May 1, 2008
Baseball: RHS recovers from first loss to beat Bears
|
The Ridgefield High baseball team came up short in its clash with fellow conference heavyweight Stamford last Wednesday, falling 5-3 for its first loss of the season.
The Tigers (10-1) bounced back to beat Norwalk, 2-1, on Friday and remain in second place in the FCIAC Central Division, one-half game behind Fairfield Ludlowe. Going into yesterday’s games, Ridgefield was 9-1 and Ludlowe 9-0 in the conference.
Those two teams were scheduled to meet Monday, but rain postponed the game until today (Thursday) in Ridgefield at 4.
Sam Robertson took the loss against Stamford, his first of the season. The senior wasn’t able to weather some shaky defense, yielding five runs (three earned) on seven hits in five innings of work. He also walked a season-high four and struck out seven.
Head coach Tony Wilmot said it was nerves that might have gotten the better of Robertson and the rest of the Tigers as the previously unbeaten Tigers had their first true test of the year in 10-1 Stamford.
“We’re usually pretty calm and I think this was the first game where we had a little too much energy, a little too much hop,” Wilmot said. “And I think it was counterproductive.”
The Black Knights put together two-run innings in the second and third, helped by three outfield errors by Ridgefield, before tacking on another run in the fourth to make it 5-0.
Despite giving up the five runs, Wilmot still liked the way his staff ace battled and kept his team in the game.
“I think he pitched well, but his adrenaline was a little high, he was a little too pumped for the game,” Wilmot said of Robertson, who was hit on the wrist in a second-inning at-bat. “He was up in the strike zone most of the day. I think he was overthrowing. But he was throwing exceptionally hard; he made a good-hitting Stamford team not look very good. By no means did they light him up.”
Stamford starter Mitch Meara held the Tigers batters in check for most of the game before Ridgefield put some hits together in the seventh to cut the lead to 5-3.
Sean O’Dea led off the inning with an infield hit and Oliver Chase followed with a pinch-hit walk. Paul Bossidy then hit a pinch-hit home run deep over the right field wall, but that would be as close as the Tigers would get.
“They were frustrating at-bats. He didn’t throw that hard, he didn’t blow us away at all, but he had great control. He threw strike one and he was ahead of hitters all day,” Wilmot said of Meara’s performance.
Gilbert Alicea led the Ridgefield offense with two singles. Zack Shea and Jay Lavardera chipped in with one hit apiece. Doug Rohrer relieved Robertson and gave up a hit in his one inning of work. He also had a strikeout.
Despite his team’s first loss of the season, Wilmot was impressed with the performance and will look to use the game as motivation.
“We came away from that game knowing we can compete with Stamford,” he said. “If we have to face them again, I’m comfortable with our chances. Stamford is one of those gold standard teams, the type you measure yourself by. And we hung with them.”
Against Norwalk, Hayden Metz was all Wilmot needed.
Metz threw a complete game six-hitter, giving up one run while striking out three and walking none.
The Bears (4-6) got on the board first with three consecutive singles to open the game. But Metz settled down and got the next batter to ground into a double play. A run scored, but Metz got the last out to get out of the inning with minimal damage.
That was all the scoring until the fifth when O’Dea opened the frame with an infield single. Shea followed with a line drive hit and Spencer Judge laid down a bunt to put runners on second and third with one out.
A passed ball allowed O’Dea to score from third and then Wilmot went with a little trickery. He called for the suicide squeeze and Josh Lavardera got the bunt down to allow Shea to score from third.
The Tigers managed only five hits off Norwalk starter Matt Iannazzo, but Wilmot was happy with his team’s approach at the plate.
“This was an unbelievable game. He is among the top pitchers in the state,” Wilmot said of Iannazzo. “He had great command, great control. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
“Coming off the Stamford loss, to play an error-free game and to play that tightly and that crisply, it was important,” Wilmot added.
© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers
|
