DelRe gets plenty of runs in Hauppauge win

After moving up from Suffolk League V to League IV this year, Hauppauge is playing with a chip on its shoulder. The Eagles want to show they belong, show they're not overmatched. They want to come out swinging.

Mission accomplished. Hauppauge scored five runs in the first inning on its way to a 9-0 home win over Riverhead on Friday to move to 3-0.

"We all wanted to make a statement that we're not little boys coming up to play with the big boys," Hauppauge coach Kevin Giachetti said.

Hauppauge got a great outing from junior Nick DelRe, who made his first career start. DelRe allowed three hits and one walk in five innings, striking out three. Freshman Nick Fanti pitched the last two innings.

C.J. Schildt started the scoring in the first with an RBI triple to deep left. Dom Confredo reached on an error and John Colby hit a ground-rule double to drive in Schildt. After a groundout, Christian Lauchner hit a two-run double and Mike Rutigliano added an RBI single.

Given a comfortable lead, DelRe got into a groove and got help from his fielders. Colby made a diving catch in centerfield to end the second inning. The Eagles also turned two double plays, one in the third and one in the fourth.

"Having a lead definitely made me more comfortable on the mound," DelRe said. "My fielders helped me out a lot, and that really gave me some confidence."

SEE PHOTOSHauppauge 9, Riverhead 0

The Eagles added four runs in the fourth, with Schildt and Colby contributing RBI doubles and Confredo an RBI single.

Schildt finished 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, two RBIs and two runs. Colby was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs. Leadoff hitter Cory Wood went 4-for-4 with a double and is 8-for-8 in the last two games.

"This is huge momentum for us," Schildt said. "We're hot, three wins in a row, so we're going to try to keep it rolling."