Narragansett baseball prevails in D-II clash with Chariho. Here's how.

TL;DR

Narragansett baseball defeated Chariho 5-3 in a Division II matchup on April 15. Aidan Clancey earned the win, while Finley Hohl secured the save and Vito Paglia contributed key hits.

Key points

Narragansett defeated Chariho 5-3
Aidan Clancey was the winning pitcher
Finley Hohl earned the save
Vito Paglia had key run-scoring hits
The game took place on April 15

Narragansett MarinersChariho ChargersDivision II baseball

NARRAGANSETT — Give the early psychological edge to Narragansett in what could be the first of several Division II baseball meetings with Chariho this spring.

Both programs look bound for the playoffs through the opening weeks of the season, and it was the Mariners making an opening statement on a beautiful Thursday afternoon at Sprague Park.

Aidan Clancey earned the win on the mound, Finley Hohl cleaned up the last two innings for the save and Vito Paglia produced a couple of clutch swings at the plate. It was a collective effort to push Narragansett past the Chargers, a 5-3 triumph on April 15 under spring sunshine.

Clancey covered the first five innings and left seven runners stranded on base — all but one of those in scoring position. Hohl allowed the tying run to come to the plate with one out in the top of the seventh before slamming the door. Paglia sent a pair of run-scoring singles back up the middle to help the Mariners make the most of their offensive chances at the plate.

“We’ve got a good chemistry here,” Paglia said. “It definitely feels like a team. We’ve been with each other for a long time now.”

Clancey held a 5-1 lead into the top of the fifth before Gavyn Pepler’s RBI single through the left side and Christian Mancini’s sacrifice fly to right cut the Chariho deficit in half. The Chargers had the potential tying run at second with two outs when Clancey fanned fellow starting pitcher Ethan Gordon, the last of his seven strikeouts on the day.

“I didn’t have my best stuff today for sure,” Clancey said. “But I figured just hit my spots and trust the guys behind me — they performed today.”

Chariho (6-2) knocked out all but one of its nine hits against Clancey, but the Rhode Island College commit was able to limit the damage against him. Paglia stepped on third for a fielder’s choice to leave two in the first and Drez Owens stabbed a liner to second in the third to start a 4-5 double play. Riley Cronin’s nice running catch on a foul pop to the screen saved Clancey another out in a scoreless fourth.

“The pitching staff is definitely really close here,” Clancey said. “We talk like it’s the biggest strength on our team.”