Here's how NK's Will Creed kept the Skippers on track in the RIIL baseball playoffs

NORTH KINGSTOWN — Will Creed has pitched in enough baseball games to know how a big moment feels.

His came in the top of the third inning on a perfect Saturday afternoon at Lischio Field. Smithfield was threatening to make it hard work for the left-hander after North Kingstown staked him to an early lead in this Division I preliminary game.

Creed escaped a bases-loaded jam with a pair of strikeouts. The early offense set the tone – the University of Rhode Island commit’s cool under fire extended the momentum. The Skippers added on from there to knock out the Sentinels, 11-3, and advance into the last four teams of Pod 1.

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“I just knew this was a point where the margin of error was very thin,” Creed said. “I just had to execute my pitches. If they make contact, I know my defense will execute the plays behind me.”

North Kingstown was fresh off a four-run rally in the bottom of the second when it nearly gave some back. Creed lost his command briefly and was facing a couple tough matchups in the middle of the Smithfield lineup. He recorded two swinging punchouts to hold the Sentinels off the board, and the Skippers just about wrapped it up with another four-run outburst in the bottom of the fourth.

“He’s been a great pitcher all year,” North Kingstown catcher Tucker Lamond said. “He’s just got to keep his composure, and I think he did a great job of that today.”

Brandon Venditto and Lamond followed with RBI singles, as North Kingstown chased Smithfield ace Jackson Chamberlain in the bottom of the fourth. There will be better days for the sophomore right-hander – the season opener was one of them. Chamberlain helped the Sentinels to a 6-5 surprise of the Skippers on April 1, but the visitors couldn’t manage a second upset here.

“The start of the year we weren’t as good,” Lamond said. “Everyone is getting better. Everyone is getting hits.”

Jacob Hopkins lined a two-run single through the right side to put Smithfield (7-12) on the board in the top of the fifth. The Sentinels had two runners on with two outs when Creed secured his final strikeout of the afternoon, ending his outing on a high. Ben Davis cleaned up the last two frames ahead of a Tuesday afternoon date with Cranston East.

“If I give up a couple runs on the mound, I have my team behind me to score runs,” Creed said. “They’ll keep us in the game.”

North Kingstown (13-6) was only in this game because of a loss to the Thunderbolts (12-6) on the final day of the regular season. That cost the Skippers a bye and dropped them to the No. 5 seed. It will be the third meeting between the two teams in 18 days, and Cranston East will be bidding for a third consecutive victory behind likely starter John Devine.

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“I think we’re just going to be ready for all of his pitches,” Lamond said. “He’s a great pitcher. He’s got great stuff. We’re just going to keep working on it.”

Devine fired a 5-0 shutout at North Kingstown on May 10 but had more difficulty in the rematch. The Skippers reached him for four runs in the top of the fifth before Kelvin Santos clinched a 5-4 win with a long walkoff single. Top overall seed Bishop Hendricken meets Coventry on the other side of the bracket, as the Oakers cruised to a 7-1 preliminary win over Cranston West.

“We won’t press as much if we make an error,” Creed said. “But we still want to keep that same focus and energy as do or die. We execute very well in those situations.”

Smithfield 000 020 1 – 3

North Kingstown 140 420 x – 11

Jackson Chamberlain, Luca Simonelli (4), Paul Snowman (5) and Wyatt Speakman. Will Creed, Ben Davis (6) and Tucker Lamond.

bkoch@providencejournal.com

On X: @BillKoch25

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: North Kingstown baseball beats Smithfield, 11-3, in RIIL playoffs