Johnston 9/10’s one of final two standing at states

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The Johnston Little League 9/10-year-old all-stars had to battle a tough Cranston Western team to stay alive through the district tournament, and Johnston is battling again – and staying alive – at the state tournament.

Johnston won its first game at the state tournament 16-0 over Portsmouth on Saturday at Ayotte Field in Woonsocket. It hit the skids Sunday with an 8-2 loss to Lincoln – its first loss of the summer – but bounced back to win a nailbiter 3-2 over Portsmouth on Tuesday. Johnston will now get another shot at Lincoln in the championship round, needing to win twice in order to capture the title.

“We feel good,” said manager Bob Giudici. “We’ve got things pretty well lined up and we’re confident. The kids are really playing well.”

Lincoln got the upper hand on Johnston in their first meeting, but even though it was the team’s first loss this year, it knew just how to respond. Mike Capraro and Jake Martino combined on a strong pitching performance, and a three-run fifth inning proved to be just enough in the 3-2 victory over Portsmouth on Tuesday.

“It was a real tough game, down to the wire,” Giudici said. “Good pitching, almost an error-less game. Both teams came great. We were able to come through with a victory.”

After its 16-run outburst against the same Portsmouth team in round one, Johnston found itself locked in a scoreless game for much of the way on Tuesday. But Johnston stayed tough and broke through in the fifth. With runners on second and third, Connor Kennedy delivered the game’s biggest hit, a two-run single to center field. Johnston was able to get one more run home in the inning.

“Finally, the bats woke up,” Giudici said.

After three scoreless innings on the mound from Capraro, Johnston gave the ball to Martino, who seemed well on his way to preserving the shutout. Instead, Portsmouth put up a charge, scoring two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. But with Portsmouth still threatening, Martino induced a ground ball to second base, where Derek Salvatore made the play and fired to first for the final out.

“He was about to get us out of it,” Giudici said. “Jake and Mike both pitched great. There are some good hitters on that Portsmouth team. They just threw strikes.”

Isiah DiBrito handled the catching duties and led a strong defensive performance.

“It was just a rEally fundamentally sound game,” Giudici said.

The win means Johnston is one of the final two teams standing in the state. Lincoln has the inside track thanks to its win over Johnston in the winner’s bracket final, needing to win only once for the title, but Johnston will have a chance to dethrone the perennial powerhouse.

“We’ve got another shot at Lincoln,” Giudici said. “They’re a very solid, good team, but so are we. We’re confident. Hopefully we can keep it going.”

Johnston and Lincoln will square off tonight at 7 p.m., at Ayotte Field in Woonsocket. If Johnston wins, the teams would play a winner-take-all title game on Saturday, at a time to be determined.

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