Rally Killer-Scoring just one run with bases loaded and no outs in fourth dooms Terriers

When St. Francis right fielder Paul Karmas lined an RBI single into the gap in right centerfield with the bases loaded in the bottom half of the fourth inning, the game between these two division rivals changed altogether. But amazingly, the momentum was not in St. Francis’s favor when the play ended.
Mike Canfarotta came in low. Vinny Caposio, out a few feet in front of home plate, jumped up high. Somehow the Xaverian catcher maintained his position in front of the dish, preventing Canfarotta, the speedy St. Francis Prep second baseman, from getting his foot underneath until he had the ball.
Canfarotta was called out, taking all the Terrier momentum with him in a thrilling 6-5 Xaverian triumph at Cunningham Park last Thursday afternoon. “He was blocking the plate without the ball,” Canfarotta said. “I don’t think he tagged me [before touching home] but the blue was there and he called me out.”
John Miele followed by harmlessly flying out to center, but Chris Manno threw out Steve Buccellato - trying to tag up - at third, shockingly short-circuiting the rally. “It was just a case of trying to make things happen and we guessed wrong,” said Rob Williams, the St. Francis assistant coach subbing for Brother Robert Kent. “Two throw-outs in one inning - that’s great defense. You have to give their defense all the credit. … It definitely changed the complexion of the game.”
It sure did. The Clippers scored four times in the top of the fifth, and held on. “This is a real big win for us,” said Vinny Caposio, who went 3-for-4 with a key two-run double but it was his refusal to allow Canfarotta to get past him that turned the game.
“That was a real big play for us,” he continued. “It helped us come back. It pumped us up, just excited the whole team. … It kind of took the wind out of them. They looked flat after that.”
For the Terriers, their second straight defeat was devastating. After loading the bases in the fourth on two Xaverian errors and a walk, Karmas rifled a single seemingly in the gap, which, at the time, would continue, if not accelerate, the uprising. “I was thinking two [runs] at least,” said Karmas, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI and scored two runs. Jason Kaye added a two-run double for St. Francis.
Last year, after Xaverian demolished the Terriers here, St. Francis went on a long winning streak that carried them all the way to the city championship game. After playing what Williams called their “best effort of the season,” albeit in defeat, the Terriers (3-5) expressed hope this loss can do the same. “They played their hearts out,” Williams said of his players. “Hopefully, we can use this as a springboard.”