Mullen holds off Grandview
Brickley, Maffoni and Krza lead 'Stangs to a 5-3 home victory over Grandview; Mullen poised to go on a winning streak.
It has taken eight games, but Mullen has shown its first real signs of going on a winning streak.
The Mustangs, in shaking off the doldrums of winning a game, losing a game, in the early portion of the new Season D, won their second in succession on Monday, a home 5-3 decision of a talented Grandview in the Centennial League at Bill Swift Field.
In lifting their record to 5-3 overall and in league, the Mustangs had to hold on a bit, but will gladly take it.
“They’re a good team,” Mullen head coach Nick Arcuri said of the Wolves (7-3, 6-3). “We had our hands full. We had to hold them off a bit, but it was all good.”
Mullen starter and winner Chase Brickley was terrific – only three runs permitted, just one earned -- before requiring last-out help from reliever Henry Shellhorn, who survived a laser line drive to deep right field.
Brickley, a senior right-hander, admitted he wanted to finish on the mound, “but we got the job done, Shelly got the last out and that’s all that matters.”
Mindful of their up-and-down play and realizing it was in a game against a high-end, regular power, the Mustangs broke open the scoreless Class 5A game in the fourth. A two-out single by Luca Maffoni, the No. 8 hitter, and a two-run double by No. 9 hitter and freshman Ben Krza helped put Mullen in command. The Mustangs added a single run in the fifth and they needed it.
Brickley pitched well enough, but a couple of misplays in the infield in the seventh as well as some of the Wolves’ bats coming alive put them within two runs with the potential tying run at the plate before Shellhorn earned the save.
“I was just trying to keep them off balance, mixing my pitches and just trying to keep them from getting a rhythm at the plate,” Brickley said.
Said Maffoni of his key hit: “I was sitting fastball, just trying to do my job … I think we’re getting better all the way around.”
Krza, in addition to his two RBIs, threw out a runner trying to steal and turned in a snappy double play. Owen Marsh was 2-for-2 with a run scored and RBI. Henry Stewart knocked in a run and scored. Andrew Brady, Sage Hurley and Trevor Moore also hit safely, and Brady and Moore scored as did Maffoni.
“I think we’re getting better,”Arcuri said. “We haven’t peaked yet, but I think we’re getting better."
The Mustangs will head to Grandview in Aurora on Wednesday, Mat 26, to complete the back-to-back outlay. First pitch will be at 4:15 p.m.”
MULLEN 5, GRANDVIEW 3
Grandview 000 010 2 -- 3 7 3
Mullen 000 410 x -- 5 8 1
Mullen batting – Colin MacKenzie rf 3-0-0-0, Trevor Moore ss 3-1-1-0, Andrew Brady 3b 3-1-1-0, Henry Stewart cf 3-1-1-0, Owen Marsh 1b 2-1-2-1, Cito Terrones-Garcia dh 3-0-0-0, Sage Hurley 2b 3-0-1-0, Luca Maffoni lf 3-1-1-1, Ben Krza c 3-0-1-2, Chase Brickley p 0-0-0-0, Henry Shellhorn p 0-0-0-0. Totals 27-5-8-5.
2B – Krza, Marsh.
Pitching – Chase Brickley (W) 6.2 IP, 3 R, 1 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 7 Ks; Shellhorn (S) 0.1 IP, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K.
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