Governor's Baseball Fights Back In a Closely-Contested Affair With St. Marks
Govs Rally Late Behind Gritty Bullpen and Smart Baserunning to Even ISL Record
On a beautiful mid-April Saturday, the Governor’s Academy baseball team hosted the St. Mark’s Lions. Both teams looked to earn a win in ISL play, with Govs coming in with a 1-2 record and St. Marks having a 1-2-1 record.
St. Mark’s got off to a good start with a leadoff walk, who then stole second base. With two down in the first, St. Mark’s clean-up hitter barreled one to right, which just got over right-fielder A.J. Olson’s head, scoring a run on an RBI double. They continued scoring in the 2nd, staying disciplined at the plate, and had the bases loaded through three consecutive walks. With the infield in, their 9-hitter hit a soft grounder into right field, which ended up scoring two runs, putting St. Marks up 3-0.
With two on and no out in the 2nd, Governor’s called in lefty Jeff Luchsinger, who navigated the inning perfectly, striking out two and popping up the other. Senior captain Tony Silva led off the bottom of the second with a walk and stole second. Catcher Takumi Yoshida softly hit a ball to the second base side, which was bobbled around and eventually resulted in a throwing error, scoring Silva and moving Yoshida to 2nd.
After some good pitching from both sides, Govs threatened to cut the deficit again in the 4th. Tony Silva, just like the 2nd, led off with a walk and ended up stealing both 2nd and 3rd. Yoshida drove in the run again with a grounder to 3rd, cutting the lead down to one going into the 5th. Luchsinger walked the lead-off hitter in the 5th, and Govs followed by bringing on junior Jake Brodeur, who navigated through the inning nicely, stranding two runners.
In the bottom half of the 5th, Govs threatened to score again, with an excellent bunt by Zach Emery, a single to left by Austin Corbett, and a walk by Robbie Daley. First basemen Ben Dahlstedt stepped up to the plate and hit the ball sharply to the first baseman, who attempted to make a play at home to prevent the run from scoring. The throw was off line, and Zach Emery scored, tying the game up at 3-3. With the bases loaded and one out, Govs unfortunately couldn’t convert and take the lead.
In the top of the 6th, St. Mark's had two runners on through a walk and a single, prompting Govs to bring in junior Matt Mariani. After hitting the first batter, Mariani struck out the next hitter and popped up the last, leaving the inning with no runs.
Govs aimed to take the lead for the first time in the bottom of the 6th, after Yoshida, Emery, and Corbett walked to load the bases. With two outs, Daley worked himself into a full count and took a pitch inside off the plate, walking in the 4th run of the afternoon. Emery then scored on a passed ball. With a two-run lead in place, Dahlstedt stepped in, aiming to give Govs some more insurance runs. He hit the ball sharply to the first base side, and the first basemen couldn’t get his glove on it, scoring two runs, giving Govs a 7-3 lead with an inning to play.
Mariani ended up closing out the game, earning a win on the day. Despite only tallying three hits, Govs hitters worked themselves into good spots, walking eight times on the day and stealing bases successfully. Relievers Jeff Luchsinger, Jake Brodeur, and Matt Mariani steadied the ship, shoving six shutout innings between them. From the hitter's side, Zach Emery played well with a line of 1-1, two walks, and two runs scored; Ben Dahlstedt broke the game open in the 6th, ending up three RBIs; Tony Silva walked twice, but his impact was with his baserunning, stealing three bases and putting a lot of pressure on the defense.
Governor’s improves their record to 4-4 on the year and 2-2 in ISL play. The team looks forward to three more home games next week, with Phillips Andover coming to Byfield on Tuesday.
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