Looking to get back on track at home, the Saint Ignatius Baseball Cats took on an underrated Strongsville High School team that was looking for another key win to add to their resume.
The Cats had struggled as of recent, entering with a 3 game losing streak and facing a Strongsville team that has won five straight.
It was an impactful game that could be huge in shaping the rest of these teams seasons, though unfortunately it ended in defeat for the hosts.
The Mustangs got onto the scoreboard first in the 2nd inning when J.D. Duphin and Mitch Miden both singled to drive in runs, and jumped to an early 2-0 lead.
The Mustangs really started to pile on in the 3rd inning when both Giovanni Lombardi and Jack Frank doubled to drive in a grand total of 3 runs to make it 5-0 Mustangs heading to the bottom of the 3rd.
But the Cats would take advantage of a bases loaded situation in bottom half of the 3rd, as Louisville commit Connor Adams punched a soft dribbler into the outfield to drive in 2 runs and make the score 5-2.
Don’t sleep on the ‘Stangs, though. Strongsville posted another run off of a Parker Shannon triple in the 4th, making it 6-2, and also held the Cats to no runs earned in the bottom half of the inning, to keep it at a reasonable margin heading into the 5th.
The fifth frame was scoreless on both sides, but the Mustangs tacked on another run in the 6th with a Parker Shannon single, making it 7-2 and leaving the Cats with only 6 outs left to make a comeback.
The Cats posted a goose egg in the bottom of the 6th, as did the Mustangs in the top half of the 7th, leaving the Cats with only 3 outs left to steal a victory. This is where it got fun.
With the bases loaded, and in the first varsity at-bat of his career, senior Evan Steigerwald blasted a rocket into the right-center gap, clearing the bases, leaving him on third with the tying run coming to the plate.
Seth Warren was able to score Steigerwald in the next at-bat with a single, but that is all the Cats could manage in their monster comeback, ending with a 7-6 final score, and dropping their record to 2-6.
This was a tough loss for the Cats, as they worked so hard for the comeback but fell just short in the end. It was a fun one, though, as no one had expected that kind of last inning from the Cats.
This game will be one to look back on for sure, as there were many bright spots to be proud of, but also things to work on going forward.
The Cats are back at it again at Baldwin Wallace U on Monday, April 17th, against Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, with first pitch slotted for 2 pm.