|
|
Crusaders eliminate Raiders, then outgunned in semis |
New Orleans |
|
By RON BROCATO |
|
Brother Martin's baseball team evened its series record with District 9-5A rival Archbishop Rummel at two wins apiece in the quarterfinals of the state tournament last Friday when Matt Adams launched an eighth-inning home run out of the ballpark in New Iberia to somewhere in Avoyelles Parish.
That 3-2 win was the Crusaders' highlight of the two-day tournament that brought together the state's eight surviving teams that qualified for the playoffs.
On Saturday, Martin was the victim of a barrage of blasts that resulted in a rash of home runs, 27 combined base hits and, most importantly, a 17-10 loss to eventual state champ East Ascension in the semifinal round.
As well as the Crusaders played in the defeating Rummel (24-10), the third place team in 9-5A, they lacked the strong pitching and defense they had shown throughout most of the season.
MARTIN batters hit the ball well enough, but four errors were costly as the Spartans rallied from a 7-3 deficit with five runs in the bottom of the fourth and seven more in the fifth inning. They went on to defeat Destrehan, 10-6, for the state title and finish with a 29-4 record.
For Martin, 23-8 on the season, shortstop Bryan Frichter slammed two home runs against East Ascension. Adams, the hero of the win over Rummel, blasted more two home homers in the semis and went 6-for-8 in the tournament.
The Raiders' and Crusaders' finest moments leading up to their May 12 confrontation came in regional round victories in which both came up with key hits to claim victory.
Brother Martin found little opposition from District 7-5A third-place finisher Higgins, which the Crusaders brushed aside, 12-1. But Martin had its hands full with a wild card from Northshore (19-11-2), whose 11-8 win over 6-1A champion Hahnville earned the Panthers home field advantage.
The Crusaders and their host took a 2-2 tie into the seventh inning. After scoring all their runs in the first three innings, neither was able to send a runner home in the fourth, fifth or sixth innings.
Then the Brother Martin bats came alive. Chris McIntyre singled in the top of the seventh and came around to break the deadlock. Chris Buckel and Stephen Carroll also had run-scoring hits in the final inning to eliminate the Panthers.
AT THAT same time, Rummel was locked in a battle of blistering bats at Mike Miley Stadium against District 3-5A runner-up Acadiana (23-12). The visiting Rams from Scott pounded Raider pitching for eight runs and most of their 11 hits in the first four innings. Then Mark Arceneaux came in from his outfield position to put out the fire.
Meanwhile, Rummel scored two runs in each of the second, third and fourth innings. Acadiana coach Scott McCullough decided to send in ace lefthander Chad Dugas with his team leading 8-6. The moved proved to be a costly mistake.
BEHIND BY two runs in the bottom of the seventh, the Raiders mounted their winning rally. Ryan Dahmer reached first base on a shortstop's fielding error. Dugas then hit Kyle Roth, who had earlier homered, with a pitch and followed that by walking Arceneaux to load the bases with no one out.
Then Dugas threw the fatal pitch to pinch-hitter Mark Comeaux, a junior catcher who Cazeaux subbed for Paul Neill in the No. 7 batting position. Comeaux drove a fastball deep into left center. The ball hit off the wall, scoring all three baserunners to end the game with a 9-8 Raider victory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Adams' homer lifts
Brother Martin
Rummel eliminated from
5A tournament
Saturday May 17, 2003
By Bryan
Lazare
Staff writer
NEW IBERIA -- In a game
void of clutch hitting, Matt Adams finally decided the outcome with one swing.
Adams led off the bottom of
the eighth inning with a long home run over the left-field fence to give
Brother Martin a 3-2 victory against Rummel in the opening round of the Class
5A tournament Friday at Acadian Park.
Adams' first-pitch homer
off losing pitcher Mark Arceneaux (7-3) moved the Crusaders into a semifinal
game at 2 p.m. today against East Ascension. The championship game will be
played at 7:30 p.m. today.
"I was looking for
anything that I could drive," said Adams, who had three of Brother Martin's
five hits off Arceneaux. "It was a fastball right down the middle. It was
as fat as it could be."
Rummel (24-10) had a chance
to take the lead in the top of the eighth. Brother Martin's Chris Cappo, who
replaced starting pitcher Harry Mayeux to start the inning, allowed a double to
Daniel Theriot and a walk to Ryan Dahmer. Brad Braud (3-0) then relieved Cappo.
