Middle School Sluggers Win A Pair

Newtown Middle School’s baseball team defeated Oxford on May 25 and downed Memorial of Middlebury on May 26. Game highlights are as follows:

NMS 9, Oxford 5: Leading off the tentn inning of a deadlocked back-and-forth struggle, Garrison Buzzanca banged a first-pitch double 200 feet down the left field line to ignite a four-run rally as the Newtown Middle School baseball team prevailed at Oxford.

Both teams employed all the tools in their tool boxes — sacrifice bunts, squeeze bunts, delayed steals — as their mutual desperation to win the contest mounted inning by inning.

Hard-throwing southpaw thrower Alex Lapinski started and went three innings for the Lions. His tailing fastball dominated. Catcher Austin Raftery took over from there and handled middle relief with the determination and composure of a seasoned full-time hurler. 

Coach Jim Ross handed the ball to Kevin Liniger for the tenth and final inning. Liniger shut the door on Oxford, allowing only a single base runner. Nick Cagginello contributed to the win with a strong game at third base and at the plate.

NMS 9, Memorial 8: Down by five runs going into the fifth inning, the Lions rallied to capture their third road win in as many days on the sun-baked diamond.

It was only the third loss of the season for the Middlebury team, and pushed Newtown’s record to 7-2-1.

Leadoff batter Matt Hoyt powered the Newtown comeback, rapping out four base hits and committing

serial larceny with five stolen bases.

On the hill, the Lions started Mike Davis and he threw well for half of the contest, though victimized by a couple of defensive miscues and some unlucky bounces. Virgil Procaccini took over in the fourth, pitching expertly out of bases-loaded, no-out jam that saw only a single Memorial runner cross the plate. Key to his escape was a double play on a potential sac fly to leftfielder Connor Noonan. After the catch, he rifled a strike to relay man Grant Ricketts, who delivered the ball to catcher Matt Sabia for the tag.

Another defensive gem for Newtown came in the sixth inning on Davis’ cat-like infield cut to third base that generated a crucial out.

Hurlers Kevin Liniger and Pat Rowley shut down Middlebury in the final two frames to close out an exhausting but exhilarating string of games  for the Lions.