The La Salle Academy Rams will challenge the Cranston East Thunderbolts at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
La Salle Academy is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Rhode Island's top teams: Cranston West, who was ranked 17th at the time (La Salle Academy was ranked fourth). The Rams walked away with a 4-1 victory over the Falcons on Monday. The Rams haven't had any issues with the Falcons recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.
Matt Destefanis spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered a run (which was unearned) on two hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Brady Collins was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double. That's the most runs he has posted since back in June of 2024. Another player making a difference was Adryan Urena, who went 2-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Cranston East sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-2 victory over Lincoln on Monday. That looming 4-2 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Thunderbolts yet this season.
Cranston East also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and he was also dialed-in: Damien Wholey gave up two runs (both of which were unearned) on five hits and racked up ten Ks.
At the plate, Cranston East saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Smerlyn Lopez, who went 1-for-3 with one triple, one run, and one RBI. Joshua Gillen was another, going 1-for-2 with one run and one double.
La Salle Academy's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-3. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 4.0 runs on average over those games. As for Cranston East, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 3-8.
Cranston East's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: La Salle Academy hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .320. It's a different story for Cranston East, though, as they've only averaged .249. Will they be able to contain La Salle Academy's hitters?
La Salle Academy suffered a grim 9-0 defeat to Cranston East in their previous matchup back in April of 2024. Will the Rams have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
