Published in the May 11, 2018 edition
MELROSE—The following are Melrose Little League game recaps from last week.
Royals v. Padres. Thursday May 3 at Lewis Monk. The Royals came back with three runs over the fourth and fifth inning to force a 5-5 tie with the Padres in an exciting back and forth game at Lewis Monk Field. Brady Yee and Owen Mujalli combined to pitch 5 strong innings for the Royals and were matched by Nicholas Picariello and Ronan Sanzone for the Padres who also combined for 5 innings.
The teams both scored a run in the first inning with Audrey Zinck scoring the Royals run in the top of the first after leading off with a single and being advanced third, when William Lowe walked and Cadel McKeown singled to load the bases. She scored when Nicholas Bianco worked a two out walk. Nicholas Picariello worked out of the bases loaded jam with his third strikeout of the inning. Picariello would finish the game with 8 strikeouts over 3 innings. The Padres plated their run when Anthony Kiatos led off with a double, advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Tanner Kovacs. After a scoreless second inning Royals took a 2-1 lead when Brady Yee scored. Yee led off with a single and advanced to third on a double off the bat of Ian McKeown. Yee was forced home after walks by Brayden Pesce and William Lowe. The Padres would answer with 4 runs in the bottom of the third. After consecutive singles by Anthony Kiatos and Tanner Kovacs, Ronan Sanzone walked to load the bases. Kiatos would score after a single by Bryce Timm. Kovacs and Sanzone would score after walks by Sammy McQuaid and Picariello. Timm would come around to score on a single by Linus Latta Giuliana. The Royals battled back with two runs in the 4th when Nicholas Blanco and Rocco Kraunlelis walked. Giancarlo Martinis loaded the bases with a single. Blanco and Kraunlelis scored when Alec Truesdale and Brady Yee worked two out walks. The Royals closed the scoring a run in the 5th. Braden Pesce walked to lead the inning off and advanced to second on a walk by Audrey Zinck. Pesce scored on a single off the bat of Cadel McKeown. Both teams benefited from good defense in the field with Dylan Smith and Tayson Cho making plays for the Padres and Shane Pitcher and Colton Sullivan for Royals to keep the scoring down.
Nationals v. Dodgers. The Nationals improved to 4-0 this weekend with two victories, including a solid victory over the talented boys in Dodger blue on Friday, May 4th at Lewis Monk. The Nationals got out in front early by a score of 5-0 after the first two innings. Mikey Thomas (2 hits, 2 runs, 4 steals), Quinn Hardisty (hit, walk, run), Brendan Doyle (hit, run), Colin Walsh (RBI) and Griffin McGahan (2 walks) set the tone early for the deep Nationals. Nat 12 year old slugger Lucas Donahue delivered the big blow in the 2nd, lacing a double deep to the fence, knocking in two runs to open up a lead for the Nationals they wouldn’t squander.
The early offense was all hard throwing ace Andre Mota (5 innings, 12 K’s, 2 hits, 3 runs) would need to earn the victory. Mota, who also added a hit & a run on offense, got key defensive contributions from a stellar diving catch from fleet footed center-fielder Johnny Recinito, as well as fine defensive plays from Jack Feeney, Cam Dunn, John Burke, & sure handed 1st baseman Daniel Ferris. The Dodgers got fine pitching from lefty starter Max Johnston, reliever Ryan Dolan, and defensive standouts were Joe Kelleher, Brandon Ward, Paul Nault, Darel Parent, and Daniel Tettinen. Leading the Dodgers offensively were Chris Sullivan (run), Jonathan Borenstein (walk, run), Ben Dugan (hit) and Aidan Barber, who drove in a run with a double and also scored the Dodgers 3rd run. It all added up to a 7-3 victory for the Nationals.