Eight errors cost Pats in loss to Rams

By Jacob Marrocco
Posted 4/19/16

The Pilgrim baseball team had an afternoon to forget on Saturday after committing eight errors, which allowed seven unearned runs to score, in a 9-2 defeat at the hands of La Salle Academy. …

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Eight errors cost Pats in loss to Rams

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The Pilgrim baseball team had an afternoon to forget on Saturday after committing eight errors, which allowed seven unearned runs to score, in a 9-2 defeat at the hands of La Salle Academy.

“It’s a game that you probably shouldn’t forget,” Pilgrim manager Scott Bailey said. “They have to remember [that] they have to be ready to compete from the first pitch on. They can’t wake up in the second inning. It has to be from the first inning on. It’s not a game that should forgotten.”

Gold Glove shortstop Tyler Perry had an uncharacteristic day in the field with two miscues, but he also drove in a run on an infield single in the first inning. The Pilgrim offense struggled as a whole, as it was held hitless for a stretch of five consecutive innings.

Pilgrim starter Dan Reph had a rough first couple of innings as a result of poor defense. After walking Jordan Huntoon to start the inning, an error at second base from Matt Woods put runners at first and second with no one out.

“We just couldn’t make the plays the first two innings, defensively,” Bailey said. “We sharpened up as the game went on, but a team like La Salle, you can’t give them two innings. We made eight errors today, we’re not going to win any baseball games, nobody’s gonna win a baseball game making eight errors.”

Ryan Ramos stepped in and lined a shot right at Perry, who looked to turn two at second, but his throw sailed over Woods’ head into right field. Huntoon and Brandon Taylor scurried to third and second, respectively, for Ryan McCormick in the cleanup spot.

After Huntoon scored on a wild pitch, McCormick blasted an RBI triple into the gap in left center field to score Taylor. McCormick would come home on an RBI single to right off the bat of Edward Jackson to make it a 3-0 game before the Pats ever came up to the plate.

Pilgrim had its best offensive inning of the day in the first frame, and Woods got it started with a double into left field. He moved to third on David McMullen’s deep fly to left field before scoring on Perry’s infield dribbler.

La Salle starter Zachary Pipa struggled with control in the first, walking Anthony Russo and Alec Bloomingburgh to load the bases with one down. Sean Blanchard couldn’t deliver for the Pats, though, as he grounded into a 4-3 double play that halted Pilgrim’s momentum.

That would be the last time Pilgrim had a runner in scoring position until the seventh inning.

“It’s not that they lost their fire, we hit some hard balls,” Bailey said of the offensive lull. “Darren Grant hit a ball about 400 feet to center field, Bloomingburgh hit a couple line drives, David McMullen hit three line drives today. So we were hitting it right at people throughout the game. I wouldn’t say we lost our fire, we just kept hitting it at guys throughout the game. Eventually they’ll drop for us.”

While the Pats were stunted offensively, La Salle kept adding to its lead with help from some defensive lapses. Brenden Cavaco and Huntoon both scored in the inning without the benefit of a hit. Cavaco reached on a hit-by-pitch, moved to second on a passed ball, got to third on a fielder’s choice and scored on an error. Huntoon got on with a fielder’s choice, stole second, got to third on an error and trotted home after a wild pitch.

Taylor was the first Ram of the inning to score on a hit, but he reached third without the benefit of one. Catcher Ryan Maintain dropped the third strike, and Bloomingburgh couldn’t field the throw cleanly at first. Taylor advanced two bases on a wild pitch, where Ramos drove him home on a single. When all was said and done, La Salle led 6-1.

Pipa, who went five innings for the Rams, was untouchable from that point on. He struck out one and only walked two from the second inning through the fifth. Ramos added another RBI single in the fourth as well, allowing Pipa to exit with a comfortable six-run cushion.

Reph went 3.2 innings for Pilgrim, allowing just two earned runs on five hits and two walks. Zach D’Andrea took over from there and pitched just as effectively, going 2.1 innings and allowing no earned runs.

“They didn’t have the defense behind them, [but] they pitched well,” Bailey said. “Everybody who we’ve thrown on the mound so far in this season, which has only been a week-and-a-half, has done a very good job for us.”

However, La Salle would tack on two more in the sixth. D’Andrea had recorded five straight outs, including three punch-outs, before Huntoon reached on Perry’s second error of the afternoon. He stole second before scoring on Taylor’s RBI single into left field. Blanchard couldn’t field the ball cleanly, allowing Taylor to scamper into third. Ramos notched his third RBI of the day on a groundout, boosting the Rams’ lead to 9-1.

Pilgrim would tack a run on in the bottom of the seventh, but it was the only blemish for Huntoon in two innings of relief.

The Pats had a 2 p.m. meeting scheduled with Cranston West on the road Monday, but results were unavailable at press time. The Falcons are 3-0 to start the year, most recently notching a 7-4 win over St. Ray’s.

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