Gianno Merlonghi (Central Connecticut State) swings at a pitch during the Starfires
11-6 win on Saturday, May 25 at Fitton Field against the Worcester Bravehearts. [Kelsey Sagvold]

Box Score

WORCESTER, Massachusetts (May 25, 2024) – The Westfield Starfires turned the tables on their Futures Collegiate Baseball League rival, the Worcester Bravehearts, scoring nine times in the final five innings to earn an 11-6 victory at Fitton Field in Worcester, Massachusetts on Saturday, May 25.

The Starfires are now 1-1 on the season.

American International College’s Kiernan Caffrey started Westfield off with a walk and Central Connecticut State University’s Gianno Merlonghi followed with a single two batters later; a pair of errors ultimately brought both home for the first two Starfires runs of the season.

The lead held to the fourth, when a hit batter was followed by an Owen Pincince RBI double. A subsequent walk and error plated Pincince to tie the game.

Westfield just as quickly regained the lead, with Caffrey again leading off. He and AIC teammate Jackson Haker both singled, and Aidan Redahan smacked a liner to left that brought Caffrey in. A frame later, Will Sawyer of Trinity College was hit by a pitch and then advanced on an error, a sacrifice bunt, and a sacrifice fly, the latter off the bat of Cesar Gonzalez of Boston College.

Worcester answered in their half of the sixth. A walk and four straight hits pushed the Bravehearts into the lead, keyed by a two-run single by Tyler McCord, and Max LeFrancois hit a grounder to short that pushed McCord home. The Bravehearts headed into the final third of the game leading 6-4.

Haker led off the seventh, and provided a momentum swing, crushing the first Starfires home run of the summer over Fitton’s left-field wall toward Interstate 290. Merlonghi then doubled, scoring on a Sawyer single to retie the score at 6-6.

In the eighth, the Starfires took full advantage of free passes. Gonzalez was walked by Aidan Greene to put the top of the order back at the plate, setting up an AIC-versus-AIC matchup between Greene and his Yellow Jackets teammates Caffrey and Haker. Greene hit both of his collegiate pals with off-speed pitches to load the bases, and Merlonghi drove a single to right to bring Gonzalez in. Redahan followed with a grounder to short that was misread, turning a potential inning-ending double play into a run, and Bryant’s Cameron Papetti punished the error further with a double to center to give Westfield a 10-6 advantage.

Jafar Vorha was handed the ball in the bottom of the eighth, and though he surrendered a leadoff walk to CJ Egrie, Papetti fired a rocket to pick him off. A strikeout and a flyout later, the inning was over. Westfield added a run in the top of the ninth, and Vohra made it all stand up by striking out the side to close the win out.

The win was Manager Paul Bonfiglio’s first as the team’s leader. He said after the game, “It’s special. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking about getting the first one under my belt.” Of the contest itself, he said “We’re playing good ball…attacking the zone…I’m very proud of our pitching staff. The hitters tonight were phenomenal; one through nine put together good at-bats…our guys battled really hard; it’s a fun night.”

Westfield returns to action on Monday, May 27 at the New Britain Bees. First pitch at New Britain Stadium is slated for 1:35 p.m. The Starfires return home for a four-game homestand starting Thursday, May 30 that features Opening Night on Friday, May 31 at 6:30 p.m. against the Futures League Road Warriors. Tickets are available at westfieldstarfires.com.

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