NEFL sweeps Sharks to kick off successful weekend

Jacob Marrocco
Posted 7/14/15

The New England Frozen Lemonade - Shields Post 43 legion baseball team won four of its six games this weekend, beginning with a home doubleheader sweep of the J2 Design Group Sharks - Post 22 on …

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NEFL sweeps Sharks to kick off successful weekend

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The New England Frozen Lemonade - Shields Post 43 legion baseball team won four of its six games this weekend, beginning with a home doubleheader sweep of the J2 Design Group Sharks - Post 22 on Thursday.

NEFL (12-7) allowed the first runner of the twin bill to score before going on to shut down the Sharks for the remainder of the night. NEFL went on to win game one, 5-1, before mercy ruling J2 in the second matchup, 12-0.

“From not really batting that well in the beginning of the season, and batting like this now, it’s getting a little more confidence for some of the guys,” NEFL pitcher Dan Greaves said. “That’s half the battle at the plate, just trying to get your head in the right [mind]set. If they can just go up to the plate comfortable, then we’re just going to do really well offensively.”

Steve Noti and Greaves, whom head coach Jim Dawber said before the season would probably be the leaders of the pitching staff, put in strong performances. Noti tossed the first game, going all seven innings and giving up just two hits and one run with eight strikeouts and one walk.

NEFL’s offense took a couple innings to get going after J2 designated hitter Mark Halloran crossed the plate on an RBI single in the first inning to put the Sharks up 1-0 early. Centerfielder Elvis Pimentel sparked the third-inning rally with a leadoff single into left field.

Pimentel’s Toll Gate teammate James Meizoso followed up with a walk to put the first two NEFL batters of the inning on base. Right fielder Elijah Brown also took a free pass to load the bases with nobody out. Third baseman Austin Lamaire came through for NEFL, dropping a two-RBI single into right field to plate Pimentel and Meizoso and putting his team up 2-1.

“It feels good, especially because we [Toll Gate] struggled this season,” Meizoso said about him and his former Titans’ teammate Pimentel’s strong seasons thus far. “Especially with hitting, none of us were consistent, but this summer me and Elvis have been pretty consistent. We’ve been seeing the ball well, and I feel like it’s just more relaxed, this team.”

Designated hitter Ryan Morris plated an insurance run with a grounder that slipped into right field to bring Brown home from third base and make the score 3-1.

NEFL tacked on a couple more runs in the fourth to further distance itself from the Sharks. Shortstop Alex Lefebvre began the attack with a double down the left field line, and moved to third when Pimentel reached on an error by the shortstop. With runners at the corners, Meizoso delivered his first hit of the game, an RBI single on the ground into left field to bring Lefebvre home.

After moving to third on a wild pitch, Pimentel came home on Brown’s sacrifice fly to centerfield to put NEFL up 5-1.

Noti was superb on the mound after his first-inning blip. In his final six innings of work, he surrendered no hits and allowed just two runners to reach, one on a hit-by-pitch and the other on an error.

“I think I was just trying to throw it a little too hard [in the first inning], so I winded down a little bit,” Noti said. “After the kid got the first hit I tried spotting the ball a lot more differently, and I was hitting my spots and it was working a lot for me. That’s what did it for me, settling down.”

NEFL’s offense continued to catch fire into the second game of the doubleheader, but Greaves would not allow the same for the Sharks. Greaves only had to work five innings for his complete-game shutout, but he picked up eight strikeouts (six looking) and allowed just two hits.

“I’ve been doing a lot of work with some of the guys at the Baseball Institute, helping with my mechanics and helping with my composure a little bit, and just trying to get myself situated into having a good pitch every strike,” Greaves said.

The solid run support didn’t hurt, either. After jumping on top 1-0 in the third on Lefebvre’s RBI single, NEFL exploded for seven runs in the third inning. J2 starter Nick Sissan opened the frame by walking Meizoso and Brown. Brown and Meizoso scampered to second and third, respectively, when Sissan delivered a wild pitch during Lamaire’s at-bat. After Lamaire eventually walked to fill the bases, a passed ball allowed Meizoso to score while Brown and Lamaire advanced.

Morris drove in the game’s third run with a groundout before Pimentel took a free pass to put runners at the corners with one out, prompting a pitching change. Sharks’ reliever Dean Streich could not stop the bleeding, though. Catcher Marcus Alexander put NEFL on top, 4-0, with an RBI single up the middle to plate Lamaire.

Second baseman Chris Reid dropped down a bunt single to load the bases again, setting the table for Lefebvre. The shortstop notched his second RBI in as many innings when his bunt single drove home Pimentel from third.

“Normally he likes to swing really hard, get a fastball and just try to hit it over the fence,” Brown said about Pimentel, who drew three walks in game two and scored five runs in total on the evening. “I think today he was a little more relaxed and he was just trying to work the count a little bit more.”

“I wanted to help the team a little bit and tried to walk,” Pimentel added.

No. 9 hitter and left fielder Zach Bacon continued the scoring with a base hit up the middle to bring Alexander across the dish. A throwing error at second base from the cutoff man allowed Reid to come home, too, to make it 7-0.

A passed ball would allow Lefebvre to score later in the inning, putting NEFL in front, 8-0, before the end of the third.

NEFL tacked on a few more in the fourth to put itself in mercy-rule territory. Pimentel scored his third run of the game on a balk, while Alexander and Reid both came around on a dropped pop-up at third base. Its 12 runs is the most NEFL has scored all season, and the most since defeating West Warwick Post Two 11-2 on June 29.

NEFL continued its weekend by splitting two doubleheaders, one with East Coast Beverages - Post 29 and the other with Navigant Credit Union - Fairmount Post 85. In both two-game sets, NEFL captured a 3-2 win before being dealt a 4-3 loss.

NEFL sits in third place overall in the Senior American Legion standings, two games behind second-place Collette Vacations - Post 79 and 4 1/2 games behind first-place Upper Deck - Post 86/14. NEFL will visit Senerchia - Post 74 (9-4) for the first game of a home-and-home doubleheader tonight at 5:30 p.m. at Ray Pepin Field.

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