LYNN — On a sunny day at the newly-renovated Fraser Field, St. Mary’s baseball team made sure to put on a show for its first game at the park. The Spartans defended their new home turf with a 6-1 win against Bishop Feehan.
The bats took a few innings to warm up, but once they did in the fifth inning, St. Mary’s (7-6) didn’t look back en route to its third consecutive win.
With neither team crossing home plate, and the Spartans down to their final out of the fifth, a single by Cam McGonagle sparked a two-out rally.
“Cam showed up with a big at-bat,” St. Mary’s coach Derek Dana said.
Then, there was a brave call from Dana to try a hit-and-run with Isaiah Weston up to bat. It worked to perfection, as Weston drove the ball to right field for a single while McGonagle made it to third.
“Isaiah hit the ball right on the button to right field,” Dana said. “That was just a big play because it gave us momentum.”
Next, it was Tommy Falasca up to bat, who quickly found himself down in an 0-2 count. But after battling in the box, Falasca hit one up the middle to bring home McGonagle and break the deadlock (1-0).
“Tommy has come a long way from last year. I don’t know how many hits he has back up the middle and 0-2 hits,” Dana said. “He’s battling and he’s doing everything a leader is supposed to be doing.”
The hosts didn’t stop there. After Michael DeMaino was hit by a pitch, it loaded the bases for Tad Giardina.
Giardina crushed a pitch over the center fielder’s head for a three-RBI triple to give the Spartans a commanding 4-0 lead.
Leading up to the explosive fifth inning, the Spartans had a few “easy innings” according to Dana.
“After the first inning, there were too many easy innings,” Dana said. “We kept on talking about it, and how we didn’t want to revert back to what we were doing at the beginning of the season by not competing at the plate.”
Once St. Mary’s got the lead, Falasca (8 strikeouts) and the defense took care of the rest.
“That’s two games in a row he came in and dominated,” Dana said. “He lost his focus a bit at the end, but it’s a learning process and he pitched outstanding today.”
Speaking of a learning process, there were a few times Spartans were left on base.
“We got some young guys and we probably could have scored a few more… we’re learning on the fly with some of these guys,” Dana said.
The win made it three straight, and Dana said he’s proud of his team’s recent showings.
“I like the way they’ve been playing over the last week-and-a-half,” Dana said. “Their preservation, the energy from the bench, and the mistakes are getting less and less – and, hopefully, we can keep it going.”
The Spartans got to break in their renovated home field with a win, something Dana was happy about postgame.
“I love playing at Fraser. I love coaching at it, too. It feels like home,” Dana said. “It feels good to come out on a great day like this, see this beautiful field, and go get a win.”
The win moves St. Mary’s to 4-2 in the Catholic Central League, and the Spartans look to continue their winning ways Thursday when they host Bishop Fenwick at 4 p.m.
