SHELTON — Shelton’s baseball team has turned the corner.
The Gaels followed up a tough start to the campaign with wins in four consecutive games (five-of-six, overall) after a 12-2, run-rule triumph over Abbott Tech on Thursday.
The Gaels banged out 11 hits, one day after accumulating 15 hits in a 9-2 triumph over Lyman Hall.
Shelton is now 5-6 overall.
“I thought we would start the year taking some lumps,” Shelton coach Scott Gura said. “As soon as they got some confidence, I knew they would turn it around. They kept practicing and working hard. That’s a testament to their character,” Gura added.
After plating a pair of runs in the first inning, the Gaels piled up eight runs in the second against Abbott Tech.
Dylan DeSio singled and scored on a Hudson Meyer triple. Mike Kennedy’s RBI groundout made it 2-0.
Mike Lockavitch opened the second inning with his first varsity home run. Santino DeFilippo smashed a two-run triple to center for a 5-0 lead.
Kennedy grounded a two-RBI single to right, and Joe Romano bounced an RBI single through the left side of the infield, extending the lead to 8-0.
A passed ball and error allowed two more runs to score in the frame.
The second-inning offensive eruption was more than enough for Shelton pitcher Robert Ciccone, who allowed four hits in five solid innings of work for his first varsity win.
The Gaels added a run in the third when Romano smacked an RBI single to left.
Abbott Tech got a run in the fourth on a two-out single off the bat of Joey Cerqueira and added a run on an error in the fifth.
Shelton clinched the win, making it a 10-run differential in the bottom of the fifth, when Romano dropped a run-scoring single to right,
“I just wanted my guys to go out there and compete and give them a good game,” Abbott Tech coach Dave Simone said. “I use these games to get ready for our league and get ready for the playoff push.”
The Gaels are hoping to make some noise in the Southern Connecticut Conference and at the state level. Gura likes what he is seeing from his team.
“I’m hoping we can get to 10 wins,” he said. “When you can get double-digit wins in a season that’s an accomplishment. We’ve got to keep working hard.”
Shelton began its winning streak with a 3-0 win over West Haven, when Anthony Steele no-hit the Westies and struck out six.
In the 9-2 victory over Lyman Hall on Wednesday, Russ DeMarco pitched five innings in relief for his first varsity win. DeSio had a single, double and two runs scored. Steele had three hits and knocked in four runs, and Kennedy had three hits and a pair of RBIs.
“That was our best game from the start to finish,” Gura said.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Robert Ciccone, Shelton: With the runs coming from a variety of players, it was up to Ciccone to make it work. He allowed only four hits to earn his first varsity win.
QUOTABLE
“I thought we would start the year taking some lumps,” Shelton coach Scott Gura said. “As soon as they got some confidence, I knew they would turn it around.
