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Drew Beck homers as Mooney advances
By Jim Flick
NILES
Good things happened in pairs for the Cardinal Mooney baseball team on Friday in a 6-1 victory over No. 2 seed Niles.
The victory advances Mooney (17-10) to the district semifinals in Division II against West Branch on Thursday at Cene Park.
The first pair of favorable events for Mooney came in the second inning, when a pair of runners reached base. Sophomore Drew Beck took first base on passed ball and senior Dan D’Andrea singled.
Harrison Wagner, sophomore, slapped a single to drive in the Cardinals’ first run. Senior Nick Buffa followed with a sacrifice fly to give Mooney a 2-0 lead.
Mooney’s second two-run inning developed more quickly in the third inning. With two out, junior Drew Delsignore singled.
The next batter, sophomore Drew Beck, smashed a two-run home run to left field. The ball left Wilder Field near the 325-foot sign.
The homer was Beck’s first of the season.
“It felt good,” he said. “I saw a pitch and I knew I got a hold of it. I didn’t know it was gone until I was halfway to second.
“It’s kind of surreal. I can’t believe I hit it out.”
Mooney’s third two-run inning came in the fifth inning. Gino DiVincenzo, a sophomore, was hit by a pitch and senior Frank Rondinelli singled. Both came home when Delsignore slapped a single to left.
“My job is to drive in runs,” said Delsignore, who bats third for Mooney. “I gotta keep producing to help our team win.”
Delsignore added he was trying to do nothing special. “I just saw the ball and took it where it was pitched.”
The Red Dragons (18-9) scored their only run, an unearned run, in the sixth inning. Junior Jake Foster dashed home on a dropped fly ball by junior Ian Hilemand.
Cardinals pitcher Kane Durkin (7-2), a junior, pitched a strong game, striking out four a while giving up only four hits. He did not walk a batter.
“I couldn’t do it without my defense,” Durkin said. “They got everything behind me. They show up and make plays when we need them to.”
Durkin, said Mooney coach Al Franceschelli, “has been a horse. He throws strikes, he’s got a good breaking pitch, he’s got command of three pitches.
“We’ve faced really good pitching all year because we play a lot of big schools from all over the state,” Franceschelli added. “I think that’s helping us out now, especially in this tournament.”
Foster, Niles’ starting pitcher, came into the game undefeated.
“We knew he’d be tough to beat,” said Franceschelli. “We didn’t hit him as hard as we’ve hit other guys.”
In fact, Beck’s home run was the only extra-base hit by either team in the game.
“We hit the ball at them,” said Niles coach Mike Guarnieri. “To their credit, Mooney played good defense.”