LYNN — Going down by five runs in the second inning wasn’t enough to deter the Lynn English baseball team Friday evening, as the Bulldogs battled back from multi-run deficits two different times to notch a 10-9 victory over cross-town rival Lynn Classical in a back-and-forth game at Fraser Field.
“I always tell the guys, it’s not about the first at-bat or the second at-bat, it’s about that third at-bat,” said English coach Esteban Paula. “I’m proud of the guys for the way they kept battling, and it’s always great to get a win against a good Classical team.”
Angel Gonzalez earned the win on the mound in relief for the Bulldogs, tossing 2 2/3 innings and allowing two runs on two hits with four strikeouts. Ray Contreras went the first 4 1/3 innings and struck out eight in the no-decision.
The English offense was sparked by Chris Figuereo Perez, who went 1-for-3 with a double and two RBI. Enmanuel Javier (1-for-3), Luis Pina (0-for-2) and Jeremies Brito (0-for-1) each had one RBI.
Nico Galeazzi had a huge game in the leadoff spot for Classical, going 3-for-4 with a double, a triple and two RBI. Yassine Bakhouch (1-for-4, double), Aaron O’Connor (1-for-5, double) and Knico Rodriguez (0-for-4) each had one RBI.
“The bottom line is, you can’t walk 11 guys and make errors against a team like English and expect to win,” said Classical coach Mike Zukowski. “I thought we played a great first four innings, but then we hit a wall and things fell apart. We just have to look ourselves in the mirror and be better.”
After Almendarez moved through a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the first, Classical stepped up in the bottom of the first and got on the board. Two walks and a single loaded up the bases for O’Connor, who grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought home Galeazzi to make it 1-0 Rams.
Classical was able to break the game open a bit in the bottom of the second, starting with a Warren single to get the inning going. After moving to second on a wild pitch, Warren advanced to third on an English error and then scored on a wild pitch to make it 2-0. After a groundout moved another runner into scoring position, Galeazzi stepped in and laced an RBI double. He then advanced to third on a passed ball, then scored following another passed ball to make it 4-0. O’Connor capped off the scoring in the inning with an RBI double of his own, putting the Rams’ lead at 5-0.
Almendarez cruised through his first four innings on the mound, not allowing a single hit through four. But in the fifth, things changed.
Two hit batters, a walk and a wild pitch allowed the Bulldogs to push one run across and get on the board. Then, with one out, Figuereo Perez stepped in and smashed a two-run double to make it a 5-3 game. Things fell apart for Classical from there, as two errors, two passed balls and two wild pitches brought home four more runs for English. In the blink of an eye, it was 7-5 Bulldogs.
But English fought right back in the top of the seventh. Two walks and a single loaded the bases before a passed ball brought home a run to make it 7-6. Next up was Brito, who notched an RBI groundout to tie the game at 7-7 and give the Bulldogs new life. Javier was up next, and his RBI single gave English a lead that it wouldn’t relinquish again. The Bulldogs earned two more runs on passed balls to round out the scoring.
The Rams put on one final threat in the bottom of the seventh, scoring a run and moving the tying run to third base, but Gonzalez got out of the inning with a strikeout to seal the win.
Classical (2-1) travels to Marblehead Tuesday (4).
English (3-0) hosts Medford Tuesday night (7).
