Short-handed St. Vincent still wins

St. Vincent got solid performances from a shorthanded roster to overwhelm North Central II baseball rival Tomales, 9-0, on Friday as the Mustangs took over first place in the North Central League II standings.

“We had several senior families making college visits this week,” said Mustang coach Gary Galloway. “It makes games like this a little dangerous, but the younger players stepped up.”

Galloway turned to freshman pitcher Gio Antonini to start the game on the bump, and the first-year hurler breezed through the first three frames without giving up a hit. The strong performance kept his club in striking distance. Antonini struck out six Brave batters but left in the top of the fourth inning with the score still knotted at 0-0.

Tomales kept dodging rally attempts by the Mustangs until the bottom of the fourth, when critical errors helped the hosts plate four unearned runs.

A single by second St. Vincent pitcher Ethan Rapoport got things going, and three stolen bases by the aggressive Mustangs helped the rally along. Two poor throws to first base brought the first run home. Hard-luck Tomales starter Normar Isias was eventually lifted in favor of three Brave relievers, but the damage was done.

Rapoport was equally effective on the mound for the Mustangs as he went the final four frames without giving up a run to pick up the victory. The only hit was a ground ball off the bat of Brandon Hitchcock that dribbled along the third-base line and could not be converted for an out. Hitchcock was immediately thrown out at second base on an attempted steal, and Rapoport breezed the rest of the way.

The junior hurler struck out five Braves in picking up his fourth win of the season. Going into the contest, Rapoport had a glossy ERA of 1.98, and it got better.

St. Vincent tacked on five runs in the next two innings to take all the mystery out of the outcome. Triples by Antonini, Rapoport and Matt Pierson highlight the nine-hit offense by the Mustangs. All three extra-base hits were clubbed up the right-center alley.

Pierson, Rapoport and AJ Fetter each had two hits as the Mustangs improved to 10-5 for the season and 2-0 in the NCL II. St. Vincent pressured its guests by swiping eight bases, including two on successive pitches by Reno Nalducci.

St. Vincent shortstop Nalducci made some sure-handed defensive plays on the quick artificial-field surface.

Mustang Athletic Director Sue Keller announced that the rain-postponed contest between St. Vincent and Sonoma Academy will be played on May 4 at Doyle Park in Santa Rosa. The tentative time for the important game is 5:30 p.m.

This indicates that the contending Mustangs and Coyotes would play back-to-back games on consecutive days with the May 5 game at St. Vincent.