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June 21, 2007

Meo pitches Cranston West to second straight D-I title

Jackson Geary carried the South Kingstown High baseball team a long way through the Interscholastic League Division I state baseball tournament, but even the Rebels pitching ace couldn’t stop Cranston West from becoming the first public school baseball team in 32 years to win back-to-back Division I state championships.

Geary, the South Kingstown junior righthander who had pitched four complete games in the playoffs including one on Sunday and also pitched two innings of shutout relief on Wednesday night, was back on the mound last night and hooked up in a pitching duel with Cranston West’s Anthony Meo for four innings.

But in the end Geary couldn’t match either Meo’s mound effort or completely shutdown the West attack.

Sparked by Meo’s one-hit shutout and a three-run fifth inning outburst that broke the game wide-open Cranston West completed a perfect run through the R.I. Interscholastic League’s Pawtucket Red Sox/Amica Insurance double elimination Division I state tournament with a 5-0 victory over South Kingstown last night at McCoy Stadium.

The title-clinching victory gave the Falcons a perfect 6-0 record in playoff competition, including three victories in the state championship series and three triumphs in the regional qualifying tournament. South Kingstown, which lost in the first round of the double elimination, championship tourney had earned the right to play in last night’s title round with loser’s bracket victories on both Sunday and Wednesday.

Last night Geary may not have matched Meo’s sensational one-hit effort, but in his third mound appearance in five days, kept South Kingstown in the game by only allowing two runs on two hits over the first four innings.

But in the fifth Cranston West broke the game wide open with three runs on three hits, forcing Geary from the mound for the first time in 14 games this season.

“Jackson has been just phenomenal all year, “ said South Kingstown coach Jim Sauro. “We knew coming back on the short rest for the fourth time in the playoffs was asking a lot.”

On most night’s Geary’s performance might have been enough to carry a team to victory, but last night his mound opponent threw one of the top performance even seen in a state title game. Meo was only one out away from a no-hitter when South Kingstown’s Chris Riley bounced a high-hopper over Meo head with two outs in the final inning.

Cranston West picked the only run it actually need in the bottom of the second without the aid of a hit as Chris Famiglietti reached on an error, stole second and third and scored on Joe Donahue’s sacrifice fly.

The Falcons increased the advantage to 2-0 with two outs in the fourth as Famiglietti singled and Brian LaBianca followed with a run-producing double. A walk and hits by John Fitzsimmons, Dan Lovejoy and Dan Hopkins produced Cranston West’s three runs in the fifth.

South Kingstown 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 0 1 1
Cranston West 0 1 0 1 3 0 x – 5 6 0
Geary, Carey (5) and McKinney; Meo and Corso.

--JOHN GILLOOLY

Posted by Corey Bourassa  at 9:53 PM to High School | Permalink

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