Apr 09, 2008 - 09:43:15 CDT
When you're hitting .200, a little help is in order.For Taylor Isakson, help arrived in the form of St. Mary's. The Century catcher banged out four hits on Tuesday as the Patriots swept a doubleheader from the Saints, 11-1 and 1-0.
Only the first game counted in the West Region standings.
Isakson doubled his batting average to .400 with Tuesday's offensive burst and helped to lift Century to 3-0 in West Region play and 5-1 overall.
Three of Isakson's hits - two singles and a double - contributed to a 14-hit first-game offensive effort that buried the Saints.
Isakson, who scored three times and knocked in a run, and Zach Wentz led the assault with three hits. Winning pitcher Hunter Johnson, Brady Wolf and Evan Kendall added two hits each.
Half the CHS hits went for extra bases. The Patriots drilled six doubles and Nate Schlosser cracked a triple.
Isakson, a third-year starter, hadn't had a three-hit game since the state tournament his sophomore year.
"I was keeping my weight back and keeping a level swing," Isakson said of Tuesday's breakout.
All three of Isakson's hits in the first game were at the expense of St. Mary's starting pitcher JonHerold, a senior right-hander. The two go back a long way together. They were teammates for years in youth baseball.
"Jon and I have played on the same team since we were 11," Isakson said. "We like playing against each other because the competitiveness is there ... but this is the first time I think I've batted against him in high school."
Century wasted little time in roughing up Herold. Schlosser tripled in a run and scored on Johnson's single as the Patriots jumped ahead 2-0 in the first inning.
Wolf's two-run double was the key shot in a four-run third inning and Kendall clubbed anRBI double in a four-run fifth inning that brought the game to a conclusion via the 10-run rule.
Isakson said Century's 5-1 start is about what he expected when he season began. He gave much of the credit to the four newcomers in the starting lineup.
"Alot of guys came up who haven't played a lot in the past and I'm pretty proud of them," he said. "We're where we want to be right now. ... This is a pretty good start."
On the mound, meanwhile, three right-handers held St. Mary's to five hits in 10 innings.
Hunter Johnson went the 72-pitch distance in the first game, walking one, fanning five and throwing 42 strikes. He yielded just three hits.
Ryne Lund and Wolf combined for the second-game shutout.
"That's our 2-3-4 guys, so that was what we expected," CHS co-coach Mike Gustavsson said.
Kent Schweigert, who shares head coaching duties with Gustavsson, said the Patriots aren't taking any bows just yet. "We expected to be in this position, but we've got a lot of season left,"Schweigert said. "... It's very early yet. We haven't even been on the road yet."
St. Mary's coach Ben Schafer said he has little doubt Century is the real thing.
"I think they'll give Minot and Dickinson a run," he said. "They'll be right up there."
St. Mary's, meanwhile, slipped to 2-3-1 on the year. The Saints have gotten three superbly pitched games in their last two doubleheaders and have just one win to show for it. On Saturday the Saints lost a 1-0 game to Dickinson and won a 3-2 contest. In the same four games, St. Mary's has mustered just seven hits.
Schafer said such an offensive woe, while frustrating, is not unexpected.
"We haven't learned to hit yet," he said. "Most of these guys haven't had a ton of at-bats at the varsity level. ... I didn't expect us to come out and light the world on fire, but you don't need to hit that well if you do the other things."
Century 11, St. Mary's 1
St. Mary's 000 10 - 1 3 1
Century 204 14 - 11 14 0
JonHerold, Adam Biwer (5) and Drew Eichele; Hunter Johnson and Taylor Isakson.W - Johnson, 2-0.L- Herold, 0-1. HR- None.
Highlights:SM-D.J.Schmitz 1-for-2, double, 1 R; MitchFeist 1-for-2, double; NickBury 1-for-2, 1 RBI. C - Isakson 3-for-4, double, 3 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB; ZachWentz 3-for-4, 2 doubles, 1 R, 2 RBIs; Nate Schlosser 1-for-1, triple, 2 R, 1 RBI; BradyWolf 2-for-3, 2 doubles, 1 R, 2 RBIs; Evan Kendall 2-for-3, double, 2 R, 1 RBI; Johnson 2-for-3, 1 R, 2 RBIs; 7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO.
Century 1, St. Mary's 0
St. Mary's 000 00 - 0 2 1
Century 100 0x - 1 4 2
Nick Bury and Nick Jangula; Ryne Lund, Brady Wolf (4) and Dave Gendreau.W -Lund, 1-0.L- Bury, 0-1.Save - Wolf. HR- None.
Highlights:SM-D.J. Schmitz 2-for-2, 1 SB; Bury 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 SO.C - Erik Peterson 1-for-1, 1 R; Zach Miller 1-for-1, double; Lund 3 IP, 2 H, 0R, 0 BB, 2 SO; Wolf 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 SO.
Records:St. Mary's 1-2 West Region, 2-3-1 overall; Century 3-0, 5-1.
whats up wrote on Apr 9, 2008 9:24 AM:
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