43
7 in a row back in Ohio
By BRIAN DZENIS
POLAND
Poland continues to tear up Mahoning Valley baseball teams.
Since returning from a beginning-of-the-season Florida trip, the 9-2 Bulldogs haven’t lost a game, winning seven in a row. The latest Was Monday’s mercy-rule 13-1 victory against Austintown Fitch.
“We never beat Fitch like that,” Poland coach Rich Murray said. “I think we just got up a little bit in the beginning and we put their bats away.”
Poland’s Matt Maillis got the win in just five innings of work, conceding a run on two hits and a walk while striking out four. The Falcons couldn’t get any quality hits of him as he coaxed grounders and pop-ups to his defense.
“That’s what coach always tells me, throw strikes and let my defense play behind me,” Maillis said. “I put a lot of trust in them.”
Maillis’ catcher, Nick Petrolla, was impressed with the senior’s output.
“He really hit his spots today,” Petrolla said. “His fastball was working nice. His slider looked really nice. He just throwing great today.”
The Bulldogs piled up 12 hits against the Falcons. Poland’s first two runs came off of two Fitch errors before Matt Baker knocked in Petrolla and Jared Burkert at the top of the first.
That 4-0 lead stood until Fitch broke the shutout in the top of the fourth. Jared Kapturasky hit a triple off the center-field wall before Dom DiFrancesco pulled off the suicide squeeze.
Poland paid back that run nine-fold as the Bulldogs’ bats laid the smackdown in the bottom of that same inning.
Patrick O’Shaughnessy had an RBI double, then the Bulldogs loaded the bases to chase Fitch starter Brian Beany.
“We certainly don’t expect to perform like that,” Fitch coach Wally Ford said. “A week ago, we were feeling pretty good about ourselves. We won a few big games, but that’s how things go in baseball, things change in a hurry.”
Nick Bianca came on for Beany and after inheriting a rough situation, things did not improve. A walk and then a Falcon’s error allowed O’Shauhnessy and Petrolla to score. Anthony Calcangni knocked in another two runs with a double. Batting for a second time in the same inning, O’Shaugnessy and Petrolla each had an RBI-single. The Bulldogs had scored nine runs and the Falcons still had two outs to go.
“When we went to bat, I knew we would put some up,” Petrolla said. “I know we have a great lineup that can put the ball in play and once I saw people starting to get on base, I knew it was over.”
Murray started to empty his bench for Fitch to get out of the inning. Maillis closed out the game by creating a pop-up and striking out the last two batters he faced.
The two sides meet again today at 5 p.m. at Fitch.