Whatever early struggles the Liverpool baseball team dealt with seemed to dissipate during the last days of April, when it earned a series of quality wins.
Back on Monday night at NBT Bank Stadium, Liverpool took on Baldwinsville in the finale of the Strike Out Lou Gehrig’ Disease Classic, and rebounded from its 11-inning defeat to Cicero-North Syracuse on April 25 by taking out the Bees 6-3.
Going up against B’ville’s ace, Cody Kaestle, the Warriors got a run in the second inning, and trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the third, it got to Kaestle for three runs to move in front for good.
When the Bees cut the lead to 4-3, Liverpool again had an answer, notching two runs in the bottom of the fifth off B’ville reliever Frank Mayosky. By that point, Jake Pieklik had three hits, two of them doubles, plus an RBI, while Rick Sisto got two hits as he, along with Jonah Harder and Dillan Wilkinson, also drove in runs.
Jeff DeStefano pitched for Liverpool, going 5 1/3 innings for the win as he overcame eight walks and held B’ville to a single hit. Dan Peck went the rest of the way in relief for the save.
Back home to face Fayetteville-Manlius less than 24 hours later, the Warriors again found itself playing in extra innings, but unlike the C-NS result, it prevailed this time, 5-4, when it plated a run in the bottom of the ninth.
Before all that, Liverpool trailed, 2-1, when it notched three runs in the third inning. That 4-2 lead didn’t hold up, though, as F-M used single runs in the fourth and sixth inning to draw even, 4-4, setting up more extra-inning drama.
Bobby Zywicki, in a three-inning relief stint, got the win after Bianchi started. Harder, pacing the Liverpool attack, earned three hits. Pieklik had two hits, joining Zywicki, Wilkinson and Kyle Watson earning one RBI apiece.
Having won back-to-back games for the first time since its Myrtle Beach trip, Liverpool knew that three in a row would not be easy to attain as it visited West Genesee on Friday afternoon – and that proved true, the Wildcats defeating the Warriors 6-2.
Liverpool scored first, and while WG countered in the second inning, the Warriors did have a 2-1 lead going to the bottom of the fourth, having seen Pieklik and Michael Wright drive in runs and Anthony Sgroi get a pair of hits.
But in the fourth, WG moved in front, scoring twice, and added two more runs in the fifth to chase Warriors starter Ryan Stott. Dan Peck took over in relief, but Liverpool could get nothing more against Wildcats starter Evan Reichel, who pitched a complete game.
Good as C-NS’s win over West Genesee on April 27 felt, the momentum didn’t carry over into the Northstars’ game against defending Section III Class AA champion Auburn a day later at the Gillette Road complex.
The Maroons beat C-NS 5-3, plating single runs in the first three innings and adding two runs in the fourth to chase Northstars starter Luke Dziados. Nick Petrosino and Stephen Bennett each had two hits to lead Auburn’s diverse attack.
Brad Hamilton did well in relief of Dziados, but while James Salamone earned a pair of RBIs and Steven Theetge also drove in a run, Hunter Charles, starting for the Maroons, pitched five solid innings before Bennett tossed two scoreless innings of relief, striking out four.
In a non-league game Friday against visiting Bishop Ludden, the Northstars again put up a big inning to break open a close game, beating the Gaelic Knights 12-2 as it broke a 2-2 tie with nine runs in the bottom of the third inning.
Connor Stanton doubled, singled and drove in three runs, with Jake McArdell adding two doubles and two RBIs. Stephen Kires got a triple and drove in a pair of runs. Theetge and Mike Copani had one RBI apiece as James Salamone and Sam Spadafore, splitting the pitching duties, held Ludden to five hits.
Then C-NS blew out Utica-Notre Dame 22-2 a day later, again piling up runs in the third inning by scoring eight times, but then following up with a nine-run fourth inning.
Picking up where he left off the day before, Stanton smashed a home run and triple that led to five RBIs. McArdell and Spinella each had three hits, with A.J. Nesci joining McArdell earning three RBIs. Spadafore and Christian LaLomia drove in two runs apiece.
Having improved to 8-2 overall (5-1 league), C-NS would take on Syracuse Monday before hosting Central Square Thursday and visiting Rome Free Academy on Saturday. Liverpool faces Auburn and Syracuse this week, teams that beat the Warriors (Auburn by a 2-0 margin, Syracuse by a 2-1 margin) earlier this season.
