Wizards move to 4-3 after routing Newark

By JOSH ST.CROIX
TIMES SPORTSWRITER

THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 2012

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Watertown pitcher Rene Solis threw another gem against Newark, but this time, his teammates made it count.

Solis gave up one run on four hits, striking out four batters and walking three in eight innings to lead the Wizards to a 9-1 win over the Pilots in a Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League game Wednesday at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds.

Two of Watertown’s three losses have come to Newark, including a 4-1 defeat in its season opener, where Solis allowed just one run and tallied 11 strikeouts in seven innings.

“In the first game, we scored one run and we hit the ball well, we just didn’t really capitalize on their mistakes,” said Solis, a lefty from Division II St. Mary’s University in Texas. “This time we did, and we got on base a lot and when we got runners on base, we got them in.”

The Wizards (4-3) struck for two runs in the first inning, and led 5-0 after two.

Watertown tallied 11 hits in all, five in the first two innings, and was aided by six Newark errors, four of which came in the first two frames.

Brandon Cipolla provided a two-run double in the second for the Wizards, and Cole Gleason drove in three runs on two hits, including a double.

“It was nice to get off to a fast start, guys were seeing good pitches and taking advantage,” Watertown manager Nathan Kafka said.

“They made a couple mistakes, and we were fortunate enough today to take advantage of them,” Kafka added.

Watertown first baseman Donald Walter, who entered the game with a league-high .500 batting average, went 3-for-4 with an RBI.

In addition to the season-opening loss, the Wizards dropped a 12-6 game to the Pilots on Sunday. They had lost nine of their previous 10 games to league defending champion Newark, dating back to last season.

“They’re a good team, they beat us twice now and the second time, they pounded us pretty good,” Kafka said. “So it was nice to get a win against these guys.”

Newark (4-2) used five pitchers, with starter Phillip Flach lasting just two innings. He allowed five runs on five hits and walked three batters.

“These guys can hit, I knew that going in to the season,” Newark manager Chris Ebright said. “But obviously, our errors didn’t help us.”

Kane Sweeney knocked in Newark’s only run with a sacrifice fly in the fourth. Josh Crowdus contributed a pair of singles for the Pilots.

“He’s good,” Ebright said of Solis. “He’s probably going to be, I would say, the best pitcher in the league this whole year.”

The Wizards will host the Syracuse Salt Catz at 11 a.m. today in an exhibition game with free admission. The Salt Catz are a member of the New York Collegiate Baseball League, where the Wizards played from 1999-2010.

Regular season action will resume on Friday, when the Wizards host Cooperstown at 7 p.m.