Bats come alive in opening day win

As the saying goes, it’s better late than never. In their 2022 season opener, the Norwich Sea Unicorns offense clicked late to propel the team to its first victory of the season over the New Britain Bees, 11-5.

Norwich scored seven runs across the final two innings to pull away from its cross-state rival in Thursday’s opener.

With two on and two out in the eighth, starting second basemen Johnny Knox, who joined the team on Wednesday, drove in the tying run with an RBI single to right to make it a 5-5 game.

Then Zac Zyons stepped to the plate for the first time, pinch-hitting for Ben Jerome. Zyons, who did not get a single at-bat with Bryant University during his freshman campaign this spring, cracked a single to right, bringing home two to give Norwich a 7-5 lead.

“I was grabbing my bat all game,” Zyons said. “I figured I’d get a shot and when I did, I wanted to put a good swing on it. I was sitting fastball and he gave it to me.”

The Sea Unicorns added another run in the eighth on Danny Melnick’s infield single, then tacked on three more in the ninth to grab a six-run lead and put the game to bed.

Starting pitcher John Ruggiero was solid through his five innings of work, allowing one run on two hits while fanning five. After allowing the first two batters he faced to reach base, Ruggiero settled in and retired the next 11 Bees hitters.

“The guys really helped me settle in after that first inning,” Ruggiero said. “When I went back out there I took a deep breath and everything fell in place.”

Alistair Morin came in to relieve Ruggiero with a 4-1 lead in the sixth. However, he ran into some trouble in the inning, allowing the Bees to plate three, tying the game at four.

New Britain would add another run in the seventh to take its first lead of the day, but when the bell rang for the Norwich reserves, more than one player stepped up in a big way.

In addition to Zyons, Sean Swenson came in to pinch-run late in the game, scoring what ended up being the tying run on Knox’s single after stealing second during the prior at-bat.

Righty Jordan Marot entered the game in the bottom of the eighth and tossed two brilliant innings, striking out three without allowing a hit to secure the six-out save.

“It was huge to see the guys off the bench make an impact,” Sea Unicorns manager Devin Belenski said. “Everyone was ready to go and that’s all we can ask for.”

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the first game of the season was the positive vibes and chemistry among the 22 players and coaches in the Sea Unicorns dugout.

With just three days of practice together prior to Thursday, it’s easy to think there could be some awkwardness around a group of players who don’t know each other well, if at all.

Instead, it looked like the team had been together for months, hyping each other up for big plays, picking up a teammate after a tough call at the plate, and even signing a few balls for the fans.

“Winning certainly helps a lot,” Belenski said. “We had good energy from the jump, but winning ballgames is going to unify these guys. They’re going to be brothers this summer.”

Norwich will now head to Massachusetts for three games against three different teams over the weekend, starting with the Pittsfield Suns Friday night.