Rockets rush past Heartland Christian | News, Sports, Jobs

Staff photo / Dan Hiner
Lowellville pitcher Liam Bartlett delivers during the first inning of Monday’s game against Heartland Christian at Bob Cene Park in Struthers.

STRUTHERS — The Lowellville baseball team got things going early on Monday.

The Rockets’ bats took off, batting around and scoring 11 runs in the first inning of a 14-3 win over Heartland Christian at Bob Cene Park in Struthers.

“We’ve just been getting the work in, in practice,” said Geno Perry, who was 3-for-3 with three RBIs and three runs scored. “Our bats have been hot lately. The last three games we won, today (makes) four. We’ve been hitting the ball well lately.”

A Perry infield single and Kaden Primous walk set the table in the first inning. Cody Nolfi drove them both in with a two-RBI single to left field. Liam Bartlett followed with a single to right-center field, and a bunt by Tyler Tuscano resulted in a single and a two-base throwing error by the catcher, scoring Bartlett and Nolfi.

An RBI single to center plated Tuscano, pushing the Rockets’ lead to 5-0 with one out.

A dropped third strike allowed Anthony Kacir to reach, and Braylon Bolger was hit by a pitch to load the bases as Perry came to the plate for a second time in the opening frame. Perry’s infield RBI single to third base increased the lead to 6-0.

Kacir scored on a wild pitch, and Bolger came in on a passed ball. And a pop fly to right fell for Bartlett plated on more run, and a two-RBI double to right-center by Tuscano rounded out the first-inning scoring as the Rockets (7-6) led 11-0.

“We’ve been starting off well all season – first, second inning we’ve been able to come out and get some leads,” Lowellville head coach Dan Dougherty said. “There’s been some games we haven’t finished. Today, we were able to do that. Starting off strong has been a point of emphasis for us, so it was good to see it today.”

Zak Sargent drew a one-out walk for the Rockets in the second, and Bolger was hit by a pitch for the second straight at-bat. Both came in after a two-RBI double to right-center by Perry, who scored on a wild pitch, putting Lowellville up 14-0.

Paul Bender pulled a double down the left-field line for the Lions to start the third inning. Then Evan Farrell got Heartland Christian (4-8) on the board with a two-out single to center, scoring Bender.

Heartland Christian’s Johnny Meyer doubled to start the fifth. He eventually scored on an RBI single from Owen Bender. Owen Bender crossed on a run-scoring single to center from Farrell.

“Once you make one mistake, everything snowballs,” Heartland Christian coach Mark Franken said. “We also have a very young team, we start four freshmen. This is all part of the learning curve. We’re not gonna dwell on losing 14-3. We got a game Wednesday, so we’re gonna pick ourselves up.”

Tuscano finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs for Lowellville, and Nolfi ended 2-for-2 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

Bartlett got the start for the Rockets in the win. He allowed three hits in two scoreless innings pitched with six strikeouts. He was pulled after two frames to save his arm for games later in the week. Tuscano pitched one inning of relief, and Primous took the hill in the final two frames.

Christian Hamilton took the loss, surrendering 10 runs – four earned – on five hits and a pair of walks in two-thirds of an inning pitched.

The Rockets are starting to find their groove. They have won four straight games after Monday’s win, adding two wins over Western Reserve and one against Brookfield.

“Four wins in a row is something we haven’t had in several years now,” Dougherty said. “The guys are playing better as the weather’s getting warmer and the bats are coming alive. We’ve been able to develop all around.”