Baseball: Kennedy bats perk up late to keep Gaels alive in CHSAA playoffs
NEW ROCHELLE - As teammates around him rushed to the dugout at their parents urging, Nick Mazzotta remained more focused on the playoffs than Wednesday night's senior prom.
"I don't care," the Kennedy Catholic senior said. "This is my priority."
All of the Gaels have been locked in this week on trying to navigate the grueling losers' bracket of the CHSAA's city championship tournament and stave off elimination. Not surprisingly, they were in another tight game Wednesday before breaking things open late to beat McClancy 12-2 in six innings at Iona Prep.
Kennedy's offense had been inconsistent of late, but it erupted for nine runs against McClancy's bullpen.
"I had heard that was their No. 1. I didn't know what else they had, but he was very good," said Gaels coach Bob Fletcher, whose team is now 20-3 against CHSAA opponents this year. "We just tried to stay as close as we could until we got him out of there."
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That moment arrived in the fifth after McClancy ace Justin Sanchez issued his seventh walk of the game. His team had scored two runs with two outs in the top of the inning to take a 2-1 lead. And if Kennedy, one of the pre-tournament favorites, felt any pressure after that hit, senior Phil Mascia helped to relieve it when he sent a two-run single up the middle.
The Gaels turned to their deep pitching staff, with senior Brendan Kenneally recording the final four outs for the win. They needed him and fellow seniors Ryan Boyd (who started Monday against Fordham Prep) and Louis Marinaro (who started Wednesday) this week after Monsignor Farrell scored four runs off ace Gary Gill-Hill Sunday and knocked Kennedy into the losers' bracket.
"That isn't a problem for us," Mazzotta said. "We have no worry. We have the arms to play as many games as possible. We're confident with the guys we have on the mound. We knew we just had to get the bats going and today we did that."
What it means
Kennedy stayed alive and will play either Xaverian or Iona Prep in the next round. The game is scheduled for Friday and will be played at a time and site to be determined.
Player of the game
Phil Mascia, Kennedy. The senior finished 2 for 4 with four RBI and two runs scored. In addition to his go-head single, he had a two-run triple during the nine-run sixth inning.
"We had a great pitcher on the mound. They had a great pitcher on the mound. We found some holes, and then we crushed them in the end and that's all that matters," Mascia said.
By the numbers
Kennedy Catholic — Kenneally recorded the final four outs in relief of Marinaro. He struck out three and didn't allow a hit. Marinaro went 4⅔ innings and allowed two runs on four hits while striking out five. ... Adam Agresti reached base four times, including an RBI double, and Mascia, Mazzotta, Ed Galvao and Nick Duryea each reached three times. Galvao, the third baseman, also caught a pop up over his head to strand the would-be tying run in the top of the sixth.
Monsignor McClancy — Sanchez pitched into the fifth and exited having only allowed one unearned run. However, Kennedy drew seven walks to run up his pitch count and extend innings. ... Carmine Carbone hit a two-run double on a two-out, 3-2 pitch in the top of the fifth to give McClancy a 2-1 lead.
Josh Thomson is the Sports Editor for The Journal News and Poughkeepsie Journal. He can be reached by e-mail at jthomson@lohud.com, on Twitter at @lohudinsider, and on Instagram at @lohudinsider.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Baseball: Kennedy staves off elimination in CHSAA playoffs
