By Eddie Dwyer
Hartsville, South Carolina - After his Wildcats experienced their first loss in three games this young season, Saint Ignatius' highly successful Head Baseball Coach Brad Ganor offered no excuses.
Instead, Coach Ganor pointed to the sound play of Fairfax, Virginia perennial power Paul VI and its savvy pitcher Thomas Russell. "I think we saw a really good pitcher," Coach Ganor said after Russell blanked the Wildcats on a three-hitter in Wednesday's marquee matchup at the tradition-rich Southeastern Baseball Classic, which is played in legendary Jimmy White Park.
"He was pitching well today and he was able to beat us," Coach Ganor said of the 4-0 loss to a Paul VI team that now stands 11-1 on the season and is ranked fourth among the top 10 programs in the Washington DC and Virginia areas by The Washington Post, areas with a strong and proud baseball reputation.
"Sometimes you just tip your cap and say you got beat by a better team," Coach Ganor continued. "We'll come back and go after it again tomorrow. If this was the last game of the season, we would probably be shedding some tears. But it's just the third game of the season."
The Baseball Cats will look to rebound in Thursday's third round of the SBC, when senior Matt Hunt takes the mound to face Sumter, South Carolina. The first pitch in Jimmy White Park will be 11 AM.
As for Paul VI Head Coach Billy Emerson, he watched his crafty, in-rhythm right-hander Russell improve to 4-0. Bound for The United States Naval Academy, Russell struck out eight and issued just one walk while going the distance on 90 pitches.
When you talk about the baseball tradition at Paul VI you include five VISAA State Championships, seven nationally and regionally ranked teams, 14 championships overall since 2004, four WCAC championships and more than 100 Panther alumni who have played baseball on the college and professional levels.
As for the 2018 Panthers, they play like many of Paul VI's successful teams of the past - exuding confidence and a keen knowledge and respect for the game.
Saint Ignatius, whose style of play is very similar to the game Paul VI brings to the diamond, was pressuring in the top of the first inning after gifted and gritty junior second baseman A.J. Gaich led off with a line-drive single to right field and stole second base. After Gaich advanced to third off a sharply hit 6-3 groundout by sophomore shortstop Michael McNamara, Paul VI's standout junior shortstop and Tennessee recruit Cortland Lawson came up with the highlight-reel play of the game. It was an exceptional reaction effort that saw Lawson layout and, in one motion, snare a line drive off the bat of Wildcats multi-skilled junior third baseman and Nebraska recruit Michael Holdsworth.
Lawson's reaction was so quick that Gaich had to stay right where he was at third base and Russell promptly put an end to the threat with a strikeout.
With two outs and the bases empty in the bottom of the first, Lawson singled, moved to second on a balk and advanced to third on a passed ball. Following a walk, Lawson scored on a wild pitch.
Saint Ignatius, which looks forward to the brand of competition its faces at the SBC, not to mention the beautiful weather, came up with a two-out walk to senior catcher and co-Captain Drew Asadorian in the top of the second inning. Once again, Russell responded with a strikeout.
The Wildcats appeared to have some momentum after junior center fielder Luke Cooper ended the bottom of the second with a nice sliding catch.
Not so, said Russell, who struck out the side in the top of the third.
Mr. Momentum again appeared to be looking for a spot on the Saint Ignatius bench in the bottom of the third after Coach Ganor's Wildcats got out of a bases-loaded and no-outs situation by yielding just one run.
It was not to be, however, as Russell, aka "The Truss-bus," continued to get mentally tougher as the game went on.
Paul VI gave their ace a nice late-innings cushion with RBI doubles from Lawson and junior right fielder Devon Zavacky.
"They're a very good team and we knew that going in," said Coach Ganor. "I thought Matt (Wildcats starting junior right-hander Matt Geraci) did a good job of competing and keeping us in the game. If we learn from it, we'll be better. It's our jobs as coaches to find ways they can pull positives from this game."