The disappointment was carved in the face of Saint Ignatius head baseball coach Brad Ganor.
And his words went hand-in-hand with that expression.
“This is the most disappointing game I have ever been a part of,” Coach Ganor said after his Wildcats let a five-run lead after five innings slip away and lost to host Benedictine, 7-6, on Tuesday evening in Nobby's Ballpark on the campus of Case Western Reserve University. “That right there is worse than 18-4 at Canton Central Catholic. It is lack of desire, lack of ambition and a lack of focus.
“Give me a guy like Kevin Hopkins,” Coach Ganor continued. “Going in the bullpen (to make a diving one-handed catch) and tearing up his knee and everything else. There was no response to that. A great play, and we sat here and just watched it happen and gave him a little golf clap. You think that would inspire the kids. It's just very sad, very sad that we are going in this direction so close to the tournament.”
Hopkins, Saint Ignatius' senior left fielder and tri-captain, registered the second out in the Bengals' four-run sixth with his exceptional grab, an effort that saw him run full stride from left-center field, dive, reach out and hold on to the ball despite smashing his knee on the pitching mound in Benedictine's bullpen along the left-field line. The Wildcats would end the inning on a 4-3 ground out, but all of the momentum was riding with the Bengals, who now trailed by one run.
After the Wildcats stranded two runners in the top of the seventh, Benedictine (13-9), the second seed at the Euclid Division II sectional/district, started the bottom of the seventh with a triple to right field by junior shortstop Tim Szalay. Junior first baseman Jordan Durham followed with an authoritative double to right-center field and the score was tied, 6-6.
Following a walk, a wild pitch and a stolen base, Coach Brian Sliwinski's Bengals had runners on second and third with no outs.
After a strikeout, junor right-handed pitcher Joe Fisher, who came on in relief in the top of the fourth and limited Saint Ignatius to one run over the final four innings, bunted the ball in the air and it landed perfectly in no-man's land behind the pitcher's mound. The winning run scored easily and the celebration was on as Fisher was mobbed by his teammates.
Saint Ignatius, which was outhit, 12-5, is now 3-4 in its last seven games and stands 18-5 overall.
“Usually we're able to find a way to have the team peaking at the time of the tournament,” said Coach Ganor, who watched his 'Cats defeat Benedictine, 6-3, last week in Nobby's Ballpark. “Right now it's a downward spiral and it doesn't look like it's going to get better anytime soon, just based on the attitude that they bring to the field. They have a hard time getting up to play for their school.
“I firmly believe that some guys play for the pride of the school more than anything, but other guys seem to just strap it on.”
The Wildcats, who are seeded No. 1 for next week's Lakewood Division I sectional/district, took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on a two-out RBI single by senior shortstop Dave Gallagher. They combined four consecutive walks, sacrifice-fly balls by Gallagher and senior designated hitter Zach Seybert, and a base hit by junior outfielder Neal Jacobs into a 5-0 advantage in the top of the third. Thanks to consecutive one-out hits by Seybert, Jacobs and junior second baseman Colin Gallagher, Dave's brother, the 'Cats led, 6-1, heading into the sixth.