Sports

Red Devils Crush Warren Hills, Prepare for SCT

Ridge rolled over the Blue Streaks 10-0 in five innings.

In a game where Ridge (7-9) played small ball to perfection, the Red Devils proved that little things can lead to big results.

And three-run homers from your clean-up hitter help too.

Ridge dominated their ballgame against Warren Hills from start to finish on Thursday, outscoring their opponents 10-0 to invoke the mercy rule after five innings.

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Tim Falato got the start, and the win, for Ridge, pitching four scoreless innings before Ryan Calish closed out the game in relief.

In spite of the three-run homerun in the fourth inning from third baseman Charles Dennis, and two doubles from hot hitting J.B. Kole (2-2, two runs scored, RBI and a walk), the Red Devils offense was powered throughout most of the game by advancing runners and getting timely hits.

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Ridge stole five bases, took an addition four bases on passed balls and moved a runner over four times, including two sacrifice hits for runs. The Red Devils also exercised patience at the plate as Warren Hills pitchers struggled to find their targets. Ridge hitters walked eight times collectively, and put the ball in play in 16 of the remaining 18 at-bats.

The offense started strong in the first inning and never let up. Shortstop Greg Fazio got on with a leadoff single, and then stole second. Left fielder Jake Hotz hit a hard line down the first base line that bounced off the first baseman's glove, scoring Fazio. Hotz tripped on the way to second and was thrown out trying to leg out an extra base hit, one of the rare miscues in the game for Ridge.

The Red Devils struck again in the second. Second baseman Andrew Graziano, who had a diving catch in the first inning, got on base with a walk, then stole second. Kole doubled in Graziano, and then catcher Mike Brady singled in Kole for two quick runs.

Harrison Fonteix, courtesy running for the catcher, stole second, and moved to third on a grounder from Brad Halperin, who later knocked in a run on a sacrifice fly in the fourth. Another Ridge grounder brought Fonteix home for three runs in the inning.

Holding a 4-0 lead, Falato got into a jam in the top of the fourth. After giving up a leadoff hit and walking the next batter, Falato got the next hitter to bite on a looping curve, then got the next two batter to pop up and fly out, respectively.

Dennis's homer in the bottom of the fourth, and three more manufactured runs put the game out of reach for Warren Hills.

"The bats are starting to come alive now, which makes this a lot more fun," Ridge head coach Tom Blackwell said. It takes a lot of the pressure off the pitching and the fielding when you are swinging the bats like that."

Blackwell also praised the team's effort in doing the little things right. "Not only did we get a lot of hits, but we also executed," the coach said. "We moved runs over when we needed to, and we had a couple of two-out hits to drive in runs, things like that win ballgames."

Ridge will play away at Somerville tomorrow starting at 4 p.m. before taking on Montgomery in the second game of the Somerset County Tournament, 3 p.m. Saturday on the road. Ridge beat Montgomery in a 10-inning marathon earlier this year, and with the offense scoring like it has been of late, Blackwell was pleased with the team's chances to advance.

"It should be a battle," he said. "It always is when you play them. But the bats are heating up which gives us a better opportunity."

Ridge vs. Warren Hills, April 29: WIN 10-0

Warren Hills           0   0   0   0   0   x   x
Ridge                        1    3   0   6   x    x   x

Fazio: 1-2, run, RBI, BB, 2 SB
Hotz: 2-3, run, 2 RBI
McCarthy: 0-1, run, 2 BB, 1 SB
Dennis: 1-2, run, 3 RBI, BB, HR
Edsall: 0-2, run, BB
Graziano: 0-1, run, 2 BB, 1 SB
Kole: 2-2, 2 runs, RBI, BB, 2 2B
Brady: 1-3, RBI
c.r. Fonteix: 0-0, SB
Halperin: 0-2, RBI


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