It took a while, but St. Vincent managed to break its four-game slump with a 6-3 road victory over Chester on April 28 despite not having played for six days.
“That was good for us,” said St. Vincent coach Corey Sauer. “After another long break, you know, we kind of came out a little flat.”
That flatness may have carried over a bit, as the Indians (6-9) dropped an 8-0 shutout to Jefferson (8-9-1) in their next game three days later on May 1.
Jefferson scored 3 runs in the third inning and added 4 in the sixth on the way to the victory.
The Bluejays opened their scoring in the top of the first on an error. Jefferson added to their lead in the top of the third when Nolan Naucke was hit by a pitch, driving in a run, and Rowen Bower singled, scoring two runs to give the Bluejays a 4-0 lead.
Jake Seabaugh started on the mound for St. Vincent, giving up 7 runs, 5 earned, on 7 hits, striking out 4 and walking 2 in 5 innings. Connor Roth gave up 1 earned run on 1 hit in 1 2/3 innings of relief, striking out 1 and walking 2.
Jack Klump started for Jefferson and pitched 6 scoreless innings, giving up 3 hits, striking out 8 and walking 2.
Nick Buchheit, Gavin Hotop, Eli Abernathy, and Van Talent each collected one hit for St. Vincent.
Against Chester, the Yellowjackets opened the scoring in the second after TaShawn Palacio doubled, scoring one run, then added another in the fourth to take a 2-0 lead.
“It took us till the 5th inning to score, but early on we were putting the ball in play,” Sauer said. “It just seemed like we were getting under everything. I mean, it was three or four, at least, just pop-ups, right at somebody or mile-high pop-ups to the outfield. It didn’t go anywhere. Our approach at the plate was fine. We were putting the ball in play. It just took a few innings to get something to fall.”
In the top of the fifth, Seabaugh scored on a wild pitch to make it 2-1. After Chester scored 2 runs in the bottom of the inning, Andrew Schumer singled down the left field line, helping Indians tie the game 3-3 in the top of the sixth.
St. Vincent took the lead, 6-3, in the top of the seventh thanks to singles by Tyler Hennemann, and Schumer.
Hennemann earned the victory on the mound for St. Vincent Varsity Indians. The reliever gave up no runs and no hits in 1 one inning of relief, striking out 2 and walking 2. Schumer, the starter, gave up 3 runs on 5 hits, striking out 4 and walking 6 in 5 innings, striking out four and walking six. Seabaugh collected the save with one scoreless inning.
For Chester, Trayton Peters gave up 3 runs on 7 hits over 5 ⅓ innings, striking out 5.
St. Vincent had 12 hits in the game. Schumer finished 2-for-4 with 3 RBI, Nick Buchheit finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored, and Hennemann and Hotop had 2 hits each. Seabaugh stole two bases.
TaShawn Palacio was 2-for-3 with 1 RBI for the Yellowjackets.
“Overall, a good ball game,” Sauer said. “Defensively, we were very solid. I have zero complaints on the way we played. I just wish it wouldn’t take us so long to get the score all the time.”
