By Blake Buscemi
Jackson Barnett shuts it down, going through distance and only allowing 2 runs. Kings Park wins the first game of the doubleheader.
Final: Kings Park 5, Black Diamonds 2 pic.twitter.com/oUVAGDo6zv— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 16, 2022
The Black Diamonds and the Kings Park Pride faced off at PAL Complex Saturday morning in a Boys of Summer 13U matchup. Both lineups were filled with talent from top to bottom, so we were in store for a competitive ballgame.
Jackson Barnett took the mound for the Pride. He’s a big, projectable kid with a pitcher’s build and a great feel for pitching at such a young age. He made a statement immediately, striking out Matt Tomasello, inducing a groundout from Joey Petrucelly, and striking out Nikola Cespe looking.
Joey Petrucelly took the hill for the Black Diamonds. He can perform on both sides of the ball, both pitching and batting second in the lineup. The scoreless game was broken in this frame, however, when Dylan Freirs walked, bringing Everett Zarzicki to the plate. He proceeded to turn on the first strike he got, absolutely crushing one over the left field fence off the top of the trees to make it a 2-0 game in favor of Kings Park early. A string of hits and walks from Aidan Mills, Aidan Kehoe, Anthony Petrone, and Ryan Landan followed by a balk resulted in five total runs coming across to score in the frame and a 5-0 lead for Kings Park.
The Black Diamonds fought back in the top of the second, however. Ben Delanoy short-hopped the wall in center field for a double and the other Delanoy, Will, doubled him in to cut the deficit to 5-1. Brendan Lofaro grounded out to bring home Will Delanoy, making it 5-2 in favor of Kings Park.
Jackson Barnett takes us through the key to his success today and his goals moving forward for the rest of the summer. pic.twitter.com/wLOvhBYoPl
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) July 16, 2022
The scoring stayed quiet for the remainder of the game. Both pitchers locked in and ended up both throwing complete games, with Petrucelly not needing to throw a seventh due to them being the away team. Jackson Barnett was extremely impressive, throwing seven innings, striking out four batters, and only allowing two runs in the second inning. Kings Park won this one by a score of 5-2 and looks to take that momentum into the rest of their regular season, followed by playoffs shortly afterward.
