HAVE MERCY!
South Kingstown has no trouble in 21-1 rout of Woonsocket in Senior Division action See SENIOR, page B2
CUMBERLAND — The Woonsocket All-Stars picked a most inopportune time to play easily its worst game of the summer.
In the opener of the R.I. Little League Senior Division Tournament at Bentley Field on Saturday afternoon, they mustered only two hits, both from Shane Perrico, and committed a whopping 11 errors en route to a horrific 21-1 “mercy-rule” shelling by South Kingstown’s best.
The umpiring crew called the “contest” after reliever Sam Craven fanned the side in the bottom of the fifth inning. Between starter Harry Loud, Jamie Cunningham and Craven, they allowed only two balls to be hit outside the infield (Perrico) and closed with a whopping 10 strikeouts.
“It was our defense; we just didn’t have it,” sighed Woonsocket skipper Steve Sgambato afterward. “In our first two games in District IV, we beat a combined Smithfield/Cumberland team by scores of 6-0 and 10-0. In the first one, Latrell Lopez pitched a one-hit complete game, and – in the second – we scattered only six hits while playing error-less defense.
“That’s why I’m so baffled by this one,” he added. “It all unraveled (Saturday). In the first inning, we easily gave them seven outs. I mean, it’s a hard field to get runs, but once you get going, you can put them up.”
The good news for Sgambato: He kept his sense of humor.
“Errors, like hitting, can be contagious, and we caught a heck of a bug here,” he added.
“We know we’re better, our fans know we’re better. Hopefully, we’re going to get back to playing Woonsocket baseball (today).”
Sgambato’s bunch will face Darlington American, which lost the tourney opener to Johnston earlier Saturday, in the losers’ bracket today at 1 p.m at this same site. SK will take on Johnston in a winners’ bracket clash at 4 p.m.
For the victors, Noah Greene led the charge, going 4-for-5 with a double, five RBI and two runs scored, while Zach Rameaka went 2for-5 with a triple, double three RBI and two runs. Other key contributors at the plate included Owen Miech (2-for4, double, two RBI, three runs); Luke Crook (3-for-4, triple, walk, two RBI, two runs); Craven (2-for-4, RBI, two runs); Jason Fera (2-for-4, RBI, three runs); Cunningham (2-for-4, two RBI, two runs); and Colin Leclerc (1-for-6, two runs).
All told, seven of the 10 players on the SK roster posted at least two hits. Five of its 19 went for extra bases.
SK didn’t waste any time getting into its offense, notching seven runs in the top of the first off of rihty starter Tyler Violette. Phil Rhule drew a one-out walk, then took second on Greene’s single to center. Cunningham then drilled an opposite-field hit to right, but it skipped past Perrico and both scored on the miscue.
Fera reached when Violette threw a comebacker wildly to first, scoring Cunningham, and he robbed second. Rameaka’s two-bagger to right plated Fera, and Miech’s double to virtually the same spot scored Rameaka. Miech hustled in on No. 9 batter Craven’s suicide-squeeze bunt, and he later hustled in on a throwing error to third.
Woonsocket made four such mistakes in that frame alone.
SK sent 10 hitters to the plate in the first, then an astonishing 14 in the second. Highlights of the frame included Rameaka’s two-run triple, Crook’s RBI three-bagger and Greene’s two-run bloop double to left. When the second ended, the visitors had posted eight more for a 15-0 cushion.
It tacked on six more in the third, thanks in part to Greene’s two-run hit and RBI singles by Cunningham, Miech and Crook.
It got so bad, the SK coaching staff opted – even on base hits – to move base-to-base rather than running aggressively.
Woonsocket did get on the board in the fourth following Perrico ripped an oppositefield single to right and stole second. He moved to third on Lopez’ groundout to second and scored on Nick Iarussi’s bounder to short.
“Hey, at least we didn’t get shut out,” Sgambato stated with a grin. “That’s my optimism for the day.”
South Kingstown 786 00 – 21 – 19 – 0 Woonsocket 000 10 –1 – 2 – 11 Harry Loud, Jamie Cunningham (3), Sam Craven (5) and Owen Miech, Colin Leclerc (4). Tyler Violette, Latrell Lopez (1), Deryn Glassey ( 2), Shane Perrico ( 3), Evan Nickerson (4) and Nick Iarussi. 2B – Noah Greene, Miech, Zach Rameaka. 3B – Luke Crook, Rameaka.