By Michael Letendre

BRISTOL – In the first ever Bristol American Legion Baseball contest against Naugatuck in the revamped Zone 1 on Saturday morning from Muzzy Field, free passes and wild pitches did-in the locals – leading to a 4-3 loss in Bristol.

Post 17 improved to 2-1 on the season while Post 2 fell to 1-3 in Zone 1 play (3-3 overall).

Naugatuck pitcher Derrick Jagello (4.1 IP) was tremendous on the hill, allowing one run on two hits with seven strikeouts and no walks – needing just 62 pitches to seize the victory.

“He threw really well,” said Bristol coach Jerry LaPenta of Jagello. “He’s a college kid. He threw strikes.”

Bristol’s Michael Lorenzetti lost a tough one and in 4.2 innings of work, he allowed just one hit.

He fanned eight but also walked eight as three of those runners ended up scoring.

“I was a little nervous about it because [Lorenzetti] hadn’t pitched in about two-and-a-half to three weeks,” said LaPenta. “Sometimes control can be an issue but overall, I thought he pitched pretty well.”

And it was all Lorenzetti early as he retired the first seven batters he faced.

He posted two strikeouts in 12 pitches to open the showdown and Naugatuck was out in the field in a hurry for the bottom of the first.

Jagello returned the favor, retiring the Bristol side in order, as the second inning was quickly upon the game.

Lorenzetti repeated the feat in the second stanza, generating three outs as the scoreless game rolled into the bottom of the tilt.

With one gone in the bottom of the second, Ryan Fradette (1-for-3, run) smacked a ball up the middle and advanced to second via a wild pitch.

Nate Ouellette (1-for-3, RBI), who returned to his catching position off an injury, belted a base hit to right and when Fradette reached third base, he never stopped running – beating the throw into home plate as Post 2 scooped up a 1-0 edge through two innings.

Lorenzetti walked Pete Mullin and JD Stone with one gone in the top of the third but fanned Matt Kilmer for the second time.

He ended up yielding a base-on-balls to Nick Bruno as the bases were loaded. 

From there, Derrick Jagello singled to left to score Mullin – tying the event up at 1-1.

But Lorenzetti punched out Mike Deitelbaum as Naugatuck stranded three men to keep it tied at 1-1.

On the flip side, Jagello added two more strikeouts to his totals as the game remained a 1-1 stalemate through three.

Naugatuck’s Ryan Gailette drew a base-on-balls with two gone in the fourth but when he attempted to steal second, Ouellette made an on-the-money throw to get the runner – ending the half-inning.

Bristol did not have a base runner in the fourth and in the top of the fifth, Naugy pinch hitter James Duda walked, went to second on a botched pickoff attempt and made it third on a wild pitch – all without the benefit of an out.

Another wild pitch scored Duda as Naugatuck took a 2-1 lead.

Stone walked as well, stole second and eventually scored on two wild pitches to give Post 17 a 3-1 edge with one away in the fifth frame.

“The walks caught us a little bit,” said LaPenta. “[But] I really wasn’t disappointed in the way we played.”

Alex Canzellarini then came in for Lorenzetti, hitting Alex Sosa with his first pitch but pinch hitter Nick Bruno grounded out to first as Bristol started the bottom of the fifth in a 3-1 hole.

“He’s definitely an arm we’re going to need,” said LaPenta of Canzellarini. “I think he’s going to be all right. He just needs to throw a little more, get a feel for it. Breaking balls are all about feel. Hopefully, we can get him going.”

In the sixth stanza, Naugatuck’s Michael Rusin – after opening the sixth with a double to the gap in left – scored on a wild pitch that made it a 4-1 game.

Post 2 attempted to put something together in the bottom of the sixth as Austin Brown led off with a walk, but a 5-4-3 double play appeared to snuff the drive out.

But Zack Rinkavage singled to left, stole second and third and when Jack Kozikowski’s flare to center dropped in, another run scored as it was a 4-2 game.

Ryan Tyszka then struck out Fradette looking to end the sixth, but Post was hanging around down by a couple.

“In the sixth inning, I really thought we were going to do something there,” said LaPenta. “That double play was a killer.”

Post 17 did not add to its tally in the seventh as Bristol came to bat for its final ups in the bottom of the inning.

But Bristol went down in order as Ryan Tyszka earned the save – posting Naugatuck to a 4-2 victory.

“We’re still on pace. The goal is to win two-out-of-three games in every series,” said LaPenta. “We’re just putting ourselves behind the eight ball, losing the first [game] to everybody. We need to come tomorrow and get a ‘W’ for sure [at Newington]. That’s a big game. [Having a] 1-4 [record compared to a] 2-3 is a big difference.”

We need a good effort tomorrow and hopefully the guys will come and give it to us.”

Bristol American Legion Senior Baseball – Zone 1 game

NAUGATUCK 4, BRISTOL 2

from Muzzy Field, Bristol

Naugatuck (2-1)     001 021 0 – 4 2 1

Bristol (3-3)           010 001 0 – 2 4 1  

WP: Derrick Jagello (N); LP: Mike Lorenzetti (B) 

Naugatuck Batting 

2B – Michael Rusin

3B – None

HR – None

Bristol Batting 

2B – None

3B – None

HR – None

LOB – Naugatuck 8; Bristol 3

Records: Naugatuck 2-1 Zone 1; Bristol 3-3 overall, 1-3 Zone 1