CROSS RIVER, N.Y. - On Wednesday, July 22, the Lewisboro Lightning (11U) jumped out to a 4-0 first-inning lead against the Bedford Pound Ridge Lightning, and that had a calming effect on starting pitcher Christian Cisco.
"I felt loose and comfortable," Cisco said, as he guided his team through four innings while allowing just three runs. With two innings still to play, reliever Gio Santoro embraced the closer's role.
"There's a good amount of pressure. But I don't really worry about that because I trust my team, and I trust my pitches," Santoro said.
They were more than just words. Bedford Pound Ridge could attest after Santoro struck out three batters while his defense recorded the other three outs in a 6-3 victory.
Santoro also helped Cisco on the defensive side. After Cisco struck out Jack Drew to begin the game, Bedford Pound Ridge put runners on the corners with two outs. When Brian Short dribbled a slow roller to third, it looked like the visitors would score their first run. Instead, Santoro charged the ball, fielded it one-handed, and threw to first for the out.
Cisco showed his appreciation in the bottom of the inning by bouncing a single up the middle. Santoro followed with a walk, putting two runners aboard. With one out, Matvey Wulfing knew exactly what having a runner in scoring position meant.
"It sets the momentum and sets the tone," he said after lining an RBI single up the middle for a 1-0 lead.
The Lightning weren't finished. Henry Parrish drove in the second run with a bloop single into shallow right, and a wild pitch made it 3-0. Vincent Secchiano then beat out an infield single to drive in another run, giving Lewisboro a 4-0 advantage.
Bedford Pound Ridge answered in the top of the second. Ethan Sterling lined a ball to right that resulted in an overthrow at first, leaving him in scoring position to start the inning. He stole third and scored on Mason Massello's single to center.
Another walk and a wild pitch left two runners in scoring position with two outs. With the momentum hanging in the balance, Cisco and his catcher debated the next pitch to Jason Wagenheim.
"We were talking about whether I should throw a fastball or a curveball, and I said, 'I want to hit my spot.' So I said, 'Yo, catcher, spot me on the outside corner,'" Cisco recalled.
Cisco won the discussion. He threw the fastball, hit his spot, and caught Wagenheim looking to end the threat.
Lewisboro's offense went quietly in the bottom of the second, but the defense answered again in the third.
Jack Drew blooped a ball down the left-field line, but Emerson Payne raced over and made a diving catch in fair territory to bring the home crowd to its feet.
Bedford Pound Ridge kept pressing. Harry Trotta walked, and Hudson Bruce's hard grounder down the third-base line put runners on the corners. Luke Gorman and Brian Short followed with RBI singles, trimming the deficit to 4-3.
With only one out, Cisco escaped further damage by getting Ethan Sterling to ground to shortstop, where John LoPiccolo turned an inning-ending double play.
Lewisboro again came up empty in the bottom of the third, and Cisco faced another challenge in the fourth. Finn McGovern reached on an overthrow at first and advanced to third on Massello's groundout.
But McGovern stayed there. Cisco induced a pop-up to second before Noah Pearson came up with another big defensive play. After Cisco got a glove on a ground ball, Pearson charged in, barehanded the ball, and threw out the batter at first.
"Noah has a big motor and is always moving," coach James Cisco said.
The Lightning rewarded that effort in the bottom of the fourth. Pearson reached on a grounder that skipped past the first baseman, and Secchiano followed with a perfectly placed bunt. An errant throw put two runners in scoring position.
A groundout to second brought home an insurance run, extending the lead to 5-3.
Santoro took over on the mound and opened the fifth with two strikeouts. Caiden Jones then tracked down a fly ball in right field, drawing praise from Coach Cisco.
"The boys for the last three weeks have been working on their reads and on their footwork," he said. "They really bought into the process, so what you see now is all their work."
Lewisboro added another insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. Cisco singled, and Wulfing drove him home with his second RBI single of the game, making it 6-3.
The defense finished things off in the sixth. Around another Santoro strikeout, Secchiano hauled in a fly ball, and Pearson made a diving catch to end the game.
Despite hovering around the .500 mark after several tough losses, Coach Cisco believes his team is built for a strong finish.
"In my opinion, our team is built for the second half of the summer and into the playoffs," he said.
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