Error helps St. Vincent win two-day marathon game

It took just two innings and less than an hour for the St. Vincent High School baseball team to finish what it had started the week before, defeating Sonoma Academy, 14-12, in a key North Central League II baseball battle at Doyle Park in Santa Rosa on May 6,

Five innings and 12 runs each of the game were played last Friday night before an equipment malfunction (the failure of the park lights to come on) forced suspension of the game for first place in the SCL.

The game picked up in bright sunlight Wednesday with Sonoma Academy dropping its chance for victory in the seventh inning when Nick Vollert’s short fly into right field with two on and two out in the top of the seventh inning was dropped for a game-deciding error.

With first place on the line, St. Vincent coach Gary Galloway went back to game-starting pitcher Liam Galten to finish things out for the Mustangs. Galten had pitched 3? innings in Friday’s portion of the game. Since he never left the game after leaving the mound, he was eligible to return to the hill Wednesday.

Although feeling some discomfort in his arm, Galten got the job done. He walked two in the sixth and walked one and gave up a hit to Coyote clean-up hitter Dylan De La Montanya in the seventh, but escaped both frames without yielding a score.

Galten was helped in both innings by double plays.

In the sixth, after the first Sonoma Academy batter walked. Nathan Becker hit a sharp bouncer to St. Vincent shortstop Bradley Leach who made the stop a few steps to the left of second base, ran to the bag and fired to first baseman Trevor Bovaird for the twin kill. The play’s importance was magnified when Galten walked the next batter before ending the inning with a called strikeout.

After St. Vincent had taken the lead with its two runs in the top of the seventh, Galten again walked the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the inning, and again there was a shot back up the middle. Galten was able to get enough glove on the ball to deflect it in the direction of second baseman Reilly Tobin. He fielded cleanly and shoveled to shortstop Leach who relayed to first – two gone.

De la Montanya followed by shooting a single to right before Galten induced the dangerous Ethan Jones to roll a grounder to second where the sure-gloved Tobin made a clean play to first to end things.

Galloway said there was no question about who would be on the mound for the Mustangs when the game resumed. “There was never any doubt Liam wanted to be the guy on the mound,” he said. “He is our pitcher with the most experience, and he was the guy we wanted to pitch today.”

Sonoma Academy chose team captain Jones, who had worked an inning previously. He deserved better than to take the loss.

Jones gave up a walk, while striking out two in the sixth and struck out the first batter he faced in the seventh.

He then walked Leach on a 3-2 pitch, but came back with another strikeout as Leach moved up on a wild pitch. Sonoma Academy filled the empty first base by intentionally walking Galten, who already had three hits in the game.

A wild pitch with Vollert at the plate advanced both runners before the third baseman lofted a short fly into right field that looked like an inning-ender until the outfielder let the ball and the gameslip through his mitted fingers as Leach and Galten scored.

The way things stand now, St. Vincent is 7-0 in league and 14-4 overall, with a home game against Technology on Friday. Sonoma Academy is 6-1 in league and 9-4 overall with a home game against Calistoga on Friday.

The league leaders do it again on Friday the 13th on the St. Vincent diamond.

Five and out

St. Vincent followed up the emotional win by going five and out against Technology, ending a 10-0 win by the 10-run rule in the fifth.

St. Vincent had seven hits and three walks in the efficiently played game. Pedersen led the win with two hits and two runs scored. He had one of three Mustang doubles with Tobin and Bovaird also adding two-baggers.