After his Wildcats suffered a one-sided loss to nationally ranked Walsh Jesuit on Wednesday, Saint Ignatius head coach Brad Ganor emphasized how resilient his team is.
Thursday afternoon on the campus of Case Western Reserve University, the Wildcats had to call on their buoyancy as fans were still entering Nobby's Ballpark.
Saint Ignatius, trailing, 3-0, after the first inning, rode the left arm of Zak Shockley, some clutch hitting and good old-fashioned hustle in rallying past the Benedictine Bengals, 6-3, in a Cuyahoga River Baseball Conference game.
“The first inning was a big struggle, just all around,” said Shockley, after the Bengals combined two walks, an RBI single by Tim Szalay, another walk and an error into their three runs. “But after that, I started getting over the top on the fastball, which I thought was the problem in the first inning.
“It took a little time to figure out the strike zone," Shockley continued. "The umpire was a little tight on the outside corner, but then he was opening up to the breaking balls out there and that really helps in staying confident.”
After that early roar by the Bengals, the Wildcats' sophomore battery of Shockley and Stephen Alexander seemed to exude confidence.
With Benedictine (10-9) threatening to make it 4-0 in the bottom of the second, Shockley racked up three consecutive strikeouts after the Bengals had a runner on second with no outs.
Counting those three strikeouts, the 6-foot-5, 210-pound Shockley would retire 14 Bengals in a row before yielding a two-out walk in the bottom of the sixth.
Following a single by Benedictine's Zach Walker, junior right-hander Cory Finkler sealed Shockley's second victory against no defeats this season by throwing 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief. Finkler walked the first batter he faced, but then ended the sixth with a bases-loaded strikeout.
In his 5 2/3 innings of work, Shockley yielded three hits, struck out 10 and walked four. Of the three runs scored in the first inning, only one was earned. All three outs in the bottom of the first came off Shockley Ks.
“It was an important win, a much-needed win,” said Coach Ganor after the 'Cats improved to a resilient 16-2. “I think Zak showed a lot of maturity for a sophomore. He could have tanked it easily and you would have gone, 'Oh, he's a sophomore.' But he didn't. He held it together.
“We needed Zak to go deep (in the game) with the amount of games that we have been playing. The staff is a little thin right now. He did a fantastic job and we got some clutch hitting, a good two-out hit by Colin (Gallagher) again. We did what we had to do and executed when we needed to.”
The Wildcats, who on Sunday will learn where they will be seeded and who their first opponent will be in next month's Division I sectional/ district tournament, took advantage of a lead-off single by Gallagher, an error and two plays that included fielder's choices and two more errors in cutting the deficit to 3-2 in the top of the third.
Gallagher, a junior second baseman, tied the score with a two-out RBI double in the top of the fourth.
Junior right fielder Neal Jacobs put Saint Ignatius in front by leading off the top of the sixth with a majestic home run that soared over the left-center field fence in what is definitely a pitcher's park. It marked the fifth time this season that Jacobs has said goodbye to Mr. Rawlings.
Junior designated hitter Tyler Kette followed Jacobs' blast with a ringing double, Alexander laid down a sacrifice bunt and Gallagher's sacrifice fly to center field made it 5-3.
The 'Cats got some insurance in the top of the seventh when standout third baseman Mike Burke walked with two outs, went to second on a wild pitch and came around to score when junior first baseman Mike Horejsei hit a slow chopper that was played into an error. Coach Ganor pointed to the hustle by both Burke and Horejsei while referring to the game's final run.
Saint Ignatius will travel to Canton Central Catholic on Friday for a matchup with the baseball-savvy Crusaders and their energetic fans. The first pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. Junior right-hander Marques Pagan will make his first varsity start for the 'Cats.