When his work was done, he simply sat on first base, crossed his legs and wondered what all the excitement around him was for.Then he was engulfed with the emotions of his teamates. Ed Bonnano knew what the excitement was for.He had just singled in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh inning to give his Old Towne Tavern a 3-2 victory, and the M Street Softball Championship, over the Bayside Club. That came after a staunch effort from Bonnano's right arm that hurled eleven innings of superb ball.

That he won the series' Most Valuable Player award merely had to be announced to the enthralled gathering of 2,000 that lined any available viewing space. It was a magnificent game played by two teams worthy of its greatness.

Old Towne earned its title using Bonnano's pitching and an opportunistic hitting which was enough to win in the games most needed, the fifth and final game of the championship agaisnst the Bayside and in the semifinal series against Triple O's.

They trailed the spirited Baysiders 2-0 into the last half of the sixth inning. With two outs, an error was followed by singles by Joe Ward, Paul Alessi, and Kevin Walsh that tied the game 2-2 off of Bob 'Cabbie' Tyler who was again clutch on the mound for Bayside.

The seventh and tenth innings brought opportunities for both teams to be champions but pitching, defense, and desire kept the game rolling. Then Bonnano's single to center ended it in the eleventh when Bobby Kelly scored from second base.

Bayside had a superb season, a proud one, that won't be lost to those who watched their determined effort in the series.

Bayside forced the fifth game on a 1-0 shutout by Tyler. A lead-off home run by Mike Flaherty was all the offense needed that night to beat Bonnano.

Game two and three went to Old Towne, 8-4 and 9-5, after Bayside took game one 14-7. Bonnano played Superman and led his team to a deserved championship. The celebration is probably still going strong at K & 3rd Streets.