Skippers Strike Down Bolts Rally

Cranston East fought back from a nine-run deficit and brought the tying run to the plate in the seventh inning, but North Kingstown’s Jay Montanaro got the last out and the Skippers held on to down the Thunderbolts, 10-7, Saturday at Lischio Field in Slocum, RI.

The Skippers scored runs in the first, third, fourth and sixth innings, taking home runs from Chris Hess and Joe Haley to build a 10-1 lead.  But with two down in the top of the seventh, Cranston East’s Robert D'Arezzo stepped into the box with John Razzino on third base and Ivan Reyes at first.

Razzino reached base with a double to drive in three runs and halve a 10-4 deficit, and he moved to third on an infield single from shortstop Ivan Reyes. D'Arezzo took a pitch to get himself ahead of Montanaro, but he put the next one on the ground and NK’s shortstop made no mistake, tossing to first and ending the preseason contest.

The inning began with the Thunderbolts trailing, 10-1, but they loaded the bases and pushed three across before Razzino added his second hit of the day.

The senior center fielder picked up a single in the first inning and proceeded to give Cranston East a 1-0 lead, using his speed to steal a base, take advantage of two wild pitches and cross the plate without a hit from the CE offense.

“We start with [Razzino]. He makes a run pretty much every time he’s at the plate, because if he gets on base, he can get to third base real quick,” said Cranston East head coach Michael Walsh.

“He just creates a lot, that’s why he’s [leading off]. He could bat No. 3 for us, really, but we feel like he’s going to be the most effective in that spot and he’ll do the most damage there.”

Jared Habershaw responded to Razzino’s run by driving in two for North Kingstown in the bottom of the first, and the Skippers tacked on four more in the third to take a 6-1 lead.

They stretched the margin to eight in the fourth, and plated one more in the sixth to establish the nine-run advantage.

Both teams will begin the regular season with road games Tuesday, April 5. The ‘Bolts will travel to East Providence for a Division I-Central showdown with the Townies, and Portsmouth hosts North Kingstown in a Division I-South clash.