Baseball Recap: Manchester Comes Up Short

Manchester had lost three straight at home, but on Friday they dropped their record down to 4-8 to make it four. They fell just short of the Edwin O. Smith Panthers by a score of 4-2. The Red Hawks were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Panthers apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in April of 2024.

Manchester saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ethan Ortiz, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one run.

As for Edwin O. Smith, their win was their first in the league, bumping their league record up to 1-2 and their overall record up to 5-6. The game was the first time they have beaten Manchester on their field since May 18, 2016.

On Edwin O. Smith's side, Sam LaCombe spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on seven hits.

On the hitting side, Gavin DeForest was excellent, going 2-for-4 with three RBI and one double. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of David Vazquez, who went 1-for-2 with one run, one double, and one RBI.

Coming up, Manchester will square off against Tolland at 3:45 p.m. on Monday. The Red Hawks' pitchers better be ready for this one: the Eagles have averaged an impressive 7.4 runs per game this season. As for Edwin O. Smith, they will challenge East Hartford at 3:45 p.m. on Monday.