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2020 RI Spring Team Preview - LaSalle Academy

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - “Last year set the foundation. It’s a good problem to have when guys want to work.”

Tom Pacia’s return to LaSalle Academy after two years at North Kingstown went well in 2019, with the Rams winning 18 in a row after a 1-2 start to the season before losing in the state finals. More success is expected ahead after the 19-4 year.

“This group is insatiable in terms of work ethic, lifting four days a week in September as a group,” Pacia noted.

The LaSalle head coach points to David Marchetti as one of the leaders for a team that lost center fielder and leadoff hitter Sean Helfrich (.450) and top pitcher Ryan Brown (7-1, 8 strikeouts per 7  innings) to graduation.
Pacia has high praise for the Rider signee ranked 137th among New England seniors 

“Expectations are as high as he wants,” Pacia said of the versatile 6-1 188-pounder. “He’s a workhorse of a human being that can be the best hitter in the state.”

Andrew Florio, a left-handed hitting Merrimack commit rated 378th in the 2020 class, will play third base and pitch after batting .352 with 17 RBIs and 12 stolen bases a year ago.

The top pitcher is expected to be Owen Zadrozny, a junior ranked 21st after a sub-1.00 ERA with two Ks per inning as both a reliever and starter his sophomore campaign.

“He’s going to start this year,” Pacia noted about the Northeastern commit  “His possibilities are through the roof.”

With additional mound depth on the roster, the LaSalle Academy mentor has high hopes in regard to pitching.

“I think we have some guys behind Zadrozny that early on need to give us some quality innings,” Pacia noted. “The talent level is there and I really feel the ceiling is up there.”

A host of others are being counted on to play big roles for the Pacia and the Rams,

Jacob Goodman is a catcher “we’re looking to have a good year.”

Roger Marana is a junior middle infielder, ranked 304th, who platooned at second base last season.

Jack Gannon, the 185th-ranked 2021, started in the outfield last year and will also see innings at pitcher.

Marcus Rodrigues is a middle infielder rated 152nd among New England sophomores who Pacia calls “one of the better infielders I’ve ever coached.” 

Clyde Bouthier is a third baseman and pitcher that “can hit for a ton.”

Pacia likes how the lineup looks at this point in time.

“Our best asset is one through nine we’ll be pretty relentless,” Pacia said. “We had a high octane offense last year and we have quality guys back or entering the lineup this year. On paper there are not too many holes. We should be able to score runs regularly.”

A concern comes in the way of inexperience according to Pacia.

“Some of these guys coming up are sophomores and juniors that haven’t been on the varsity team,” Pacia said. “We need to make sure they get experience early on so they can get used to the high-school level.”

With teams like Bishop Hendricken, South Kingston, Cranston West and Coventry to contend with, Pacia realizes his Rams will be in for a fight this year.

“The key for us is to stay within ourselves,” Pacia explained. “We understand the ceiling is high and we know there are high expectations. It’s important to manage those expectations and don’t believe the hype. We need to work our young guys in and stay strong with team camaraderie which was strong last year. It's all about staying within ourselves and not looking too far ahead.”