Sunapee
That was especially true Thursday afternoon, the beginning of Robinson’s final postseason tournament in New Hampshire Division IV. But Robinson’s nerves didn’t show on the scoreboard as the second-ranked Lakers glided to a 7-0 first-round victory over No. 15 Lisbon, the beginning of a redemption tour of sorts for a Sunapee team looking to win states again a year after a 10-1 finals loss to Portsmouth Christian.
“Starting off strong is huge,” Robinson said. “It gives us a lot of confidence, and I think it reassures everyone, I guess, how good we are as a team. We have solid defense, solid bats. I think sometimes you tend to forget that. Today, I feel like we put it all together, which was nice.”
Robinson, Sunapee’s veteran pitcher, recorded 13 strikeouts in seven innings, giving up five hits and one walk for the victory. He also got himself out of a jam in the fourth inning with runners on first and second.
Pitching has been a strength the Lakers have relied on this season, as seniors Robinson and Cole Cruz have provided a one-two punch in the pitching rotation in front of juniors Will Austin and Keir Lucas. Sunapee will need that strength: No. 7 Wilton-Lyndeborough’s 5-3 win over No. 10 Epping on Thursday sets up a quarterfinal matchup on Saturday between the Lakers and Warriors, a familiar foe that handed Sunapee its only loss this season on April 13, 3-2. The Lakers edged Wilton, 1-0, a month later, part of a regular season-ending 15-game winning streak.
What’s more, Sunapee will have to find a way to win without its ace on the mound.
“Cole’s been sick the last few days, and Willy is still dealing with an ankle injury,” Sunapee coach Tom Frederick said. “With Cole being sick, I just wanted to make sure we came out and threw strikes. … I like coming out with a senior against the first team we play.
“I didn’t know too much about Lisbon coming in,” he added. “But they had won five of their last seven games. I don’t take any playoff teams lightly. You don’t want to be going home because you saved something for another day.”
Sunapee got on the board early in the first inning off an RBI from Robinson that scored Mike Platt from third base.
The Lakers added two more in the second as Cade Robinson and Hank Vincent crossed home plate, advancing on errant throws from Lisbon pitcher Josh Woods to his infielders.
The Lakers blew the game open in the bottom of the fifth, scoring two runs with two outs and loading the bases before Nick Ducharme went down swinging. Robinson hit an RBI single to drive in Austin from second, his first hit of the afternoon, to give Sunapee a 5-0 lead.
Platt added to it in the sixth with an RBI single that drove Vincent home from third. Austin capped it off one batter later, driving in Platt from second base with a deep shot to right field.
Platt, Ben Robinson, Cade Robinson and Austin led the way with two hits each. Sunapee jumped to 16-1 this season.
“Ben pitched really well,” Frederick said. “After the first inning ,he was really dialed in. He had his fastball going and had his curveball working at certain times when he needed it. He was really pounding the strike zone.”
Frederick said he’ll go with either Cruz or Austin on Saturday, depending on their availability. But no matter who it is, Sunapee will have to find a way to get past the one team that has, more or less, had its number this year.
“Any one of those guys, I feel like I can throw them into any game or any situation. Every single one of them has pitched big games for us,” Frederick said.
“Cole’s thrown a no-hitter; he blanked Wilton (on May 19). Willy has thrown a couple of great games against Newport; he’s had some big innings when he’s needed to. All of our pitchers, I have a lot of confidence in.”
Josh Weinreb can be reached at jweinreb@vnews.com or at 603-727-3306.