Saint Ignatius head baseball coach Brad Ganor and his staff were not pleased with the Wildcats' overall performance at Rocky River on Tuesday.
And justifiably so.
Yes, Saint Ignatius did come away with an 8-3 victory in the Pirates' Port, won for the 15th time in 16 games this spring and extended its winning streak to nine games.
There was, however, a “flat and uninspired” atmosphere hovering over the Wildcats' dugout that led to some uncharacteristic sloppy play, play that won't get it done over the next 11 days as the 'Cats prepare for the postseason by facing some of the best clubs the state has to offer, namely Walsh Jesuit and St. Edward.
“What I feared happened, that they were looking beyond this game and looking at Walsh,” said Coach Ganor, who on Wednesday will guide his team against what is arguably this year's premier program in Ohio – the nationally ranked and undefeated Walsh Jesuit Warriors.
The Wildcats and the Warriors will meet in a Cuyahoga River Baseball Conference matchup in Bohlken Park in Fairview Park. The first pitch is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
“It's disappointing,” Ganor said. “I would have liked to have seen more of a team effort after a three-day layoff.”
The positives Coach Ganor was able to call on were the one-hit pitching through five innings by senior right-hander Jack McLinden and the three-hit performances from junior right fielder Neal Jacobs and junior third baseman Colin Gallagher.
McLinden, who improved to 5-0 on the season, struck out eight and walked three in his five innings of work.
Colin Gallagher, the younger brother of Saint Ignatius' gifted middle infielder/pitcher Dave Gallagher, gave the Wildcats a 2-0 lead by slapping a two-out, two-run single to right field in the top of the second inning. Colin's clutch effort scored Jacobs and junior designated hitter Joe Greco, who each came up with one-out base hits.
A two-out RBI single by Jacobs made it 3-0 in the top of the third and McLinden, who is now 13-0 in his varsity career, pitched out of a bases loaded, one-out situation in the bottom of the third. He benefited from a nice back-handed stop by senior shortstop Mike Burke, who fired to junior first baseman Mike Horejsei for the inning-ending 6-3 play.
Saint Ignatius, ranked 10th in this week's Division I state coaches poll, combined a one-out double by Burke, a walk to senior second baseman Zach Seybert, a double steal and a sharp RBI single to left field by Jacobs into a 4-0 lead in the fifth.
The 'Cats then took control with a four-run sixth that featured a lead-off single by Colin Gallagher, a one-out, run-scoring single by Horejsei and a two-out, two-run single by Seybert.
Saint Ignatius' 6-foot-7 junior right-hander Mason Halter pitched out of a jam in the bottom of the sixth by throwing back-to-back strikeouts. “Big Country” started the bottom of the seventh with two more Ks and ended the game with a strikeout.
However, in between Halter's fourth and fifth strikeouts, the Pirates (7-7) scored their three runs by taking advantage of two walks and three errors.
“It was good to see some clutch two-out hitting, I am happy about that,” said Coach Ganor. “It was nice to see some other guys pick it up.”