After Arceneaux bunted the runners into scoring position, Braud retired Kyle
Roth on a grounder to third and Paul Neill on a fly ball to left.
Both teams wasted numerous
scoring opportunities in the first seven innings as Mayeux and Arceneaux
constantly pitched out of jams. Rummel was 0-for-10 with runners in scoring
position against Mayeux, who walked three and struck out six. Brother Martin (23-7)
was 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position against Arceneaux, who walked
seven and struck out 10.
The Raiders went ahead with
a pair of two-out runs in the fourth. Roth hit a solo homer over the
right-field fence that gave Rummel a 1-0 lead. Neill then walked and scored on
a double by Ray Labat, who was thrown out trying to reach third after a wild
throw to the plate.
The Crusaders tied the
score in the bottom of the fifth. Jarrod Ferran walked and one out later
Stephen Carroll reached on an error by shortstop Randy Bordes. A walk to Matt
Glaviano loaded the bases. A sacrifice fly by Bryan Frichter drove in Ferran
and a single by Mayeux brought in Carroll. Glaviano was thrown out at the plate
trying to score from first on Mayeux's hit.
. . . . . . .
Bryan Lazare can be reached
at blazare@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3405.
------------ Line Score
-------------
Saturday May 17, 2003
BASEBALL
State playoffs
Class 5A
At New Iberia
Quarterfinal
Friday's linescores
Brother Martin 3, Rummel 2
(8 inn.)
Rummel 000 200 00 -- 2 8 1
Bro. Martin 000 020 01 -- 3
5 0
WP -- Braud, 3-0. LP --
Arceneaux, 7-3. Top hitters: BM -- Adams 3-4, HR, RBI; Rumm -- Theriot 2-3,
Roth 1-4, HR, RBI; Records: Rummel 24-10; Brother Martin 23-7.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crusaders thinking about
state title
Friday May 16, 2003
By Jim
Rapier
Staff writer
The seniors on Brother Martin's
baseball team have become a think tank with regards to the Class 5A tournament.
They are out of school, and
that has left them with free time and few distractions heading into their
quarterfinal playoff game against Rummel today at 7 p.m. at Acadian Park in New
Iberia.
The way Crusaders
pitcher/first baseman/outfielder Harry Mayeux figures it, over-thinking right
now is good thinking. It sure beats having no reason to do so.
"It can be a little
nerve-racking because you think about it a lot and there isn't much to distract
you, but I would rather be thinking about this than school work," said
Mayeux, a senior.
"It feels awesome. We
have been working so hard for several years. Who would've thought a team that
had four district wins my sophomore year would make it."
Answer: Brother Martin's
players.
Last season, the Crusaders
lost in the first round of the playoffs.
This season, Mayeux
finished the regular season 7-3 record, with a 2.18 ERA, 63 strikeouts in 64
innings and a .411 batting average and 30 RBIs. Bryan Frichter hit .435, Chris
McIntyre .432 and Matt Adams .386. Brother Martin (22-7-1) finished second in
District 9-5A and won two playoff games to advance to the tournament for the
first time since 1996, when it won the state title.
The proper mindset has been
the key, Brother Martin coach Mark Wisniewski said. The Crusaders have not
gotten too "flustered" with setbacks during games and stayed focused
for the long haul.
"We've been working
hard the last three years with these guys," Wisniewski said. "I got
12 seniors. Most of these guys were with me as sophomores."
"Harry (Mayeux) and
the other leaders on the team stay within the mindset to go out and do what
they know they do best. This is a team effort."
. . . . . . .
Jim Rapier can be reached
at jrapier@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3377.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BASEBALL
Tuesday May 13, 2003
State playoffs
Class 5A
Regional
From staff reports
BROTHER MARTIN 6,
NORTHSHORE 2: The Crusaders scored four runs in the top of the seventh inning
to break a 2-2 tie and key their Class 5A regional playoff victory in Slidell.
The victory sends Brother
Martin (22-7-1) into the quarterfinals and the 5A state tournament in New
Iberia on Friday. The Crusaders, who will play Rummel in the quarterfinals,
will return to the 5A tournament for the first time since 1996 when they won
the state title.
Chris McIntyre's single in
the top of the seventh scored Brother Martin's first run in the inning. Chris
Buckel also drove in a run, and Stephen Carroll had a two-out single that
scored the final two runs. The clutch hits were a reversal from earlier in the
game. Brother Martin left eight runners on base in the first three innings and
was 1-of-8 at the plate with runners in scoring position.
