Five RIIL playoff games took place on Saturday. Here's what happened.
· Yahoo Sports
⚾GAME OF THE DAY
Runs weren’t a problem for the Johnston baseball team the last time it played Toll Gate.
Saturday’s playoff game was a different story.
Visit afsport.lat for more information.
While the Panthers didn’t have the offensive potency they did in their regular-season meeting, they had a similar effort from their pitching and some timely hitting late earned them a 2-1 win over the Titans and a spot in the double-elimination bracket of the Division II playoffs.
Johnston appeared to be a heavy favorite in Saturday’s matchup, based off its 22-1 win over Toll Gate when the teams played in Warwick on May 11.
But Brady Fales had other ideas. The senior wasn’t ready to see his career come to an end and flummoxed the Panther offense for the first four innings.
Toll Gate was having issues of its own on offense against Johnston lefthander Aiden Neil, but scrapped up a run in the fourth when Austin Wheeler drew a one-out walk, then showed off his wheels getting to third on a sacrifice bunt. Johnston booted a ball hit by Wyatt Dyer and all of a sudden, the Titans had a 1-0 lead.
Looking for a spark, Johnston got one in on a leadoff walk by Luca Schroer. Pinch-runner Mike DeAngelis took his spot on the bases and oved to second on a bunt by Lucca Ricci, then scored on a double by Ethan Bracey.
The Panthers kept the rally going with a single by Jordan Diclo and a sacrifice fly by Christian Ferranti put them on top, 2-1.
Anthony Vendetti was in control from there. The senior – who celebrated his prom the night before – took over for Neil in the fifth as he tried to keep the no-hitter going. Toll Gate broke it up in the seventh with a one-out single by Wyatt Dyer, but Vendetti came back with a strikeout for the second out and catcher Corey Ogden gunned Dyer at second on a steal attempt for the final out of the game.
Both teams received the type of pitching performances you want to see in the playoffs. Fales threw all six innings, spreading out six hits and four walks while striking out four and giving up one earned run. Neil threw four innings of no-hit ball with two walks and eight strikeouts. Venditti threw three innings of one-hit ball with three Ks.
Johnston moves on to the double-elimination portion of the bracket and will play No. 1 seed East Greenwich next week.
⚾BASEBALL – D-I Preliminary
No. 7 Smithfield 11, No. 10 Cranston West 7
The Sentinels used four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and some strong relief pitching from Domenic Lombardi to eliminate the Falcons and advance into Pod 2.
Jacob Sylvester’s triple to deep left-center snapped a 7-7 tie and put Smithfield in front to stay on its home diamond. Jackson Chamberlin’s infield single behind the bag at second and Sam Cicchitelli’s single to left each drove in runs during the deciding rally.
Cranston West nearly answered immediately by loading the bases with nobody out in the top of the sixth. Singles by Elan Santana and Nathan Izzi sandwiched a walk by Cooper Bastia to put Lombardi in trouble, but the left-hander stuck out the next three batters to escape unscathed. Lombardi added a 1-2-3 seventh to close his outing by retiring the last six men he faced.
Cicchitelli and leadoff man Luke Dwyer each closed with three hits for the Sentinels (13-9). Sylvester drew three walks and scored three runs while Wyatt Speakman added two hits and four RBI. Smithfield will visit No. 2 seed La Salle to start double-elimination play on Tuesday.
Dylan Milano finished with two hits and two RBI for the Falcons (10-11), who ended their season. Angelo Silvestri added a hit, a walk, an RBI and two runs scored.
🥎SOFTBALL – D-I Preliminary
No. 5 St. Raphael 7, No. 12 Bay View/PCD 6 (8 innings)
Ella Taylor sent a one-out walkoff double to right field in the bottom of the eighth, plating Emma Martin with the winning run as the Saints survived against the Bengals at Slater Park.
Martin drew a walk, advanced to second on a fielder's choice and was the lead runner aboard when Taylor struck in the clutch. That snapped a 6-6 tie and helped St. Raphael avoid what would have been a stunning upset.
The Saints needed a run in the bottom of the seventh to force the lone extra frame and got it thanks to Ava Guatieri. She drilled a one-out single to left to score Piper McMurray, who started the threat with a leadoff single. That helped St. Raphael avoid defeat after Bay View/PCD scored three times in both the sixth and seventh to take a late lead.
The Bengals faced a 5-3 deficit into the seventh until jumping in front. Caitlin Pierce's infield out made it a one-run game and Sophia Vieira drove a two-out, two-run homer to right to put Bay View/PCD in front for the first time. That came after Hope Myers drilled a two-run triple and Lexi Fredericks pushed home another run with an infield grounder to make it a 4-3 game in the sixth.
The Saints (14-5) were cruising through five frames behind a no-hitter from Izzy Sousa and some early offense. Sousa scored on a wild pitch and a passed ball, Sophie Roman knocked in a run on a fielder's choice and McMurray sent a sacrifice fly to center to make it a 4-0 lead.
Vieira finished with two hits, two RBI and two runs scored for the Bengals (4-15), who were the last team to make the field and offered St. Raphael a major scare. Sousa struck out 19 through eight innings while Martin, Guatieri and Michaela McDermott each finished with two hits. The Saints will visit No. 4 seed North Kingstown to begin the double-elimination portion of the tournament.
🥎SOFTBALL – D-II Preliminary
No. 9 South Kingstown 11, No. 8 North Providence 4
The Rebels blew open what was just a 2-1 lead with five runs in the top of the fifth and kept the bats going from there to post a mild upset of the Cougars at Notte Park.
Abbie O'Rourke drove a sacrifice fly to right, Erica Kostarides singled to second base and Julianna Johnson doubled to left, with all three players knocking in a run to make it a 5-1 game. A pair of North Providence errors plated two more and South Kingstown enjoyed a six-run cushion.
Isabel O'Rourke and Kathryn Silvia each finished with three hits for the Rebels (8-10), who pounded out 15 in all. Kostarides, Tessa O'Sullivan and Jillian Kavanagh all chipped in two and combined for five runs scored and two RBI. South Kingstown draws top seed Lincoln to start double-elimination play in the bracket.
Mariana Xavier belted a pair of solo home runs as part of a three-hit day to lead North Providence (11-9). Olivia Geib-Ayala added two hits and a run scored.
🥎SOFTBALL – D-III Preliminary
Middletown 13, Juanita Sanchez 1
Jessica Laramie powered the seventh-seeded Islanders all morning, as they dominated at the plate in a 13-1 win over the 10th-seeded Cavaliers.
Juanita Sanchez got off the bus and struck in the first inning, but it was all Middletown the rest of the way. Delaney King got the ball rolling with a first-inning single that tied the game and Laramie’s inside the park home run highlighted the four-run inning. The Islanders scored six in the second and in the fourth, Laramie scored on a passed ball to bring the 12-run rule into play and give the team a walkoff win.
Laramie had a day to remember, gong 3-for-3 with six RBI and three runs. Finley Berard drove in two and scored twice and Charlotte Miller, Delaney King and Abigail Poorman scored two runs apiece for Middletown.
Veasna Yean closed out a terrific freshman season by going 2-for-2 and scoring the lone run for Juanita Sanchez. Senior Josmelly Minier had the lone RBI in her final game for the Cavaliers.
Middletown advances to the double-elimination portion of the Division III bracket and won’t have to travel far, taking on No. 2 Rogers next week.
RIIL PLAYOFF SCHEDULE - Sunday, May 24
🎾BOYS TENNIS – D-I quarterfinals
No. 5 South Kingstown at No. 4 Hendricken, 12 p.m.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island High School Sports Scores from Saturday May 23 2026