NORTHAMPTON – Smith Vocational pitcher Race Drobiak watched his friend Cole Boisvert throw a no-hitter their freshman year in 2019. He’s tried to match it ever since.
“I haven’t heard the end of it,” Drobiak said.
Against Springfield International on Thursday at Arcanum Field, Drobiak finally evened the score. He struck out 12 of the 15 Bulldogs he faced, walking just one without allowing a hit in a 28-0 win shortened by the mercy rule. Drobiak walked one in the first inning then sat down 13 batters in a row, striking out 10. He’d never thrown a no-hitter in his life before Thursday.
“I mean, it feels good. Definitely feels good. But definitely looking forward to my next outing, to win the next game,” Drobiak said.
He didn’t lack for run support. The Vikings batted around twice in the first inning. They sent 12 batters to the plate and scored nine runs before recording an out – on an infield fly rule no less. Boisvert had a pair of two-run hits and finished 4-for-4 with eight RBIs. It was 13-0 after the first inning.
That lead ballooned to 18-0 after the second and 27-0 after three.
James Lavallee collected two RBI singles for Smith Vocational (5-0). Rosco Palmer added two RBIs.
“This season everyone’s been dialed in, everybody’s ready to make a play,” Drobiak said.
The Vikings have won their first five games by an average of 13.2 runs per game — a total that’s still 9.5 runs if Thursday’s bombardment is taken out. Their narrowest margin of victory is seven runs, and an opponent has yet to score more than two runs against them.
“We’re just rolling. Everyone’s having fun,” Boisvert said. “It’s a whole different game. It makes us want to be here. It’s a whole different world.”
It’s Smith Vocational’s best start to a season in more than a decade. The success hasn’t come out of nowhere, however. The Vikings only lost one starter from last season’s 6-4 team that challenged for the league title, losing it to Westfield Tech in extra innings.
“They all started super young, and they’ve gelled together, played sports together. They all get along. We have a super good time,” Smith Vocational coach Luis Bonilla said. “It’s amazing. They’re so fun to coach.”
Those bonds will be tested over the coming fortnight. Smith Vocational has six games scheduled over the next nine days, starting with a 4 p.m. Friday date against Pioneer Valley Christian at Springfield’s Hubbard Park.
“It’s definitely exciting, but it’s gonna be a lot. Everyone’s got to stay focused,” Boisvert said. “We’re gonna have to keep rolling. That’s the key to this.”
They hope to not trip up too much on individual at bats or games. The Vikings set a goal at the beginning of the season: win the league, which seemed like a reasonable goal after coming so close and only graduating one starter.
“That’s our goal: to put up a banner,” Boisvert said.
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.