RYAN LABB and the Hornets have won five of their last six games with four more to go in the regular season. (Eric Evans Photo)

 

 

After press time:
North Reading (11-5) defeats Pentucket 5-2 (May 11)
North Reading (10-5) clinches state tournamnet bid with 9-2 win over Amesbury (May 9)

 

Published May 9, 2024

By DAN ZIMMERMAN

NORTH READING — Over the past week, the North Reading baseball team played four games in rapid succession, winning all but one of them to improve to 9-5 overall.

On the heels of back-to-back defeats the week before, to Lynnfield and Newburyport, the Hornets stormed back with a huge 16-2 win under the lights in Rockport and then came home to defeat Essex Tech, 7-3, in the first rematch of the season.

In the trip to Rockport, Nick Torra led the team, driving in four, while Max Forristall added three RBIs. Ryan Labb, who scored three runs against the Vikings, is currently slightly ahead of Forrsitall in batting average, .400 to .394. Torra rounds out the top-3 Hornets with a .357.

In mid-April, North Reading visited Essex Tech and came away with a 14-1 drubbing, marking the second of three mercy-rule abbreviated outings in the first two weeks of the campaign. On Saturday, the Knights paid a visit to Carey Park and while they fared somewhat better in the second meeting, the Hornets prevailed behind a complete game from Labb, who scattered seven hits and fanned seven.

“Essex Tech has gotten a lot better over the course of the season,” said North Reading Coach Eric Archambault, when asked about the score disparity between the two games. “I don’t think we were at our sharpest that day but we were able to come in and get the win which is what we needed.”

On Monday night, North Reading traveled to face Bedford, which was a make-up game from the previously canceled team trip to Norwich, Connecticut. The one-win Buccaneers edged the Hornets, 3-2. Ethan Quan got the start and delivered, riding a 2-2 tie into the fourth inning. Quan was impressive, keeping the Buccaneers at bay and giving the Hornets a chance. But in the bottom of the sixth, Bedford claimed a go-ahead run and made it stand up.

“We had a couple defensive snafus in the sixth inning that allowed Bedford to score on a sacrifice fly,” said Archambault. “But that doesn’t take anything away from Ethan Quan, who pitched a heckofa game. He gave us every opportunity to win.”

When 7-3 Triton paid a visit to Carey Park on Tuesday, Nick Torra got the call and did not disappoint, scattering six hits while fanning three over six innings pitched. North Reading prevailed, 6-4, to win the season series with the Vikings. In the earlier meeting between these teams, the Hornets were dominant, 14-0.

“We’ve had some fun ones here at Carey Park so far this year,” said Archambault. “This was a back-and-forth game with both teams putting the ball in play, forcing the defenses to make plays. This was a battle but the kids have learned how to win close games and that’s a testament to them.”

There were several lead changes through four with Triton emerging one better than their host in the top of the fifth, 4-3. But the Hornets would respond in the bottom of the frame, recapturing the lead on a Matt Mancinelli basehit along with an unearned run off a Vikings error. North Reading added insurance in the sixth and never looked back.

Dylan Matthews relieved Torra, facing the minimum and picking up the save.

“This was one of those team wins with everyone contributing,” said Archambault. “We made a few adjustments after the Bedford game and the kids bought in.”

North Reading will host the 1-8 Amesbury Redhawks on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. and travel to face 7-6 Pentucket on Saturday morning at 10 a.m.