In a couple of months, Fayetteville-Manlius baseball pitcher Zach Tucker expects to graduate, and then move on to Le Moyne College to continue his career on the diamond.
Before that, though, Tucker’s still working for the Hornets, and the senior left-hander put together a no-hitter in Thursday’s season opener, a 6-0 shutout of Utica Proctor.
Though far short of perfection – Tucker walked four Raider batters – he still took advantage of the cold April conditions, striking out 14. That meant Proctor only got seven balls into play, which the Hornets handled through error-free defense.
F-M got on the board with a run in the bottom of the first inning off Raider hurler Jordan Treen. From there, Treen shut down the Hornets until the fifth, when the hosts erupted for five runs to give Tucker far more breathing space as he pursued his gem.
Tommy Flynn doubled, singled and drove in two runs, while Mike Hoalcraft managed two hits and an RBI. Dave Nuzzo had F-M’s other double and Mike Perry scored a pair of runs. Nuzzo, Flynn, Joe Salamone and Jack McClure scored one run apiece.
As this went on, F-M’s softball team started 1-1, losing 9-0 to Liverpool on Wednesday, but turning around 24 hours later to thump Utica Proctor in a 15-2 decision. A five-run second inning and seven-run fifth inning keyed the rout.
The baseball Hornets have a trio of games during the April school break, going to DeLutis Field to face Rome Free Academy Tuesday and hosting Auburn on Thursday before next Saturday’s non-league game against Clarence (Section VI).
As for the F-M softball side, it is set to host a tournament Monday that features Jamesville-DeWitt, Cazenovia and RFA.
