SOUTH PORTLAND — Henry Curran allowed one hit and struck out 12 in six innings, and Nick Troiano had two hits and four RBI to lead South Portland to a 7-0 win over Thornton Academy in a Southwestern Maine Activities Association baseball season opener Friday afternoon at windy Wainwright Field.

Curran, a senior left-hander, escaped a bases-loaded jam in the second inning, then dominated the rest of the way.

He struck out the first five batters, all on fastballs, before issuing a walk. Then he hung a curve that Brandon Hall swatted into center field for the Golden Trojans’ only hit off Curran. Another walk loaded the bases, but Curran got Brogan Searle-Belanger to fly out to center.

“It was nice to get the season under way,” said Curran. “For the first game, I was pleased with my performance. I have things to work on. My curveball was a little off.”

South Portland broke the game open with five runs in the fifth inning.

The Golden Trojans didn’t help themselves by committing three errors. They also allowed fly balls to drop in front of them, and twice allowed a runner to score from third while they threw to second base. Six of the Riots’ runs were unearned.

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Poor defense or not, it likely wouldn’t have made much difference against Curran, whose fastball overpowered the Golden Trojans.

“It was nice to get an early lead,” said Curran. “That boosts your confidence. After that, I could just focus on getting the batters out and not worry about the score. My rhythm was a little off, too. I was a little high with some of my pitches.”

He was taken out after the sixth inning, having thrown 96 pitches. Griffin Kelley gave up two hits in the seventh.

“That was a good number of pitches to throw on opening day,” said Curran.

“Henry really did a good job with his fastball. Thornton made some defensive mistakes and we took advantage,” said South Portland Coach Mike Owens.

Troiano, South Portland’s cleanup hitter, gave the Riots a 2-0 lead in the first inning. He singled through the middle to drive home Curran and Troiano’s younger brother, Sam, who both reached on errors.

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In the fifth, South Portland scored five runs on five two-out hits. Nick Troiano’s two-run single was the big blow again.

“Those were huge hits,” said Owens. “That’s why Nick is in the spot he is in the lineup,” said Owens.

Curran set the Golden Trojans down in order in every inning but the second and the fourth. In the fourth, he struck out the side but gave up a one-out walk.

“He was really throwing well,” said Troiano, his catcher. “He was hitting the corners and moving the ball around. When Henry is on, we can be tough to beat.”

Thornton starter Ben Lambert also pitched well before his defense let him down.

“Both of them pitched well,” said Thornton Coach Ray Petit. “We didn’t play very good defense and Curran pitched well.”

Curran said his top strikeout performance last year was 15. While his curveball wasn’t as effective as his fastball, he still wanted to use his curve to get ready for his next start.

“Thornton is a good hitting team. I’m going to need my curve in games this season,” said Curran.


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