La Salle Academy and Bishop Hendricken are an even 5-5 against one another since June of 2016, but likely not for long. The Rams will look to defend their home field on Thursday against the Hawks at 4:00 p.m. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with La Salle Academy sitting on six straight victories and Bishop Hendricken on four.
La Salle Academy is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Rhode Island's top teams: Coventry, who was ranked 21st at the time (La Salle Academy was ranked fourth). The Rams blew past the Oakers 13-7 on Tuesday. The Rams' hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.
Thomas Welsh made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he pitched 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Welsh was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one run and one double. Those hits marked the first that he has got this season.
Matt Destefanis
| 04/22/25 @ Coventry | 0 |
| 04/10/25 vs Smithfield | 1 |
| 04/01/25 @ North Kingstown | 1 |
In other pitching news, Matt Destefanis looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Axel Dasilva was a standout: he went 2-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and one stolen base. That home run marked the first that he has launched this season. Another player making a difference was Brady Collins, who went 1-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and one stolen base.
La Salle Academy always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .565. The last time their OBP was this high was back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, Bishop Hendricken owes their pitching crew a big pat on the back after their performance on Tuesday. They won by a run and slipped past Lincoln 1-0. Those one runs were actually the fewest the Hawks have put up all season, but given the result they're probably not too concerned.
Bishop Hendricken saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Edgar Rodriguez, who went 1-for-3 with one run.
Bishop Hendricken pushed their record up to 8-0-1 with the win, which was their 18th straight at home dating back to last season. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.3 runs on average over those games. As for La Salle Academy, their win bumped their record up to 6-2.
La Salle Academy couldn't quite get it done against Bishop Hendricken when the teams last played back in April of 2024 as they fell 9-6. Can the Rams avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
