Eagles ride clutch hitting to win

TORRINGTON - In a tight game with big hits and heroes to spare at Torrington’s Fuessenich Park, a tricky infield single by pinch hitter Alex James put Wolcott over the top in a 5-4 win Friday afternoon.

Playing catchup for most of the game, the Red Raiders, now 8-9 at the end of a tough week, had a huge win in sight with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning for a 4-3 lead.

“Both teams came ready to play,” said Wolcott coach Tary Scott, whose team goes to 14-3, 12-3 in the NVL. “I think they wanted it more, but we didn’t quit. Last year, we would have folded.”

Jack Drewry’s sacrifice fly in the first inning earned the Eagles’ first lead. Now, in the top of the seventh, he led off with a double to right center field. Torrington reliever Garrett Fosbrook walked Trey Nastri, then blazed a strikeout for the first out.

Nick Longo’s infield hit in a 2-for-3 day scored a run in the fifth inning for a 3-2 Wolcott lead. This time, with the game on the line, he lined the second out to deep left field while Drewry scrambled home from second for a 4-4 tie.

James, a sophomore, came up for his first at-bat of the game. His sharp bouncer headed for the right-side hole; second

baseman Nick Balducci knocked it down, but couldn’t come up with it before the winning run crossed the plate.

Hassan, in a six-strikeout relief performance from the fifth inning on, doused Torrington’s final hopes with two strikeouts and a ground-out to second.

“It was nice to come out

with the win,” he grinned.

Still, it was a bitter pill for the Raiders.

Torrington starter Brian Bassler scattered just four hits through the first four innings while the Raiders tied the score 1-1 in the third on a Mike Paniati double to the left field wall.

Wolcott scored twice in the top of the fifth on four hits, a walk and an error, but Torrington bounced back with a dramatic run in the fifth. Cam Cerutto, on

third on a single, Casey Navin hit and a walk, charged home on a squeeze bunt call that turned into a wild-pitch steal.

Then, in the Raiders’ high point, Ryan Ahlman led off the Torrington sixth inning with his second hit of the game; Cerutto laced a double down the third base line and Paniati singled in both runs.

The Eagles didn’t quit, but worst of all for Coach Pat Richardson, six of Torrington’s 10 strikeouts caught Raiders looking in a winnable game.

“If you don’t swing the bats, you don’t win,” Richardson said. “We need our whole lineup to step up at the plate.”