Cicero opened it’s Fall season on the losing side of a double-header against the Fayetteville-Manlius 15u team on Sunday.
Both games were promising, with Cicero holding leads deep into each one. Late rallies by FM proved too hard to overcome.
The first game for Cicero started with Connor Pearce on the mound. Pearce was accurate and efficient, and benefited from solid put-outs from his defense. Nicholas Capece made several plays from the shortstop position, helping shut out FM in the first 3 innings with Johnny Wozniczka at first base.
The fourth inning started out tied at zero, but a series of errors by Cicero led to one run by FM. Cicero fired back with a hit by Matt Jordan, who advanced to third base and was hit in by Capece to tie the game.
The fifth inning didn’t fare much better for the Cicero defense, as more errors led to an 8 run inning. Capece came in off the bench to relieve Connor Pearce and the inning ended with the score 9-1 in FM’s favor.
The final two scoreless innings for Cicero’s offense produced 5 strikeouts, 2 walks and one hit by Kaden Brown. FM came back out to score 3 runs in the final inning to win the game 12-1.
The MVP for Cicero in game one was Nicholas Capece for his commanding performance on defense.
The second game started out positively for Cicero. Jordan walked and then stole 2nd base before Daniel Capp singled him in. Michael Mooney earned himself an RBI by bringing in Capp for the second run of the inning. The inning stalled after Conor Downer was walked, leaving Cicero with two runs and the early lead.
FM came back to tie the score at 2-2, but Cicero took the lead back with 2 more runs in the 2nd inning as Ryan Keil (walk) and Kaden Brown (walk) both scored on passed balls after stealing multiple bases. Cicero brought in another 2 runs in the 3rd inning (Jordan & Capp) and one in the 4th (Keil).
With the score sitting at 7-5, Cicero, a couple of hits, and some errors, helped drive a 5-run rally by FM.
With the score now in FM’s favor, 10-7, the FM coach argued for a hard-stop even though the game was still 20-minutes away from the 1:45 time allowed for a game. While the umpire initially agreed Cicero should get their final chance at-bat, an umpire arriving for the next game sided with FM’s coach and the game was ended.
Johnny Wozniczka started for Cicero Big Blue for this game. He turned in a solid performance with 5 strikeouts, 2 hits and 5 walks in 4 innings, giving up 5 tuns. Matt Jordan came in to relieve Wozniczka in the final inning. He ended the day with 3 walks, 3 hits and 1 strikeout, while giving up 5 runs.
The MVP for Cicero in game two was Wozniczka, who put in a solid performance on the mound and at first base.
While Cicero dropped both games, they were either tied or in the lead for a majority of both games on this day.
Highlight plays of the day include:
- Long run from the SS position to catch a fly-ball deep behind 2nd base by Matt Jordan.
- Several exciting put-outs by Nicholas Capece from the SS position, including a play where he backed up an error at 3rd and threw a dart to first base to beat the runner.
- 8 Strikeouts by pitcher Connor Pearce.
- 5 strikeouts by pitcher Johnny Wozniczka
- Tag play at home plate by catcher Michael Mooney.
- Hits by Jordan, Capp and Brown.
- Aggressive base-running by Cicero, including multiple scores on passed balls.
Team captains on this night were Wozniczka and Capece.