"We were concerned in
the beginning," said Brother Martin coach Mark Wisniewski. "We loaded
the bases three times and we only got one run. But we kept telling the kids
that, eventually, they'd get another shot and they made the most of it."
Northshore (19-12-2) scored
two runs in the first inning off Harry Mayeux and had the bases loaded in the
fourth inning.
Trey Iles
------------ Line Score
-------------
Brother Martin 6,
Northshore 2
BM 101 000 4 -- 6 8 0
NS 200 000 0 -- 2 6 2
WP -- Mayeux, 8-3. LP --
Catchot, 5-4. Top hitters: BM -- Carroll 2-4, 2 RBI, Ferran 2-3, RBI; Records:
Brother Martin 22-7-1; Northshore 19-12-2.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday May 08, 2003
BASEBALL
State playoffs'
Class 5A
Bi-district
BROTHER MARTIN 12, HIGGINS
1: Matt Adams had a homer and a double in a seven-run second inning as the
Crusaders defeated the Hurricanes in a Class 5A bi-district playoff game at
Kirsch-Rooney Stadium.
Brother Martin (21-7) will
play the winner of today's Northshore-Hahnville game in the second round of the
playoffs.
Brother Martin scored in
the bottom of the first on a walk to Stephen Carroll and a two-out double by
Harry Mayeux. Then, the Crusaders had their second-inning outburst against
losing pitcher Bradley Richards (0-5).
Adams started and ended the
scoring in the second. Adams hit a leadoff home run over the left-field fence
to give Brother Martin a 2-0 lead. His double down the left-field line drove in
Chris McIntyre to put the Crusaders on top 8-0. McIntyre had given Brother
Martin a 5-0 advantage with a three-run double.
The Crusaders completed
their scoring with four runs in the bottom of the third. Carroll singled in a
run, and Bryan Frichter had an RBI double.
Winning pitcher Brad
Treuting (5-3), who threw four innings, allowed one unearned run and three hits
and struck out six. Mayeux pitched the fifth inning, walked two and struck out
one. The game was called after five innings because of the 10-run rule.
Bryan Lazare
------------ Line Score
-------------
Brother Martin 12, Higgins 1
Higgins 000 10 -- 1 3 1
BM 174 0x -- 12 10 4
WP -- Treuting, 5-3. LP --
Richards, 0-5. Top hitters: BM -- Carroll 2-2, RBI, Adams 2-2, 2 RBIs, HR, Ford
2-2; Records: Higgins 10-14; Brother Martin 21-7.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
METRO PREP BY THE
NUMBERS
BASEBALL
District 9-5A
Friday's linescores
Brother Martin 10, Rummel 0
Rum 000 000 -- 0 2 3
BM 006 022 -- 10 10 0
WP -- Cappo, 5-0. LP --
Arceneaux, 6-2. Top hitters: BM -- Carroll, 2-4, RBI, Adams, 3-3; Records:
Brother Martin 20-7 ; Rummel 22-9.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BASEBALL
Thursday's linescores
Brother Martin 10, Holy
Cross 0
BM 000 802 -- 10 8 1
HC 000 000 -- 0 2 0
WP -- Treuting, 4-3. LP --
Kamlade. Top hitters: BM -- Frichter 2-3, 2 RBI, Mayeux 1-4, HR, 3 RBI, Buckel
1-3, HR, 3 RBI, Glaviano 2-4; Records: Brother Martin 18-6-1, 8-3; Holy Cross
10-13, 4-6.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BASEBALL
District 9-5A
Brother Martin 9, Jesuit 8
Jesuit 205 100 0 -- 8 9 3
Bro.Martin 330 003 x -- 9 9
3
WP -- Cappo, 4-0. LP --
Hollander, 5-3. Top hitters: BM -- Carroll 2-2, Mayeux 2-3, 5 RBI, McIntyre
2-4, 2 RBI; Jes -- Broschofsky 3-4, RBI; Records: Brother Martin 17-6, 6-3;
Jesuit 23-6, 7-2.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
McIntyre leads Martin
Sunday April 20, 2003
From staff reports
Chris McIntyre had four of
Brother Martin's 13 hits to lead the Crusaders to a 7-3 victory against Shaw in
a District 9-5A game Saturday afternoon at Shaw.
