Spring is associated with new beginnings, warm weather, and baseball. All of these aspects of spring were on full display on March 30, 2013, when the Staples baseball team beat Trumbull in a seven-inning scrimmage. The final score was 9-6.
This was no regular scrimmage. The Wreckers and the Golden Eagles both have championship aspirations.
“We are just plain nasty from Matt Smith ’13, to Greg Salamone ’13, to Rob Vallone ’14. We have everything you need to win a championship,” Staples reserve outfielder Mike Moritz ’14 said.
Starting pitcher Rob Vallone ’14 added, “We expect nothing short of an FCIAC title.”
The Wreckers, in particular, wish to build upon last year’s surprising season. Pegged by many to not seriously contend, Staples proved their naysayers wrong, making it to the FCIAC playoffs before finally succumbing in the FCIAC semifinal game.
“Last year, we got everything out of the team that we could have. We were one hit away from making it to the FCIAC title game,” Vallone said.
Tensions were high, and both teams wanted to win.
However, the Wreckers started off the game cold, perhaps due to fatigue and a lack of readiness.
“We started off that game a little rough because we had just gotten back to Staples from a game in Darien earlier that day and had very little time to warm up or prepare for the game,” starting shortstop Sam Ellinwood ’14 said.
By the second inning, the Golden Eagles led 3-0.
The Golden Eagles still had the lead by the bottom of the sixth inning. At that point, they led 5-3. In a seven-inning game, time was running out for the Wreckers to make a comeback. Staples needed a spark.
The Wreckers got that spark from Eli Andrew ’13. With no one on and one out, Andrew socked a pitch over the left field fence for a homerun.
“We started slow on pitching, defense, and hitting, but Eli popped a big fly to left which seemed to make everyone relax mentally and then the physical talent just took over,” Moritz said.
From there, Staples dominated, scoring six runs in the sixth to make it 9-5. In the top of the seventh, Alec Johnson ’14 came into the seal the deal, letting in one run, but otherwise providing quality relief.
Even though this was a good start for their season, the Wreckers are focused on their goal: winning championships.
“This year, we have everything we need to bring home the FCIAC and State championships,” Vallone said.
Moritz agreed with Vallone.
“We are going to do some special things this year,” he said.