ITEM PHOTO BY KATIE MORRISON
West Lynn’s Almani Medina makes a lunging catch to end Saturday’s win.
By HAROLD RIVERA
It wasn’t easy, nor was it quick, but the West Lynn Red Sox started the City Series off on the right foot with a 7-4 win in 10 innings over Pine Hill on Saturday at Kiley Park.
Nick Gallo got the start on the mound for West Lynn and tossed 5 1/3 innings, while allowing four runs and one walk. Almani Medina and Ben Marciano followed in relief, and both were sharp.
West Lynn coach Jason Gallo, Nick’s father, said his trio of pitchers forced Pine Hill to put the ball in play and the Red Sox’ defense took care of the rest.
“They all pitched well,” Gallo said. “At this level, it comes down to location. Nick only walked one and Almani only walked two. Pine Hill put the ball in play and our defense made plays. Pine Hill had to earn their way on and when they tried to earn it, we made the plays.”
At the plate, West Lynn received clutch hits from Gallo, Marciano and Domenic Giordano. Gallo contributed to his own cause with an RBI single early on in the game and Giordano blasted a two-run home run. Marciano hit the game-winning RBI double in the 10th, giving West Lynn a 5-4 lead. The Red Sox added a pair of insurance runs to walk away with the 7-4 win.
“These kids get up and swing,” Gallo said. “Our guys don’t go up to the plate hoping for walks. They’re aggressive and they go up there swinging.”
West Lynn now shifts its attention to this evening’s matchup against Wyoma. Gallo said his team hasn’t seen Wyoma yet but knows enough to expect a well-coached and talented opponent.
“Generally you can count on Wyoma being well-coached and having a solid team,” Gallo said. “That’s what we’re expecting.
“We know they have some big bats,” Gallo added. “We’re sort of on fumes as far as pitching goes. We’ll just try to get creative and see what happens.”
West Lynn will rely on a combination of quality pitching and stout defense to lead the way in Tuesday’s tilt. If the defense can continue to make the plays, Gallo feels his team will be in good position to earn another win.
“It’s going to take some pitching but we know they’ll put the ball in play,” Gallo said. “It’s going to take good plays on the field and then it’s going to take some bats. It’s truly going to take good defense. If we can get six, seven runs that’s nice but the ball’s going to be put in play. No excuses, we know what we need to do.”
Gallo also credited his assistant coaches for their help in preparing the team.
“Assistant coaches Rob Merryman and Joe Giordano have worked as hard as anyone in preparing these kids to play,” Gallo said.
First pitch for this evening’s matchup between West Lynn and Wyoma is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
