CENTRAL NEW YORK – It would understate things to consider that Liverpool and Cicero-North Syracuse’s baseball teams were in a far different place for their second 2024 meeting than they were for the first.
Since that 4-2 Warriors win on April 17, both sides had experienced all sorts of things in a two-week span, from Liverpool’s annual trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to C-NS’s busy stretch that included a string of high-quality wins.
Yet the rivalry remains tilted in Liverpool’s favor, as last Thursday’s 7-5 win over C-NS was the fifth straight for the Warriors in its series with the Northstars.
They would go back and forth all afternoon. Twice, C-NS led and twice Liverpool caught up, including a fourth-inning solo home run by Anthony Testone that tied it 2-2.
A two-run rally by the Northstars in the top of the fifth was answered by a three-run Warriors sixth. Then, after C-NS pulled even again 5-5 in the top of the sixth, Tyler Vivacqua’s go-ahead single keyed Liverpool going in front for good.
Zach Zingaro picked up the win in relief, tossing a scoreless seventh inning after stints by Dylan Wiggins and Ryan Densmore. Testone, Vivacqua and Nate Benjamin finished with two hits apiece as Chris Williams was the only C-NS player to get two hits.
Before all this, C-NS marched to Baldwinsville last Monday and dominated every portion of a 15-0 victory over the Bees.
B’ville was 7-2 going into the game, but could do nothing against Kaden Kalfass, who struck out 10 and only surrendered two hits in five innings.
C-NS used a five-run third inning to take charge, added four runs in the third and six more in the next two innings. Mason Mingle and Ben Watkins, with two hits apiece, led a deep lineup. Mingle scored three times as Hunter Corkran and Kyle Gancarz each drove in two runs.
This happened as Liverpool earned its own double-digit shutout win, blanking Fulton 10-0 largely on the basis of a nine-run eruption in the bottom of the first.
Austin Burch scored twice and got a pair of hits, while Vivacqua and Bailey O’Connor each drove in two runs. Testone and Colin Avery also had RBIs while Vivacqua, in four innings on the mound, only gave up two hits.
A far tougher gamed loomed against unbeaten Jamesville-DeWitt a day later, and Liverpool had its chances, but could not take full advantage of them in a 4-3 defeat to the Red Rams.
Getting the jump, the Warriors scored twice in the top of the first inning on Vivacqua’s home run, but single runs in the first and fourth by J-D produced a 2-2 tie that held up until the latter stages.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Rams edged in front, 3-2, only to have Liverpool tie it in the top of the seventh. But J-D settled it when Eamon Giblin doubled and, after an intentional walk to Luke VanMarter, Ryan Walker singled home Giblin.
Testone’s solo home run was one of just six hits overall for the Warriors. Benjamin pitched the entire game, allowing eight hits and three walks.
That night at Falcon Park, C-NS battled past Auburn 3-2, getting single runs in the second, third and fourth innings to erase a quick 1-0 deficit. Battista Wood earned an RBI as Williams, Zimmer and Carter King scored the runs.
After the Maroons cut it to one in the bottom of the fourth, Justin Coyne shut the door, allowing five hits overall in six innings before Wood worked a scoreless seventh inning for the save.
Liverpool had to turn around, after beating C-NS, and face West Genesee on Friday as C-NS took on Rome Free Academy – and their paths differed once more.
The Warriors lost, 9-2, scoring twice in the second to go up 2-0 but seeing the Wildcats take over from there, netting all of its runs in the third through sixth innings as WG’sTalon Elkins homered and joined Joe Cavallo with three RBIs apiece.
C-NS, though, pulled out a 4-3 win over RFA, seeing Watkins and Kenton Cochran both drive in two runs in the first two innings and turn the rest to the pitchers. Corkran went five innings, striking out seven, before Wood got a two-inning save.
Coming back home on Saturday, Liverpool put away East Syracuse Minoa 13-2 on Senior Day, doing most of its damage in an eight-run first inning as Benjamin went three-for-three with two singles, a double, two walks and four runs scored.
Vivacqua finished with three RBIs, while Chris Baker doubled and drove in two runs. RBIs also went to Burch, Chase Refici and Jameson Stevens as Anderson Roden pitched five solid innings to earn the victory before Densmore closed it.
