Sports
Panthers Push D-II Semis to a Third Game
Johnston ends Woonsocket's five-game postseason winning streak and evens the season series with the Villa Novans at two apiece.
After the Woonsocket Villa Novans rallied to take Game 1 Wednesday, the Panthers responded with a come-from-behind win Thursday, overcoming a two-run deficit to defeat the ‘Novans, 14-8, in East Providence.
With one victory apiece, the fourth-seeded Villa Novans and No. 1 Panthers will return to for Game 3 on June 3 at 5 p.m., and the winner will move on to compete for the Division II crown against The Prout School at McCoy Stadium starting June 6.
“I think tomorrow they’ll come to play. I thought today they came to play. The bounces didn’t go their way, and Johnston deserves a lot of the credit,” said Woonsocket head coach John Marsella.
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Chris Pistacchio helped JHS to the Game 2 victory with an three extra-base hits, including two doubles. He also scored four runs Thursday, including the game-winner in the fifth inning.
With Johnston leading, 8-7, Pistacchio singled and stole second base, then raced to the plate when Gian Bianchi’s soft liner fell in behind Woonsocket’s leaping second baseman.
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“He’s the sparkplug. He gets the bench going, Gian always moves him over and then we’ve got the big three behind them,” said Johnston head coach Stephen DeMeo. “Chris sets the table, and then the big guys eat it up.”
Pistacchio catalyzed the Panthers’ offensive onslaught with a run in the first inning Thursday, but he returned to the plate with Johnston trailing, 3-2, in the second. Woonsocket established its advantage with back-to-back-to-back base hits in the first, including a leadoff double from freshman Victor Hunt.
“If you’ve got a lexicon of more superlatives, give it to me, because the kid’s outstanding. Simply outstanding,” Marsella said.
After Pistacchio reset the score with a run-producing triple in the second inning, the ‘Novans replied with two more—Hunt and Kory Lawrence provided the RBIs—and WHS carried a 5-3 lead into the third inning.
Johnston rebounded for one in the third, then regained the lead with three hits in the fourth inning. Pistacchio and Nick Loffredo chipped in with RBI-doubles, Ryan Geraghty added a run-scoring single in his return to the lineup, and the Panthers led, 8-5, after 3 ½ innings.
Woonsocket replied with two in the fourth, but Geraghty — returning to the field five days after injuring his shoulder on a slide against — cut down two WHS base-runners to preserve Johnston’s one-run advantage and stymie the hard-charging ‘Novans.
“That was the turning point, when he threw the guy out stealing, and then he picked the guy off right after that,” DeMeo said. “That took a lot of wind out of their sails.”
After Bianchi’s run-scoring single in the fifth, the Panthers plated two more in the sixth, bunting and running en route to a four-run cushion.
Hunt picked up another RBI-single for the ‘Novans, but Johnston tacked on three more runs in the seventh to seal the victory.
Bianchi grabbed the win for JHS, and Brandon Rainville took the loss for Woonsocket.
Kory Lawrence is scheduled to take the mound for the ‘Novans in Game 3.
“It’s how it should end, between us and Woonsocket — we’re two evenly matched squads. [Coach Marsella’s] a class act," DeMeo said. “The kids in Woonsocket are a good bunch of guys. We’re competitors on the field, but everybody gets along.”