jryan@thestamfordtimes.com

STAMFORD — The Westhill Vikings hung a crooked number on the scoreboard in the first inning and then exploded for six more in the fourth inning as they beat cross-town rival Trinity Catholic, 14-2, on April 7.

Senior Bobby Miggliazza went 4-for-4 and scored three runs while driving in a pair to lead the potent Westhill attack at the Crusader's Mickey Lione Field.

Junior Steve Rivera drove in three runs on three hits as he almost hit for the cycle while senior Greg Smith scored three times and added a pair of RBIs on two hits. Westhill coach D.J. Mulvaney said they had planned to work the count against Crusader starter John O'Leary but then changed that strategy.

O'Leary, a senior, was not in top form as he allowed 10 runs on 11 hits, but his effort was hurt by a defense that committed five errors that led to four unearned runs. The Trinity ace saw his first extended action of the spring and was forced to throw 63 pitches in just four innings of work.

The Vikings Sean Mullins led off the game with a walk and junior Bobby Horn followed with a double. Miggliazza and Smith followed with run-scoring singles, staking starter Joey Communale to a 3-0 lead as the first four batters reached base for the Vikings in the top of the first.

Trinity scratched back a run in the bottom of the inning without getting a hit. O'Leary walked and came around to score on two errors to make the score 3-1, but a two-run deficit was as close as the Crusaders would get.

The two teams traded runs in the third and then the Vikings put the game out of reach in fourth.

Junior Tommy Dolan led off with a long double to open the flood gates as Westhill sent 10 men to the plate, slapping out five hits and taking advantage of two Trinity errors to increase their lead to 10-2.

Trinity coach Tracy Nichols said he saw some improvement from the Crusaders' first game. O'Leary pitched better than expected when you consider his lack of work.

"I think Johnnie threw reasonably well considering he hadn't been able to pitch in live situations until today. It's a pretty tough team (Westhill) to come out and open up with," said Nichols. "The problem is when you make mistakes in the outfield those are killers. You make a mistake in the infield, it costs you a base, in the outfield it costs you many bases and many runs."

Communale went four innings, allowing only one earned run and three hits before giving way to Ed Remondino and Dom Dinacola to finish the game.

Westhill (2-0 in the FCIAC and overall) has a full slate ahead of them with games against Ridgefield, St. Josephs and Bridgeport Central on their slate.

With that in mind, Mulvaney pulled Communale early to keep him available for future action this week or early next week.

"We wanted to get Joey's (Communale) feet wet. He's been pitching well in the scrimmages," said Mulvaney. "We wanted to give him a shot as a senior against Trinity and we saw enough good things out of him after four innings to be able to use him maybe later on in the week."

Westhill's senior catcher Jon Rather said the key to the Vikings success on the mound was the trio's ability to throw strikes and keep the batters guessing.

"Joey came out throwing strikes and kept the hitters off-balance with his curveball," said Rather. "He didn't walk many, made them hit the ball. Eddie came in and did the same thing and Dominick has a great two-seamer that kept the hitters off balance. I think they pitched great overall."

The Vikings plated two more runs in the fifth and their final pair in the top of the seventh to complete their demolition of the youthful Crusaders.

David Fogel, the No. 9 hitter in the Westhill line-up, chipped in two hits as, from top to bottom, Westhill's batting order contributed.

"We have a lot of experienced players which is good because we know the typre of competition that is out there and we did well last year," said Miggliazza. "I think we're doing well, whether we make out or not, we put the ball in play."

Trinity (0-1 in FCIAC and 0-2 overall) had a trio of league games against Trumbull, Bassick and Danbury ahead of them after the Westhill loss.

"Believe it or not, we showed marked improvement over our first game against Stratford," said Nichols.

"We're going to get better, we improved. I was a little more disappointed in our offense but we cut down on our mental errors."