By Michael Letendre
BRISTOL – The Bristol Blues have started the season out winning three of its first five games including the last two New England Collegiate Baseball League games from Muzzy Field.
On Thursday, Bristol’s Colin McVeigh threw three scoreless innings in relief as the Blues sank the Danbury Westerners by a 2-1 push in the team’s home opener from Bristol on Thursday.
McVeigh struck out four and did not allow a walk to nab the victory.
Starter Jack Moore threw the first four frames, allowing five hits, one earned run, and struck out three while Luke Garofalo earned a save in one inning of relief ball.
Joseph Rios led the Bristol attack at the plate, going 2-of-3 with a double and an RBI, Cal Parrillo went 2-of-4 with a run scored and an RBI while Griffin Arnone, Jack Lynch, Carson Swank and Chaz Myers all tallied hits for the victors.
Renn Lints drew a tough luck loss for the Westerners (2-1).
All the scoring in the showdown came during the second though fourth innings as Danbury led 1-0 through two and then the visitors gave up solitary runs in the third and fourth frames as Bristol seized the edge for good midway through the showdown.
Trailing by a run, Parrillo singled on in the bottom of the second with one away.
He advanced to second on a passed ball and scored on the Rios double as the contest was all tied up at 1-1 through three.
The Blues won it in the fourth when Lynch reached base on an error, AJ Gaich walked, and the duo each advanced a base via a passed ball.
And Parrillo ended the scoring with an RBI single – plating Lynch – as the unearned run made it a 2-1 contest.
Bristol makes it two-in-a-row with victory over Sanford
The Blues won again from home on Friday, posting a 5-4 win over the winless Sanford Mainers (0-3).
Sanford etched up 11 hits but only one went for extra bases.
On the flip side, Tyler Fote nabbed two of Bristol’s seven hits, going 2-of-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI.
Derek Tenney went 1-of-2 with two walks and a run scored while Rio nabbed a hit, two runs, and two RBI.
John Farley posted the victory for Bristol, allowing six hits, a lone earned run, and tallied four Ks.
Sonny Fauci took the loss for the Mainers (3 IP, three walks, four Ks).
Trailing by two through one completed inning, Rios and Fote each scored on a wild pitch to tie the event up at 2-2 after two frames of work.
Sanford added single runs in the sixth innings but in the bottom of the fifth, the Blues put the event away.
Gaich walked and Arnone singled to put two on but off a 6-4-3 double play, Bristol had a man third with two away.
Tenney then walked, stole second, as the Blues had two men in scoring position.
From there, an error at second on a Rios offering cleared the bases – making it a 4-3 game.
Finally, Fote doubled – scoring Rios for the winning run – as the home team led 5-3 through five, holding on to defeat Sanford by one in the end.
Blues fall at Keene on Saturday
The undefeated Swamp Bats zipped up a four run fifth as Keene fended off Bristol, 6-3 to end the week.
The Swamp Bats (5-0) are perfect in 2022 while the Blues fell to 3-2.
Tenney had two of Bristol’s eight hits while Gaich walked three times.
Carson Kohls drew the loss over his four inning, four earned run stint.
He also collected four strikeouts and walked just one.
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