best news for Gershkoff is that many of their early standouts are newcomers. With veterans like Hopkins, Shane O’Connell and Matt Clarkin also delivering, Gershkoff is working with a good recipe.

Schiappa said the goal now is to keep getting better. Assistant coach Chris Hopkins always preaches the importance of learning every day, and that’ll be the objective.

Even if they’re already a little ahead of the curve.

“We just have to continue to have some fun and be aggressive,” Schiappa said. “With all the rain, we’re going to be playing pretty much every day from here on out. We have the pitching depth to handle that so we just have to stay focused.”