LYNN — It was opening day for both the Lynn Tech and KIPP baseball teams, and Tuesday, the Tigers were the kings of the jungle with a 13-2 win against the Panthers.

It was a tight game with excellent pitching on both sides – that was, until the fifth inning.

With two outs chalked up in the bottom of the fifth, and the game tied 2-2, Tech had its bases loaded and Dylan DiFilippo on deck. Despite his freshman-status, DiFilippo showed his poise in waiting for the right pitch.

Once DiFilippo saw what he liked, he hit a bomb to left field that reached the fence, bringing in all three runners.

“He was real steady up there and came up big for us,” Tech coach Eddie Lewis said. “He’s a young guy and he did a good job on the hill today as well.” 

The three-run double was the start of a five-run inning that ended with Tech ahead 7-2.

Before the fifth inning, KIPP’s starting pitcher Morenel Castro was having a solid game on the mound. Castro pitched 5 1/3 innings with 10 strikeouts.

Castro threw more than 80 pitches, and head coach Jim Rabbitt believed stamina was a factor in Tech’s big fifth inning. 

“Morenel pitched a great game; they (Tigers) weren’t fully squaring everything up on him until the last inning where he lost a bit of gas there,” Rabbitt said. “All the damage came from that one inning. It looked worse than what it really was.” 

Not only was Castro steady on the mound, but on offense, he finished the game with three hits – none better than his inside-the-park home run in the third inning. 

Back to Tech. Lewis was happy with how his team stayed in the game and waited for its opportunities.

“We were patient the whole time,” Lewis said. “We eventually got our bat on the ball and good things started to happen for us.” 

Tech’s rally continued in the bottom of the sixth, tacking on six more runs. Eli Christiansen’s single brought in two to seal the Tigers’ 13-2 win. 

Although the Panthers were on the losing end, Rabbitt was pleased with his team’s effort and ability to compete despite its youth.

“We have a young squad and baseball is new to a lot of them, [I’m] just proud that we hung in there,” Rabbitt said. “It’s only game one [and] we’ll fix all the things we need to fix. A lot of our guys are two-sport athletes so preparing for baseball is a tough turnaround in two weeks.” 

Lewis was pleased with his team’s sense of urgency.

“They knew we were struggling early with hitting and eventually they turned it on – and believed in themselves and stuck together to turn it around,” Lewis said. 

Tech’s next game will be Tuesday when it travels to North Reading, while KIPP looks to bounce back Friday in a road matchup against Nashoba Valley at 5:15 p.m.

RBI leaders (Tech)

DiFilippo: 4

Christiansen: 2

Dylan Nordyke: 2

Harrison Agrumonte: 2

Will McCafferty: 2

RBI leaders (KIPP)

Castro: 1