Last Saturday, March 26th, Choate Varsity Baseball took on the Xavier Falcons in its second scrimmage of the year. The skillful pitching of both teams initially kept the scoreboard low. However, once the Boars got the ball rolling, there was no slowing them down.
Jack Hodgson ’17 started the game on the mound and allowed only one run in three innings while striking out six batters. After that first run in the top of the third, Choate quickly retaliated with a run of its own. In the bottom of the inning, Will Eichhorn ’19 drove in Kevin Nusdeo ’17.
Choate really opened the floodgates in the bottom of the fourth inning when it scored four runs to put the Wild Boars up 5-1. In that inning, Patrick O’Leary ’16 scored two runners on his RBI single, and Tyler Daly ’17 brought in a pair of Boars on his RBI double. Choate continued to dominate with strong pitching by Lloyd Hill ’16, who gave up no hits while striking out five batters in two innings.
Daly then came in to pitch, giving up two walks in his first inning while still trying to find his groove. Once he found it, though, Daly made quick work of the Falcons, getting out of the inning unscathed. He then finished his second inning on the hill without allowing a run, as.
Afterwards, Choate’s great pitching seemed to fuel its offense. Following a solid inning from Billy Schulz ’17 in the bottom of the eighth, the Boars struck again, scoring three runs. After that surge, Nick Catandella ’17 came onto the field to finish off the Falcons. In his one inning, the Xavier batters gave him a run for his money, suddenly knocking in three runs. Still, Catandella was able to shut down the opponent. Choate came out for the bottom of the inning determined to boost its score. The Wild Boars made two more runs, giving Choate a 10-4 win.
Head Coach Mr. Douglas James noted that his team played reasonably well for this early in the season, and he seemed optimistic that the boys will undergo significant improvement. When asked about his team’s steals and whether being aggressive on the base paths was a point of emphasis before the game, Coach James said, “In general, it has been. We have some pretty good athletes, some pretty speedy, athletic, strong people. I think base running is one of our strengths, and I think they did a really good job at it.”
Taking down the Falcons was a bright moment for the Wild Boars, despite the game being only a scrimmage. Now, Coach James and the team areooking ahead and working hard to get primed for the rest of the season.