Brother Martin (16-6-1,
6-3) led 2-0 after four innings. Matt Adams hit a two-run home run in a
three-run fifth that gave the Crusaders a 5-0 lead.
Craig Hebert scored on
Crusaders starter Brad Treuting's wild pitch to trim the Eagles' (17-11, 3-6)
deficit to four.
Matt Glaviano's two-run
single in the sixth gave the Crusaders a 7-1 lead.
Treuting (3-3) allowed one
hit through five innings, but Nolan Gisclair's two-run double in the sixth cut
the Brother Martin lead to 7-3. Treuting struck out the next two Shaw batters,
but Jarrett Falcon singled to left field. Gisclair was thrown out at the plate
by Chris Buckel to end the rally.
The Eagles again threatened
in the seventh inning when Hebert led off with a groundout, then Nick Aymond and
Stephen Dufour singled. Brad Braud replaced Treuting and got Joey Baio to
ground into a fielder's choice and struck out Carlos Rachel to end the game.
"We played a complete
game today," Brother Martin coach Mark Wisniewski said.
Glaviano and Bryan Frichter
each had two hits for the Crusaders.
John Giambelluca
----------------- Line
Score --------------------
Brother Martin 7, Shaw 3
BM 002 032 0 -- 7 13 1
Shaw 000 012 0 -- 3 6 0
WP -- Treuting, 3-3. LP --
Beerbohm, 4-6. Top hitters: BM -- Glaviano 2-3, 2 RBIs, Frichter 2-3, 2 RBIs,
McIntyre 4-4, RBI, Adams 1-4, HR, 2 RBIs; Shaw -- Baio 2-4; Records: Brother
Martin 16-6-1, 6-3; Shaw 17-11, 3-6.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baseball team hopes to
catch win fever
Jim Rapier
How much can one sport
affect another at the high school level?
Well, let's just say
The Brother Martin football
team had a fairly successful football season, just missing the playoffs when
its name was not picked on selection day. The cross-country team won the
Division I state championship, and the wrestling team won its fifth consecutive
state championship. The Crusaders' basketball team just concluded an impressive
run to the Class 5A state championship, though it was somewhat surprising,
considering the youth of the team.
This brings us to
Wisniewski. He is the Brother Martin baseball coach. Where can his team find
the same water fountain all the other teams have been drinking from? If what
the other teams have been able to accomplish is a winning virus, then bring it
on, he says.
So far, so good for
Wisniewski and his team, which is off to a
"We hope it is our
turn," Wisniewski said.
"What has been
happening here is definitely contagious. A lot of people around here have been
saying it is up us now to keep it going. With the success we had last year and
the summer we had, I am hoping that is the case for us. I keep hearing it is
our turn."
Yes, winning, and more
specifically an attitude within a school and among its students and athletes,
can be contagious and be helpful to teams. Think about how many people talk
about the mental aspect of sports.
Still, it is not like the
Crusaders entered the baseball season just hoping for some type of magical mojo
to help pull it out of longtime losing funk. They did have something to build
on. Brother Martin finished with a 21-11 record last year and made the state
playoffs. The legion team followed that with a strong summer.
"I thought it was very
important because it showed the kids they could compete and win,"
Wisniewski said. "They saw what they could accomplish when they work
together."
Wisniewski also had experience
to count on. Harry Mayeaux, Matt Glaviano and Bryan Frichter are seniors.
Similar to the basketball team, some of the younger players, such as sophomore
pitchers Chris Cappo and Lance Lepine, are contributing as well.
If the team was looking for
an intangible element to take into the season with it, then it got it watching
all the other teams compete.
"The kids start
pulling for one another in all the sports," Brother Martin athletic
director Barry Hebert said. "It sort of seems to snowball. They all want
to be as successful as the other teams. We are sort of behind on spring sports
because basketball went so late into the year, but that is a good problem to
have."
Is it the Brother Martin
baseball team's turn? Who knows. Things are coming together pretty nicely for
the Crusaders early on, and Wisniewski said the team still has not hit as well
as it can. "What I am real pleased about is the school spirit,"
Wisniewski said. "Saturday afternoon, we played a game in the East
Ascension Tournament, then hopped on the team bus, drove to
Whatever it is that the
other teams at school have tapped into, Wisniewski is ready to get some if it,
too.
-----------------
Jim Rapier can be reached at jrapier@timespicaune.com or (504) 826-3377.