The Pomperaug Panthers are out to a fast start on the baseball diamond this spring, earning two victories in their first two games of the season.
The season opener featured a come from behind win, a 6-5 victory over Plainville High. The Blue Devils jumped out to a 5-2 lead after three innings, but Pomperaug chipped away, capped by a two-run sixth inning that proved to be the difference.
The Panthers showed discipline at the plate and speed on the basepaths, drawing six walks and eight stolen bases.
Second-year head coach Adam Rosten praised his team’s resilience to fight back, noting that the team has a solid core of returners who know what it takes to win.
“We talk about it all the time, doing the little things well,” said Rosten. “This team never gives up.”
This year’s team is led by senior Noah Pane, who has already committed to playing for Dean College at the next level.
Described by his head coach as the “heart and soul” of the team, Pane has also been a speedster on the bases, with the starting shortstop racking up 7 stolen bases in the team’s first two games.
“Where he goes, we go,” said Rosten. “He takes every rep seriously and he’s constantly working on his craft. I’m personally super excited to see him go to the next level.”
Pane’s ability to get on base will set the table for others in the lineup, Rosten added, noting that batters like senior Andrew Brocksmith will be crucial to the team’s success.
“[Andrew] comes in and gets the big hits, he’s in the 3-hole for a reason, he’s a power hitter,” said Rosten. “We’re just going to let him do what he does.”
The team’s second game of the season – a 9-5 victory over Kaynor Tech – featured a dominant offensive showing from the start, as well as a superb pitching performance from junior Alex Augustine. Over 4.2 innings of work, Augustine struck out 9 batters.
“We have the utmost faith in him,” said Rosten. “We’re really excited about how his first start of the season went. We’re looking forward to him continuing to build and making a statement this year.”
Pane went 3-for-3 at the plate, with 2 runs, an RBI and 5 stolen bases against Kaynor Tech. Louis Nevadomski went 2-for-4, driving in 3 runs in the process.
Senior Frank Filippone played a key role in the victory, coming in as a relief pitcher to get the team out of a sixth inning jam, and then providing an insurance run in the bottom half of the inning with an RBI single.
“Frank is our guy we look to for our stops,” said Rosten. “He’s going to be our bridge to our closer in Ryan [Lynch] and if we needed him to close, he would definitely do so. He’s definitely taken a step up this year. We’re confident that anywhere we put him, he’s going to get the job done.”
Also coming out of the bullpen this year is Matthew Nespoli, who threw 3.1 scoreless innings of relief work in the team’s opener to earn the win, before closer Ryan Lynch came in to throw a perfect seventh inning to earn the save.
Rosten has held several coaching positions across the state, including at Newtown High School, Shelton High School, Danbury High School, and Ridgefield High School.
Part of the team’s strategy this year is to cause chaos in the batter’s box and on the basepaths, said Rosten. He credits one of his mentors in Shaun Ratchford – a longtime coach at Danbury High – with influencing the style of play he wants to implement.
In the first two games of the season, the team has collectively stolen 15 bases.
“Once we find the weakness, we attack,” said Rosten.
Pomperaug will play two more non-conference games (Friday against Danbury High at home, and Saturday in an away contest against Naugatuck High) before starting SWC play on April 13 against Notre Dame Prep.
By Evan Triantafilidis
The Southbury Record 