Calvarese strong as Spring-Ford beats Norristown, 10-1

ROYERSFORD >> Three batters into his senior debut at Ram Stadium Wednesday afternoon, Spring-Ford’s Grant Calvarese received an improper welcome.

The right-hander was tagged with a blistering home run to left-center by Norristown’s Dom Proietto.

“He must have stroked that 500 feet over the fence,” said Calvarese with a laugh. “I knew I needed to settle back in and find a groove after that.”

He did just that.

Calvarese let up just one hit the rest of his outing while the Ram offense came to life late, eventually earning a 10-1 win over the Eagles in a rainy and cold Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division matchup.

In a game where Spring-Ford’s offense was handcuffed by Norristown starter Proietto early on, it was Calvarese’s efforts on the mound that kept the Rams within striking distance. He pitched five complete innings where he was tagged for just a pair of hits and no walks. He fanned nine batters and struck out the side twice.

“My fastball was working well and I was locating my curveball. It was just that one batter…” said Calvarese. “I would have definitely wanted to go more, but I understand, it’s still the beginning of the season.”

Spring-Ford manager Jamie Scheck gave plenty of credit to Calvarese, who picked up a pitching win during the team’s trip to Myrtle Beach last week.

“He’s just gutty,” said Scheck. “He doesn’t let anything bother him on the mound. That home run, it was a 3-1 pitch, he shook it right off and kept us in the game. We weren’t hitting early and we needed him to keep us in it. That’s what he did.”

Spring-Ford improves to 4-0 on the season (1-0 in the Liberty Division). Norristown, meanwhile, falls to 0-1 — the Eagles still seeking their first PAC win since joining the conference last season.

Proietto, a junior transfer from Archbishop Carroll, had the Rams in check until the bottom of the third inning when Danny Zoller (courtesy runner for Nate Campbell) scored from third base on a fielder’s choice to even it up at 1-1.

Then in the fourth, left fielder Coy Walters led off the inning with a scorching triple off the wall in right before coming around to score on a wild pitch to make it 2-1. The Rams wouldn’t look back from there, adding three more runs in the fifth inning before finishing with a five-run outburst in the bottom of the sixth.

For the game, Walters finished 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored while first baseman Brandon Ernst wound up with an RBI double and two runs scored. Second baseman Mark McNelly finished 3-for-4 while third baseman Patrick Jucker had two runs scored and two RBI.

“When Nate (Campbell) got on base to start the third, that kind of let everybody breathe a little bit,” said Scheck. “Then when Coy got the triple to lead-off the fourth, that was really it. It definitely let everybody relax and play our game.”

Kevin Hynes pitched the final two innings in relief for the Rams. The right-hander gave up just a hit and a walk while striking out two batters to preserve the win.

Outside of Proietto’s early stroke, Norristown’s offense couldn’t find any sort of rhythm. The Eagles only put five men on base — one courtesy of an error in the top of the fifth inning.

“We knew coming in that they’re the head of the PAC,” said Proietto of Spring-Ford. “They’re always competitive, always one of the best.”

Proietto transferred from Norristown to Carroll after his freshman season, and is now back home for his junior year. Joining a team that is coming off such a forgettable run in 2017, he admits there is plenty of motivation.

“It’s all mentality,” he said. “It’s all about whoever shows up and plays all seven innings. You can’t play four innings and expect to win when you’re up one run. It’s all about mentality and you’ve got to want it. Our team definitely knows that.”