Sports Update

American Legion Post 10 Juniors in Title Run

Martins, Renaud, Lorenz lead Post 10 in Playoff Sweep of Scituate
The Riverside ATC Post 10 Legion Juniors took a major step forward in their run toward an American Legion championship with a doubleheader sweep against Scituate on July 30^th at Pierce Stadium.  The Post 10 Legion squad won 8-4 and 8-1 to bring their top seeded record to 14-3.  In the first game Aidan Martins went three for three at the plate including a key double.   Post 10 took the lead, 3-2, in the bottom of the third thanks to singles by JJ Renaud, and Nolan Lorenz.  Will Francis earned the win for Post 10 in relief. The reliever surrendered two hits and one run over three and one-third innings, striking out five and walking three. Ben Hallene stepped on the hill first for ATC Post 10. The left-handed pitcher surrendered one hit and two runs (zero earned) over two and two-thirds innings, striking out five and walking four. Brandon Dicceco also appeared in relief for Post 10.  Post 10 accumulated 11 hits in the game. Nolan Lorenz provided pop in the middle of the lineup, and led Post 10 with three runs batted in. The right fielder went 3-for-4 on the day. Nolan Lorenz also had three hits for Post 10 and Braylen DeCosta and Graham Franke each added two hits.  Martins, Lorenz, and DeCosta each had stolen bases as the team had a total of 11 stolen bases in the game.

The Post 10 locals took the second game 8-1.  Once again Martins had a three-hit game, with two singles and a triple.  Martins led off the game with a line drive double and stole third base and scored on a passed ball.  Post 10 added to their lead in the bottom of the third inning after Martins tripled, and JJ Renaud knocked him home on a ground ball out.  Post 10 scored 1 in the first, 2 in the third, 1 in the fourth and 4 in the fifth.  Martins had three hits and Nolan Lorenz, Will Francis, Jamison Sydney, Chris Charbonneau and M Pawlik each added a single.

JJ Renaud began the game for Post 10 on the mound and dominated. The right-handed pitcher gave up no hits and no runs over four innings, striking out eight.  Aiden Martins pitched one inning of zero-run ball for ATC Post 10 in relief. The right-handed pitcher gave up zero hits, striking out one and walking one.  Martins and Nolan Lorenz mopped up in relief for Riverside.

In previous action, Riverside took both games of a doubleheader against R&R Construction (Newport) on July 18.  The locals won both games by scores of 5-4 and 10-1.  In the 10-1 rout of Newport, Riverside ATC Post 10 opened the scoring in the first after Nolan Lorenz singled, and eventually scored.  Newport tied the game at one in the second inning but that’s all the scoring they would get. 

Riverside jumped back into the lead in the bottom of the second inning after Max Pawlik walked, Aiden Martins hit into a fielder's choice, and Nolan Lorenz was struck by a pitch, each scoring one run.  Riverside added to their early lead in the bottom of the third inning after Max Pawlik walked, and the team kept scoring from there.  James Palmeiri earned the win for Post 10. The starting pitcher allowed four hits and one run (zero earned) over five innings, striking out one and walking two.

Lefty Hallene went two for two at the plate and Aiden Martins, Nolan Lorenz, and Max Pawlik each drove in two runs for Riverside. Braylen DeCosta had three walks and overall, the team was strong offensively while forcing 10 walks for the game. Nolan Lorenz stole two bases.

The 10-1 win followed a much closer 5-4 win the night before. In a late inning rally, Riverside took the win.  Post 10 was down 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning when an error scored two runs.  Newport got on the board in the top of the second inning after Daniel Spearin was struck by a pitch, driving in a run, and Noah Travers singled, scoring two runs.

However, Riverside came back after trailing 4-2 in the 5th inning with 1 run in the bottom of the 5th and two more in the sixth to take the 5-4 win.  Jamison Sydney earned the win. The pitcher allowed two hits and zero runs over two innings of relief, striking out three and walking two. Lefty Hallene started on the mound for Post 10. The southpaw allowed five hits and three runs over two innings, striking out two and walking two. Aiden Martins pitched one inning of shutout ball for ATC Post 10 in relief. The reliever allowed two hits, striking out one and walking three.  Nolan Lorenz also tossed 2 innings of relief for Riverside. 

Aiden Martins went 2-for-4 at the plate as the leadoff hitter led the team with two runs batted in. Mcquire Camelo also had two hits for Post 10. Overall, the team had a strong eye at the plate, tallying six walks for the game. Aiden Martins and Nolan Lorenz each stole two bases for ATC Post 10.

“Those games are in the past”, said Post 10 coach Ben Emond.  “There are competitive teams who will be as determined to win as we are,” said Emond.  “We have had a great season finishing in first place, but we can’t let our guard down now.  The team is confident and aggressive at the plate. We like to run and are strong defensively,” added the coach.  “Even when we have been behind in a game, our players believe they can win the game.”

Offensively Will Francis leads Post 10 with a .515 batting average followed by Aidan Martins at .469 and JJ Renaud at .455.  Renaud continues to impress with his versatility as he dominates on the mound, catching and at shortstop when needed.  As of this writing, Renaud has not given up an earned run and has had multiple game strikeout performances.  Renaud has 51 strikeouts to date including an 11, 15 and 8 strikeout performances in three games respectively.    

Check ReporterToday.com for the American Legion playoff games.  Portions of game stats for this article were provided by 2024 GameChanger Media, Inc. and this writer. 

 Rumford Little League Deep in Tournaments
“RLL Silva Stars Win Title”
The Rumford Little League “Ron Silva Allstars” came from behind to win the Silva tournament on Monday July 29th.  The locals had to beat a tough Barrington team twice in walk-off style to take the title.  The tournament is named for long time Riverside LL volunteer and District Two LL officials Ron Silva.  Rumford came back in the loser’s bracket of tournament play and defeated Bristol in a 9-8 thriller.  Rumford jumped out to a 5-0 lead early in the game, but Bristol roared back to take an 8-7 lead late in the game.  However, Rumford came back to tie and then win the game in walk-off fashion.  The win set up a rematch with Barrington for the title.  The Rumford team showed a never give up attitude to take home the title.  A more comprehensive game recap will be posted at www.ReporterToday.com  as the game was played at press time.  

 RLL 10U Allstars Just Short in Title Hopes
The Rumford Little League 10U Allstars run has come to an end in the State Tournament. The RLL District Two champs went far into the state tournament but eventually came up just short of a state title. “These kids and this league have so much to be proud of,” writes a RLL spokesperson. “A very small league of kids just went and battled with the biggest and best teams in the state. 48 kids are still playing baseball at this level. 12 of them are from Rumford. Heads up guys we have a lot to be proud of, & even more work to do.”  The District Two champs from Rumford lost out to Warwick and North Providence.  The 10U Majors All-Star roster:  Donovan Bazar, Vincent Fisher, Jameson Bazar, Joey Houlihan, Charlie Costantino, Jack McBurney V, Julianna Carroll, Tegan Smith, Tripp Audette, Kingston Deleon-Spitaleri, Kasen Barros, Mason Ferreira.  The manager was Mike Fisher and coaches were Rick Audette, Sam Bazar and John McBurney.