EAST PROVIDENCE — For the second time in less than a week, the East Providence High School baseball team dispatched a pesky Johnston club to remain viable in the 2024 Division II championship tournament.

The reigning champion Townies edged the fourth-seeded Panthers by a 2-0 count on the road Tuesday, May 28, in the opening round of double-elimination Pod 1 play.

In city Saturday morning, June 1, fifth-seeded East Providence built a sizable cushion late over the Panthers en route to 5-2 victory in the losers' bracket final.

Sophomore Kyle Desrosiers went the seven-inning distance on the mound for the locals in his first-ever varsity playoff start.

Senior teammate Kyler Lorenz provided the Townies two runs with a single to right in the bottom of the fifth.

It was in a three-run sixth when the eventual game-winning tally was scored. Sophomore Nolan Lorenz led off with a triple to right, then came around with the third EP run on Tim Robitaille's base hit the same way.

East Providence, which improved to 15-5-1 overall in league play with the win, advances to the Pod 1 final round where the Townies will face top-seeded Westerly on the road Sunday night, June 2, at 5:30. For Johnston, its season came to a close with an 11-10 record in league games.

The locals must beat the Bulldogs twice to advance to advance to the best-of-three D-II championship series next week at Rhode Island College. Westerly defeated EP 3-2 at home in the winners' bracket final on May 30. 

Saturday's game was pretty much a pitchers' duel between Desrosiers, the Townies' young right-hander, and Johnston ace Emmanuel Rios, the righty who was also the hard-luck loser in the Panthers' two-run loss to EP earlier in the week.

Any nerves Desrosiers may have had at the start of the contest likely faded quickly in the top of the first inning after he got out of a two-out, two-walk jam by fanning the last Johnston hitter of the frame. Rios set the early tone in the bottom of the inning by striking out the side.

East Providence's initial offensive threat came in the bottom of the second after Robitaille drew a walk with one out, then moved to third on a hit-and-run with Oliver Andrews. But Rios fanned the next two Townies to likewise avoid any damage.

The locals finally broke the ice in the fifth. Brian Rutkowski drew a walk to lead off the inning. Tyler Dicecco next dropped down a sacrifice bunt. With Colin Roche at bat, Rutkowski strayed off second drawing the attention of the Johnston catcher, who committed the cardinal sin of throwing in back of the runner allowing his EPHS counterpart behind the plate to go to third.

Roche would whif for the second out. Another of the Townies' terrific freshmen, centerfielder Max Correiro, walked and then took second as the Panthers threw back to the mound instead of through. Kyler Lorenz next worked the count to 3-1 before sharply singling the opposite way to right for the two-run single.

East Providence added three runs in the home half of the sixth, one of which would prove very necessary later.

Nolan Lorenz led off by pulling a triple over Johnston right fielder's head. Robitaille then went with the pitch for a single past the Panthers' second baseman. Andrews was hit by a pitch next. Both moved into scoring position on Rutkowski's dribbler groundout in front of the plate. They then scored on Roche's base hit to left under the diving Johnston shortstop's glove.

Seemingly up by a comfortable 5-0 margin, Desrosiers got some defensive help for the first out of the seventh. Nolan Lorenz went deep into the hole to backhand a grounder between short and third. His throw on the hop was then deftly scooped by Dicecco at first.

However, an EP error and two Johnston base hits allowed the first Panther run to score. The visitors next added their second tally on a groundout before Desrosiers wrapped up the win by enticing a weak grounder to Nolan Lorenz in short right field.

Desrosiers finished with a line of seven innings pitched, one earned run allowed, two hits, four strikeouts and four walks on 110 pitches. All five EPHS runs were earned as Rios went six innings, gave up four hits, struck out eight, walked three and hit a batter.