Gladiators Extend Winning Streak To Eight Games

The Newtown Gladiators 9 B baseball team continued to conquer its opponents this past week with four more impressive wins to runs its winning streak to eight games. The team began the week with road wins at Easton and Redding, came home to no-hit Brookfield, and ended the week with a rout of Southbury on the road.

Gladiators 11, Easton 3: The Gladiators jumped out to an early five-run lead and never looked back on their way to their fifth consecutive victory. Nick Lametto led the offense with two hits, including a double, Daniel Pearson drove in three runs on two hits and Matt Campbell chipped in with a double. Jack Riley and Matt Kretz showed patience at the plate and scored two runs apiece. Defensively, the Gladiators played a stellar game by committing no errors and making 12 putouts. Dylan Tyrell made four plays in the field and Kretz played well at second base with two put-outs. Mitchell Savoca, Spencer Johnson, and Robert Katrinak allowed five hits over six innings of play with Savoca striking out five Easton batters and Johnson not allowing any runs to score in his two innings of work.

Gladiators 10, Redding 4: The Gladiators scored all of their runs during the first three innings of play in a solid hitting performance by Paul Whitaker, who belted two doubles and a single. The team scored three runs in the first inning on a single by Savoca, a sacrifice by Colin Patrick, and a Whitaker double. In the third inning, the Gladiators pushed across seven runs on RBI singles by Tyrell, Whitaker, and Riley and a two-run double down the left field line by Pearson. Later in the game, Tyrrell added to his hit total by knocking a double in the right centerfield gap. Defensively, the team played errorless ball for the second straight game, with stellar fielding performances by Noah LaFerriere and Pearson. Patrick threw out a runner at second on an attempted steal. Riley pitched three strong innings, allowed only one run and struck out three Redding batters.

Gladiators 10, Brookfield 2: Patrick, Johnson, LaFerriere and Savoca combined to pitch a no-hitter against Brookfield. Additionally, this foursome combined to strike out a season high 12 batters during the six-inning game. Johnson turned a double play by catching a fly ball at second base and doubling up the runner at first base, Campbell threw out a would-be base stealer at third base, and Tyrrell caught a fly ball to deep center field. Whitaker continued his hot batting by collecting two hits and Riley added two of his own and knocked in four runs. The Gladiators broke open the game by scoring six runs in the third inning on singles by Whitaker, Riley, Patrick, and Pearson and capped off the scoring with two runs in the fourth inning knocked in by Johnson and Katrinak.

Gladiators 16, Southbury 10: The Gladiators capped off the week with a 12-hit, four-double, performance in a road victory over Southbury. Savoca went 5-for-5, including a double, and scored four runs. Lametto, Pearson, and Whitaker each hit a double to lead the offense. Patrick also had a good day at the plate by reaching base four times and scoring each time. Katrinak pitched three strong innings and allowed three runs, while striking out six Southbury batters. Patrick hustled on a passed ball and tagged a runner out on an attempt to score. First baseman Johnson, who had three unassisted put-outs, and Pearson made a game-ending play at second base to put an end to a furious six-run rally by Southbury.