WASHINGTON, D.C. - After two road battles against Scranton on Saturday, the Catholic baseball team hosted the Royals on Talbot Field for a Monday afternoon match up. The Cardinals captured the victory in the series finale, as they pulled out an 11-1 win over Scranton in eight innings.
Luke Cardman got the start in the mound against the Royals, picking up his first strikeout against their third batter. Scranton recorded their first hit in the inning, but Catholic responded by securing three quick outs to hold them off.
Catholic began scoring in the bottom of the inning, starting with
Matt Perlin, who walked to become the first Cardinal on base. During
Sammy Burman's at-bat, Perlin advanced on the groundout, putting him in scoring position.
Matthew Fisher then joined Perlin on base with a walk of his own.
Chase Falcon singled up the middle, sending Perlin home to put the Cardinals on the board.
Lance Eilbacher kept that momentum going with a single to center field, advancing Falcon and scoring Fisher. Scranton ended the inning, but the Cardinals led 2-0.
The Cardinals had another quick inning with three straight outs before returning to the bottom of the second inning.
Jack Bateman recorded his first hit of the game, singling to short stop, but Catholic was unable to extend their lead.
In the top of the fourth inning, Scranton got on the board with a home run from John Heitzman over the right field fence. Aidan Casey reached base, but was later caught stealing on with a throw from
Michael Napolitano to Perlin. Cardman ended the inning with his second strikeout of the day.
Catholic answered in the bottom of the inning, starting with another single from Eilbacher, his second hit of the game. He then stole second, putting himself in scoring position. Napolitano doubled to left field, allowing Eilbacher to score and restoring the Cardinals' two-run lead. Bateman reached on a walk, and both runners advanced when
Chris Esquivel singled through the left side.
With two outs and bases loaded,
Sammy Burman was at the plate. He walked, and Napolitano scored, and the Cardinals led 4-1.
The Cardinals continued to score in the fourth, adding three more runs to their lead. A wild pitch allowed Bateman to score, while Esquivel and Burman advanced to second and third. Fisher then singled up the middle, driving in both runners to push Catholic's lead to 7-1.
The Royals looked to respond in the top of the fifth, with hits from James Nitti and Conor Campbell, but the Cardinal defense shut them down once again. Catholic returned to the plate, where Eilbacher led off with a single up the middle for his third hit of the game. He then stole second, and moved to third on a groundout by Napolitano.
Gabriel Ruiz then doubled to right-center field, allowing Eilbacher to score and extend the lead to 8-1.
Both teams had some quick innings late in the game, with Cardman recording two more strikeouts across the sixth and seventh innings. In the top of the eighth,
Jack Scholz took over on the mound. The Royals managed to load the bases, but Scholz struck out Jack Portman to escape the inning.
In the bottom half of the eighth, Bateman walked for the second time and stole second as the Cardinals looked to add to their lead. Burman also walked and stole second. Fisher drew a walk to load the for Falcon, who doubled to the right field fence, clearing the bases and ending the game in the bottom of the eighth. Catholic secured the win, 11-1 over Scranton.
Inside the Box Score:
- Eilbacher had a standout day, going 3-for-4 with two runs, two stolen bases and an RBI.
- Fisher went 2-for-3 on the day, recording two RBI and a run scored.
- Falcon had two hits and 4 RBI.
- Bateman was a smart baserunner, drawing two walks and stealing three bases.
- On the mound, Luke Cardman earned the win, his third of the season. Cardman logged four strikeouts and allowed only one run across seven innings pitched.
This win brings the Cardinals to 13-14 overall and 4-11 in Landmark Play. Catholic will be back in action on Wednesday, April 8 at Robert J. Talbot Field where they will host Juniata at 3:30 p.m.
