The Cicero Rattlers belted out the hits and plays on Saturday in the Pine Grove Arena as they took on the Syracuse Jr. Bananas.
The Rattlers notched 44 hits and 26 runs, treating their fans to an offensive explosion that coupled exciting hits with great base running. They never trailed after knocking in 4 runs in the first inning and backed it up with defensive plays that had their fans cheering.
There were a number of big hits on the day, but the biggest came from Ryan Hooser, who cleared the bases with a deep triple in the 5th inning. Hunter Woods, Dean Capece, Hooser, Max Balamut and TJ Vulcano all hit deep balls on the day, but the entire team combined for their best hitting game of the season.
Defensively, the Rattlers were on-point, making plays all over the field. Leading the defense was Dean Capece, who put on a clinic at second base and led the team in plays. Hunter Woods, Ryan Hooser and Mason Vangel also had great days in the field.
Highlights of the game for the Rattlers:
Ryan Hooser (ss) snagged a hard-hit ground ball from his knees and sent it to second base for an out.
Hunter Woods (CF) threw an absolute rope from the back fence to Dean Capece (2b).
Dean Capece made a great catch and tag at 2nd base for a huge out (on the great throw from H. Woods).
Deep-hit triple by Ryan Hooser that cleared the bases.
Mason Vangel landed a tough grounder and ended the inning with a solid throw to first.
Dean Capece fielded a number of tough balls and turned them into outs, including a slick backhand to the shortstop and a couple off the ceiling net.
Really solid base running from multiple players, including Adrian Muller, Hunter Woods, Sullivan Woods and Dean Capece. Capece also scored all the way from first base twice on singles.
The lineup for the day for the Rattlers was:
Hunter Woods CF
Ben Linstruth EH
Dean Capece 2B
Ryan Hooser C
Max Balamut 1B
TJ Vulcano EH
Adrian Muller LF
Mason Vangel SS
Sullivan Woods RF
Seth McIlroy 3B
Game MVP (offense and defense):
Dean Capece and Ryan Hooser were the game MVP’s. Both hit well and scored runs, but Hooser’s bag-clearing triple and Capece’s outstanding defensive performance earned them the dual-MVP on the day.