Loss drops Lincoln ‘9’ to 5-8 in league play
Falcons play better defense in home win
Lincoln hurler Corey Mayer gave up just one earned run in three-plus innings of work, but errors cost LHS in a 5-2 loss at Cranston West on Saturday.
CRANSTON – Lincoln High skipper Andy Hallam didn’t feel much like talking after his club dropped a tough 5-2 Division I decision to Cranston West at the Hank Orabone Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon.
Really, who could blame him?
The Lions fell victim to a pair of astonishing defensive plays, one of which would have delivered a 2-0 advantage in the opening frame, but still managed to bring the tying run to the plate – twice – in the top of the seventh. Unfortunately, another CW defensive gem closed it.
What didn’t help the visitors? Four errors and the stranding of eight baserunners, a hefty five in scoring position. That, in essence, is the reason Lincoln fell to 5-8 in league action, while the Falcons finally climbed to .500 (7-7).
“They’re great kids and they work hard, but we (as a staff) need to do a better job of coaching them, and they need to do a better job of executing,” Hallam sighed.
Junior Zach Minicucci earned the triumph, scattering six hits and a walk with two hit batsmen in 4 2/3 innings. Righty classmate Cam Harris garnered the save after yielding a lone hit and a pair of passes while fanning two down the stretch.
Sophomore righthander Corey Mayer accepted the loss, lasting 3.1 frames. He allowed only three hits and three runs (one earned), in addition to two passes, and struck out one. Call him the hard-luck losing hurler.
In the end, three of West’s RBI came without benefit of a mere single, as sophomore Evan Degaitas – also the No. 9
batter – finished 0-for-2 with two, and classmate (and eighth hitter) Tom Barbieri 0-for-1 with a pair of walks and one.
Junior Brett Traficante paced the hosts, going 2-for-2 with an RBI and two runs scored, while senior Steve Piscopiello went 1-for-4 with a run; junior Andrew Spirito 1-for-2 with a pass and run; and senior Mike Doire 1-for-3 with a run.
Trailing 5-2 in the seventh, Harris issued a “freebie” to sophomore leadoff batter Aaron DeSousa, but he was thrown out at second when fellow 10th-grader Tyler McNulty beat out senior shortstop Steve Rocchio’s tailor-made twin killing with a wide throw to first.
Senior captain Sean Doris (2-for4, two doubles, run) then grounded to third, though senior second baseman Nick SanAntonio dropped the toss, leaving two men on.
Junior power-hitter Steve Andrews strolled to the plate as the game-tying run, but Harris whiffed him on a massive curve. Senior Noah Duquette had the same opportunity, though Rocchio turned a slow roller/pinpoint heave to first into the final out.
“We had two guys on, the tying run at the plate with our (Nos.) 4 and 5 hitters coming up,” Hallam stated. “We didn’t get it done. That’s baseball. Both of those guys work hard, and I’d put them up in the same spots every day of the week.”
The Lions threatened from the get-go, when – with one down in the top of the first – Minicucci struck McNulty with a delivery, and Doris hammered a double to the left-center gap. Andrews struck out swinging, but Duquette ripped a deep drive to left. It appeared it would sail to the warning track, but Doire made a spectacular sprawling snag to skirt the issue.
“The kid made a nice play,” Hallam said. “I thought it had a chance to go out at first.”
In the back half, West took the lead for good when Piscopiello knocked an opposite-field single to right, robbed second, took third on SanAntonio’s bounder to third and scored when Spirito reached on an infield throwing error.
Lincoln seemed poised to answer in the second when junior Connor Benbenek drew a walk, though classmate Blake Zaniol fouled to first. Sophomore Marty Gaughan followed with a wicked liner down the first-base line, yet Spirito plucked it and tagged Benbenek for the unassisted double play.
The Falcons increased the led to 2-0 in the back half after Traficante rapped a leadoff hit to left. He took second on a passed ball, third when Barbieri reached on shortstop Zaniol’s bobble and scored on Degaitas’s sacrifice fly to center.
Hallam’s bunch sliced the deficit to 2-1 in the fourth, courtesy of Doris’ walloped two-bagger to deep left and Andrews’ ground single up the middle. Still with no one retired, Andrews – call him “Shaq” – stole second and moved to third on Zaniol’s two-out hit down the leftfield stripe, but they were stranded at the corners.
CW tacked on another in the bottom half after Traficante and Barbieri both drew one-out “freebies,” and Hallam replaced Mayer with Kelly. The former immediately trotted to third on a wild pitch, then came in on Degaitas’ fielder’s choice/infield throwing miscue.
Lincoln knifed the gap to 3-2 in the fifth after freshman Randall Hien (four assists at second base) ripped a hit to center, and Minicucci hit DeSousa. Hien robbed third, and McNulty plated him with a low single up the middle.
Still, with two Lions on and no one out, Minicucci forced Doris to fly to left and whiffed Andrews. At that point, head coach Rob Malo opted for Harris, who needed three pitches to get Duquette to line out to right.
The Falcons responded with a two-run, two-out flurry in the back half. Kelly had received two quick outs, thanks to Hien at third and DeSousa (four assists) and second, but Spirio walked before Doire and Manfredo managed back-to-back hits to load the bags.
Traficante plated Spirito with another soft single to short center, and Barbieri walked to push across Doire.
That merely set up the Lions’ near-bid to knot it.
“We were one big hit away from going ahead or tying hit,” Hallam said. “We didn’t make enough big plays when we needed them, and just didn’t do what we had to. It’s tough.”