Senior Ruth Picking Up Steam

Starting pitcher Mark Rocha got out of bases-loaded jams in the first and fifth innings, and the Belmont Senior Babe Ruth team rolled Tuesday to its second straight victory in as many days.

Belmont (3-3) beat visiting Winchester (1-7) 5-2 at Brendan Grant Memorial Field to reach the .500 mark for the first time this season.

"At the beginning of the season, we weren't hitting the ball," Rocha said of the team's poor start, "but we've started to turn that around and score some runs."

Belmont defeated Everett 6-4 on Monday.

Although they ended up controlling the game Tuesday, Belmont looked shaky in the top of the first inning until Rocha closed the door.

After a lead-off single, Rocha hit a batter to put two runners on with no outs. Winchester's Sam Novicki then hit a routine fly-ball to right-center field but reached after a miscommunication between outfielders allowed the ball to drop.

With the bases loaded and no outs, Rocha got the next better to line-out to shortstop Jamie McLaughlin. The out should've been a double play, as Winchester's lead-off man, Luke Pashos, got caught off third base, but Belmont failed to execute. However, it ended up not mattering, as Rocha struck out the next two batters on his go-to pitch, a low curveball just off the outside corner of the plate.

"I don't try and think about it," the Belmont High School rising junior said of pressure situations. "I just try and play like I normally do, concentrate on throwing strikes."

Rocha, 16, also struck out a batter to end a bases-loaded threat in the fifth inning. He allowed only single runs in the fourth and seventh innings in the complete game win.

Rocha got help from his identical twin brother, Michael Rocha, in the bottom of the first inning. Michael, a right fielder, led-off with a single and then scored off a Ryan Smith bunt and a Winchester error to give his brother a one-run cushion.

In the second inning, first baseman Brendan Reilly and shortstop Christian Raymond reached on singles to put runners at the corners with two outs. On Reilly's attempted steal from first base, Winchester's catcher threw the ball into center field, allowing Raymond to score and moving Reilly to third. Then, teammate Anthony Perro struck out, but the ball went passed the catcher, putting Reilly across and allowing Perro to reach safely.

Belmont's Collin McNamara scored in the third inning off another passed ball to make it 4-0. Later, in the fifth inning, catcher Matt Brown scored on a groundout by third baseman Evan Nichols to give Belmont its fifth and final run.

Belmont will try and continue its winning ways  against Woburn at 5:45 p.m. today at Brendan Grant Memorial Field.