The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Oneida nets road win over Cazenovia
Rich throws complete game in win over Cazenovia
CAZENOVIA » After a slow start to the season, Oneida began playing its best baseball the week after spring break, winning two games while losing a pair of one-run contests to a Proctor squad that’s currently 9-2.
Saturday, Casey Rich made sure his team’s strong week would end on a high note.
The junior took a no-hitter into the fifth inning against Cazenovia and pitched a complete game, scattering five hits in a 4-1 victory.
“We said all year long we’ve got to keep grinding away, keep grinding away and things will happen,” said Oneida coach Ryan Kramer. “We got a little unlucky at the start of the year, a couple bounces here, a couple bounces there that were unfortunate. We lost a lot of close games but those close games are now turning into wins. Confidence is starting to improve and there’s some pretty good baseball being played.”
Kramer also credited Rich for his ability to throw strikes. The junior pitcher struck out two bat-
ters while walking just one while his defense played errorless ball behind him.
“What I do is just throw strikes and let them hit them,” said Rich. “I know my fielders are good so, let them hit ‘em and fielders will make plays.”
Oneida’s No. 2 and 3 hitters did most of the damage offensively in the victory. Henry Froass went 2-for-4 with a triple and two runs scored while James Dick went 2-for-3 with a walk, two RBI and a run scored. Brad Mallinder also had two hits out of the cleanup spot for the visitors.
“Our top of the order, they struggled at one point and now they’re starting to mesh together and they’re hitting the ball well,” said Kramer. “One through five have been hitting the ball great.”
Graham Demo went 2-for-3 for the Lakers in the loss.
Oneida broke through against Cazenovia starter Alex Marshall with a run in the top of the first inning. Froass started a oneout rally with a single and advanced to third in two wild pitches to Dick, who singled to bring him home with the game’s first run.
The visitors doubled that advantage in the top of the second. Tanner Williams reached on an error and stole second before Kaleb Albro was hit by a pitch. With leadoff hitter Jorden Barlow batting, the duo executed a double steal. Barlow followed with a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Williams and put Oneida ahead 2-0.
Marshall set the Oneida side down in order in the third and got some defen- sive help in the top of the fourth. Williams reached on an error and stole second before an Albro single to right field. Williams tried to score but Dylan Roy made a perfect throw to the plate where catcher Evan Begley made the tag for the second out. Marshall got out of the inning with a fielder’s choice groundout.
Oneida did build on the lead in the top of the fifth, with Froass and Dick again generating the offense. Froass led off with a triple down the right-field line and scored on a sacrifice fly by Dick to center field, extending the advantage to 3-0.
Rich, meanwhile, faced the minimum number of batters through his first four innings. He walked one but his defense turned an inning-ending double play in the second. Demo broke up the no-hitter in the bottom of the fifth with a two-out single.
After Roy pitched a scoreless inning of relief in the top of the sixth, Cazenovia scored its only run in the bottom of the frame. Paul McLaughlin singled with one out and Noah Race then reached on a fielder’s choice. Begley followed with a two-out RBI triple to deep right field before Tucker Rodgers made a running catch in center field to end the inning with Oneida ahead 3-1.
The visitors quickly got that run back in the top of the seventh. Dick and Mallinder started the inning with back-to-back singles off of Begley before he got a strikeout. Pinch hitter Mitch Foster followed with an RBI single to score Dick and give Oneida a 4-1 edge.
Cazenovia put two runners on in the bottom of the seventh, bringing the tying run to the plate with one out. Rich bore down, getting a strikeout and a groundout to end the game.