East Providence's must-win ties Division II baseball series at 1-1
PROVIDENCE — Jack McKnight went back to basics under potential season-ending pressure Sunday evening.
East Providence’s senior standout was behind in the count after coming on in relief. East Greenwich had the bases loaded and was a single away from taking the lead in the top of the seventh inning.
McKnight fired three consecutive strikes to earn the Townies another day at Rhode Island College. They’ll resolve this best-of-3 series Monday afternoon after battling to a 1-0 victory over the Avengers.
“I really was just trying to calm myself down,” McKnight said. “It’s a kid’s game — just do my thing. Me and my catcher, just playing catch.”
McKnight missed with his first two pitches before hitting the zone with his next three. Cade Thomas struck out looking and East Providence pulled even after dropping Game 1 in eight innings Thursday. Dylan Annicelli worked the opening 6⅔ frames before reaching his pitch limit, and McKnight — who will play at Pontarelli Field next season as an Anchormen commit — produced a highlight at his future home.
“It was amazing,” Annicelli said. “I was coming out there knowing I needed to do my job. I think I succeeded.”
Steve Estrella’s sacrifice fly to center in the bottom of the fifth knocked home Kyler Lorenz to make the difference. It was a good piece of situational hitting after some aggressive base running. Lorenz singled to center leading off the inning and went all the way to third on a wild pitch.
“Baseball is a game of inches, like our coaches always say,” McKnight said. “We had three errors, but minimizing those errors helps you win games. Baseball, especially in the playoffs, can be pretty close.”
Estrella was looking for a curveball from East Greenwich starter Casey DeLorenzo and saw one early in his key at-bat. A game of cat-and-mouse unfolded from there, with Estrella hoping to find something he could drive to the outfield. An elevated fastball on the inner half was the perfect pitch.
“He threw that offspeed in the dirt, so I knew he was going to come at me with a fastball,” Estrella said. “I was ready. I was cocked back and ready to drive the ball.”
Annicelli allowed just three hits and didn’t issue a walk until the top of the sixth. His only real close shaves early both came courtesy of Michael Ucci, who slammed a two-out double off the wall in left in the first and flew to the warning track in deep left-center in the third. Manny Santos made a sliding catch along the line in left to strand two more in the sixth and Annicelli handed it off to McKnight after his 110 pitches.
“We knew we needed to win,” Annicelli said. “That’s the main thing. We needed to come out, play as hard as we could — we just had to win.”
Annicelli threw the seventh inning before being removed in a substitution error on Thursday. He made the most of a second appearance in the series and is likely to be watching from the bench while the Townies (17-8) bid for a series win in a 4:30 p.m. first pitch. The Avengers (18-6) are in search of a first title since their old Class B crown in 1998.
“We just regrouped as a team,” Estrella said. “We really put our hearts together. We’re just one big family with one heartbeat.”
East Greenwich 000 000 0 — 0 3 1
East Providence 000 010 x — 1 7 3
Casey DeLorenzo and Alex DeTomasis. Dylan Annicelli and Brian Rutkowski.
On Twitter: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: East Providence win forces Monday's Game 3 in Division II baseball series
