10U Lightning Goes Above .500 with 3-1 Win
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With a 7-7 record, the 10u Lightning team hoped to enter next week’s playoffs by going above board. On Thursday July 24, the Florida, NY Blue Sox were in their way, which was familiar ground for John LoPiccolo. “I’ve faced them before, they are a good team,” said the starter. “I just wanted to hit my spots, so my defense could kill it.
Following a lead off single, ground balls gobbled up by Noah Pearson and Michael Stoddard made the defensive case immediately, and the pinpointing got even easier for LoPiccolo after a two run bottom of the first paved the way for a 3-1 victory.
Stoddard getting the big hit, the number three batter waited his turn first. In stepped Christian Cisco, and his lead off low ball hit the rubber and bounced high in the air.
An infield hit, LoPiccolo’s line drive pass short left no doubt, and Stoddard was just as sure about his pitch preference. “I was looking fastball,“ said the third baseman.
On the outside corner, he didn’t try to overpower the placement. “I took it the other way,” said Stoddard, and landing just inside the left field line, Lewisboro had the lead for good.
A big inning was not to be, though. JJ Santos got the next two batters, and the Blue Sox starter got big help in the field on Emerson Payne’s shot to deep left. Liam Marley ranged back, extended high and made a backhanded grab to end the inning.
Even so, LoPiccolo didn’t let the highlight reel play bother him. A fly out to Gio Santoro in center, a pop to Stoddard and a called strike three kept the score at 2-0.
Onto the bottom, Lewisboro looked like they would do more damage. Vincent Secchiano stroked a one out double, James Maharaj reached on an infield hit, and Caiden Jones’ bloop to center loaded the bases.
A strike out by Cisco left it to the pitcher, and LoPiccolo’s line drive between second and first had two runs written all over it. Not to be, G. Ferrare extended left to snare the one hopper and got the out at first.
Deflating for sure, LoPiccolo didn’t know the meaning of the word. Aside from an infield hit by Santos, the Lewisboro starter made his own lighting by striking out the side.
The offense then took the cue. Stoddard singled to center, and when the ball skirted by, Santoro was ready with a runner in scoring position. “I was looking fastball down the middle,” the centerfielder assured.
Outside instead, Santoro made the adjustment. “I took it up the middle,” and gave his team a 3-0 lead.
The damage was limited when Santoro was thrown out stealing at second, but he properly assigned blame elsewhere. “My dad told me to steal,” he joked.
Still, the laughs almost went the other way when the Blue Sox loaded the bases with one out. But the punchline belonged to Lewisboro.
LoPiccolo got the next batter on strikes, and Pearson kept his head on a dropped line drive to second. “I saw the batter hit an outside pitch, and I thought it would tail away more. So I overran the ball and it hit me in the palm,” said the second baseman. “But I just picked it up and threw to first.”
Another threat passing, the Blue Sox would finally break through in the fifth. After a pair of infield hits put runners on first and third with one out, the obligatory steal of second never sits well with Henry Parrish. “It annoys me so much,” said the catcher, who the team calls Hollywood.
Not this time, the call came in to cut down the runner and forego the run. “I was very excited,” said Parrish, and the tinsel town backstop came through.
A 3-1 game, the bases were cleared, and the Lightning needed just three more outs. Maharaj was up to the task in relief, and Vincent Secchiano laid out the postseason goal. “We’re going to do what we did last year,” he concluded for the defending champs.
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