Photos by Caitlyn Rand ’13 and Cheyenne Haslett ’13
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Caitlyn Rand ’13 & Cheyenne Haslett ’13
Staff Writer & Web News Editor
Staples baseball has rightfully restored its position at the top of the FCIAC. The Wreckers faced the Danbury Hatters and walked away with a victory of 5-3 on May 28 at The Ballpark at Harbor Yard. This is Staples’ seventh FCIAC title, the most any team in the conference has ever achieved.
What made the Wreckers really stand out today was their offense. With only one strikeout, virtually every Wrecker got a piece of the ball. By the second inning, the Wreckers had gained a 1-0 lead. Ryan Burke ’11 blasted the ball to center field, allowing Tyler Jacobs ’11 to score after his line drive to left field that landed him on second base.
Though the Hatters came back and sustained a 2-1 lead for a few innings, the bottom of the fifth inning brought about a comeback. With the Wreckers still down a run, Rob Gau set the Hatters down in order, drawing the fifth inning to a close and helping the Wreckers keep the lead to one.
After a miraculous catch by the Hatters’ second baseman, there was a disputed call during McCarthy’s at bat, where the umpires ruled that McCarthy had fouled off a piece of the ball in a half swing, while many believed it had been catcher’s interference.
Soon after, Jacobs hit a line drive to left-center, bringing Mike Scott ’11 home, and right after, Bryan Terzian ’13 hit a 2 RBI single through the right side, bringing Jacobs and Brendan Bernstein ’11 home. Then, Burke hit a line drive to left field, bringing Nick Kelly ’13, Terzian’s pinch runner, home.
In the bottom half of the frame, Danbury’s first baseman Cory Dean ’11 started it off with a line drive to right field earning him a double. Gau then walked Hatter Israel Duran ‘11. However, the Wreckers turned it around just in time, with Jacobs throwing the next batter, Hatter Bj Nimer ’11, out at first, Mike Scott throwing Danbury’s Austin Calitro ’12 out at first, and Gau striking out Hatter Robbie Meerman ’11.
The Hatters added a run to their score in the sixth inning, but couldn’t make a comeback, making the final score 5-3. The game ended with a double play by the Wreckers, followed by celebration and awards. Terzian and Gau received tournament MVP awards. “Its awesome. This is what we wanted to do the whole season,” Terzian said.
There is more of the season to come with states beginning next week, and winning the FCIAC finals is only the beginning. “Winning is contagious. We won today, and we gotta come out on Tuesday just as hard,” Gau said.
Staples baseball alumni were happy to see the team victorious. “These are the young kids that played with me when we won,” former captain Vince Lametta ‘09 said. “They wanted it just as bad.”
“This is a big year for all of us and it feels absolutely amazing,” Scott said. Scott explained that the team had worked all season and off season for this victory and when the time came, “we let the game happen the way it did.”
Coach Jack McFarland agreed with Scott’s attitude and knows that while their hard work paid off this year, not everyone can go home with a win. “When you go into it, there are 2 teams involved. One team goes home happy, the other does not,” McFarland said. “It was a great baseball game. Both teams played great.”
The Wreckers begin their run at the state title on Tuesday, May 31 at home against 24th seeded Manchester at 3:30 pm.
