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St.Paul's second baseman Hunter Kitchens singled with Colby Roane on second in the top of the tenth inning, and the speedy catcher raced home with what proved to be the winning run as the fifth-seeded Crusaders defeated the fourth-seeded Loyola Dons, 4-3, in the opening round of the 2008 MIAA A Conference Baseball Tournament, on Tuesday at Blakefield.
In Tuesday's, other opening round game, sixth-seeded Mount St. Joseph broke a 3-3 tie with thrid-seeded Archbishop Curley, with three runs in the top of the sixth and added three more in the seventh to claim a 9-3 victory, at Curley. It was the sixth straight win for the Gaels, who needed the late season surge just to qualify for the post-season.
Lefty Matt March, who came on in relief in the bottom of the seventh, got
the win for Coach Paul Bernstorf and St. Paul's (17-10). March got the Dons out in the botom of the
seventh, after they tied the game at three, and he pitched out of trouble in the
eighth and tenth innings, when the Dons (21-10) had runners on second in both
frames.
"They have a lot of dangerous hitters," said March. "I just tried to keep them off balance."
Collin Majev went the first six and one-third for the Crusaders. He scattered five hits, and held the Dons scoreless until they tallied twice in the sixth. The junior right-hander also had a single and double at the plate and scored a run in the fourth when the Crusaders went ahead 3-0.
Junior lefty Ryan Taylor was also sharp for Coach Mike DelGaudio. Taylor went seven innings holding the Crusaders to six hits, and just one earned run. Senior right-hander Bobby Kirby, who suffered the loss, pitched well in relief.
"All four pitchers were very effective today," said Bernstorf. "It's a shame that some one had to lose. Everyone pitched well."
Loyola centerfield Harry Slade had three hits, including a triple and a double, third baseman Kevin Shields had three hits and right-fielder Drew Hoppes had two singles and two RBI for the Dons. Hoppes had a clutch single in the sixth, when the Dons scored their first two runs of the day.
Roane and Ryan Clayton each had two hits for the Crusaders.
"I'm proud of the way we fought back," said DelGaudio. "I'm pleased with the way we battled today."
Facing the red-hot Gaels (15-12), who have hit their stride after some big early season struggles, was not the best of draws for third-seeded Curley (20-7), but the Friars were their own worst enemies in this one, as they committed five errors to squander an early 2-0 lead and a solid start from ace Sean Thompson.
The Gaels got a big home run from junior Craig Howser, in addition to pair of doubles from Michael Draper and anotehr from Ryan Kemp. Curley's offense was powered by home runs from Norm Cushing and Matt Wilson.
Today, St. Paul's will travel to top-ranked Calvert Hall (23-7), where they hope to damage the Cardinals quest for a fourth straight A Conference crown, and St. Joe will visit second-seeded Archbishop Spalding (26-5). Curley and Loyola will also be in action this afternoon, as the Friars host the Dons in the tournament's first elimination game.
The tournament will continue tomorrow and Friday, with elimination games on both days and the winner's bracket final on Friday. Weather permitting, the event will take the weekend off before resuming on Monday with the final elimination game. The finals are set to be begin on Tuesday at 7:00 pm at Ripken Stadium, with the "if necessary" game slated for next Wednesday.
A Conference Tournament Bracket
St. Paul's 4, Loyola 3, 10 innings
SP 010 200 000 1 - 4 8 1
LOY 000 002 100 0 - 3 8 3
2B: SP-Crabel, Majev; LOY-Slade.
3B: LOY-Slade.
Majev, March (6) and Roane; Taylor, Kirby (8) and Quaranta
WP-March LP-Lirby
2B: MSJ-Draper 2, Kemp; AC-Franke.
HR: MSJ-Hauser; AC-Cushing, Wilson.
WP-Druzgala LP-Thompson
"They have a lot of dangerous hitters," said March. "I just tried to keep them off balance."
Collin Majev went the first six and one-third for the Crusaders. He scattered five hits, and held the Dons scoreless until they tallied twice in the sixth. The junior right-hander also had a single and double at the plate and scored a run in the fourth when the Crusaders went ahead 3-0.
Junior lefty Ryan Taylor was also sharp for Coach Mike DelGaudio. Taylor went seven innings holding the Crusaders to six hits, and just one earned run. Senior right-hander Bobby Kirby, who suffered the loss, pitched well in relief.
"All four pitchers were very effective today," said Bernstorf. "It's a shame that some one had to lose. Everyone pitched well."
Loyola centerfield Harry Slade had three hits, including a triple and a double, third baseman Kevin Shields had three hits and right-fielder Drew Hoppes had two singles and two RBI for the Dons. Hoppes had a clutch single in the sixth, when the Dons scored their first two runs of the day.
Roane and Ryan Clayton each had two hits for the Crusaders.
"I'm proud of the way we fought back," said DelGaudio. "I'm pleased with the way we battled today."
Facing the red-hot Gaels (15-12), who have hit their stride after some big early season struggles, was not the best of draws for third-seeded Curley (20-7), but the Friars were their own worst enemies in this one, as they committed five errors to squander an early 2-0 lead and a solid start from ace Sean Thompson.
The Gaels got a big home run from junior Craig Howser, in addition to pair of doubles from Michael Draper and anotehr from Ryan Kemp. Curley's offense was powered by home runs from Norm Cushing and Matt Wilson.
Today, St. Paul's will travel to top-ranked Calvert Hall (23-7), where they hope to damage the Cardinals quest for a fourth straight A Conference crown, and St. Joe will visit second-seeded Archbishop Spalding (26-5). Curley and Loyola will also be in action this afternoon, as the Friars host the Dons in the tournament's first elimination game.
The tournament will continue tomorrow and Friday, with elimination games on both days and the winner's bracket final on Friday. Weather permitting, the event will take the weekend off before resuming on Monday with the final elimination game. The finals are set to be begin on Tuesday at 7:00 pm at Ripken Stadium, with the "if necessary" game slated for next Wednesday.
A Conference Tournament Bracket
St. Paul's 4, Loyola 3, 10 innings
SP 010 200 000 1 - 4 8 1
LOY 000 002 100 0 - 3 8 3
2B: SP-Crabel, Majev; LOY-Slade.
3B: LOY-Slade.
Majev, March (6) and Roane; Taylor, Kirby (8) and Quaranta
WP-March LP-Lirby
Mount St. Joseph 9, Curley 3
MSJ 000 303 3 - 9 11 2
AC 011 100 0 - 3 6 5
Druzgala and Riehl; Thompson, Cushing (6), Cooke (7) and Waltman.MSJ 000 303 3 - 9 11 2
AC 011 100 0 - 3 6 5
2B: MSJ-Draper 2, Kemp; AC-Franke.
HR: MSJ-Hauser; AC-Cushing, Wilson.
WP-Druzgala LP-Thompson
