Carmichaels wins Game One over Colonial
ROWES RUN – “Big win” and “team effort” are two of the most overworked cliches in sports, but those are two of the reasons Carmichaels holds the opening lead in the Fayette American Legion Baseball finals. That coupled with the workhorse pitching effort of Drew Denham.
Denham was nigh untouchable until the eighth inning, but by then his teammates had built up a lead behind him, and Carmichaels was on its way to a 9-3 win over host Colonial 3, in the opener of the Fayette American Legion Baseball League’s finals Monday.
Game Two in the best-of-5 set will be played today at Carmichaels (5:30 p.m.), and sites will alternate daily until somebody wins three games.
Denham gave up a leadoff single to Brandon Mallick in the home first, and that was the only Colonial hit until the sixth. He had a shutout until the eighth when Colonial played double-or-nothing for a run, then added two in the ninth.
Denham fanned 13 batters and walked four, including two in the ninth that became the last two runs. For the game, the Carmichaels outfield had just two putouts, both to centerfielder Jono Menhart. Until the eighth, only two Colonial runners got to third.
In the second, Matt Rechichar walked and Nathan Lewis was aboard on an error, both advancing on a wild pitch, with nobody out. At that point, Denham started a string of 10 outs in a row, snapped when Ross Martini walked with one down in the fifth. Chad Rice singled with two out in the sixth and was left at first, and Colonial loaded the bases in the seventh, with nobody out, on Lewis and Martini singles, around an error, but Denham got two strikeouts and a comebacker to the mound to end that threat.
Carmichaels manager Jerry Kowalczyk said, “I can’t think of anything else to call it except a big win. We haven’t been to the Regionals since 1988 and hopefully this will be the impetus this team needs to get back there.
“I had hoped to get at least five innings out of Drew, but when he was pitching like he was I left him go. He had trouble getting his curve to work until the fourth, and when it started working he was in control. He went to slow pitches the last couple of innings for they were going for the heat and he decided to slow it up a little bit. We got some big hits today, and getting out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning was a big boost for us. It was just an overall team effort, everybody had a part in the win today.”
Jeff Lapkowicz had three-fourths of the cycle, missing only a triple. Colby Giles had a single, double and home run, while Jared Lapkowicz added a double. Matt Fanase chipped in a pair of singles.
Chad Rice led Colonial with a double and two singles, and Matt Rechichar hit a double.
Colonial manager Ralph Rice said, “We came out flat today and just didn’t recover. We didn’t play our game, they made us play their game. They played a fine game and their pitcher was outstanding, very tough. They deserve a lot of credit for what they did. We had our chances. We had runners on second and third one time and the bases loaded, both with nobody out, and couldn’t get even one run, which was a good point for them.”
Carmichaels led 4-0 in the first. Menhart walked to lead off and Giles hit the first pitch over the leftfield fence.
Jeff Lapkowicz singled with one out, and with two down, Jared Lapkowicz doubled, Jamie Kowalczyk singled and Bryon Lorence was aboard on an error.
Jeff Lapkowicz made it 5-0 in the third with a leadoff homer over the right-center fence, and it was 7-0 in the fifth with Giles’ leadoff double, a walk to Shayne Busti, Fanase’s single and an error. Giles was safe on an error in the fifth, stole second, and scored on another bobble to make it 7-0.
Kowalczyk walked with two out in the eighth and scored the final run on Justin Corso’s single and an error.
Colonial snapped its zero in the eighth when Rice and Rechichar hit successive doubles. Two crossed in the home ninth on walks to Martini and Jared Slusser, and Jon Sobek and Rice singles.