By Joseph Staszewski
The Archbishop Molloy baseball team won on pitching and defense all season only to see both challenged in the biggest game of the season so far.
The Stanners made three errors, including two in a four-run third inning, when host Xaverian took the lead for good. Molloy went on to lose 8-3 in CHSAA Class AA play and missed a chance to claim the Brooklyn/Queens division baseball title and bye into the league championship division tournament.
“That inning started with a leadoff walk and then we made a couple of errors,” Stanners Coach Brad Lyons said. “Now all you need is that one or two big hits.”
The Clippers got them in the form of two two-run homers from cleanup hitter Nick Meola. The sophomore knocked the ball over the centerfield fence in the third to put Xaverian up 4-1 and again in the fifth to extend the advantage to 7-3.
“It hurts the morale of the game,” Molloy’s shortstop Daniel Gaitan said. “They are already ahead. It puts a bigger damper on the inning.”
Gaitan, who bats ninth, provided a major bright spot for the Stanners. His two-run homer in the fourth inning pulled Molloy within 4-3, before Xaverian (15-2) scored a run in the bottom of the frame off the Stanners’ Chris Piteo, who was later relieved by Donovan Armas. Xaverian added three more runs in the fifth to break the game open. Lyons wasn’t surprised by Gaitan’s power display.
“He’s been our most consistent hitter all year,” the coach said. “He’s been our leader all year. We go with Danny.”
The Stanners’ offense sizzled in the first four innings, collecting 10 hits against Xaverian starter Dom Napoli. Nick Dorcean and Carlos Balmaceda both had two hits and Michael Fuchs added a double and a run scored. Clippers reliever Anthony Sigismondi proceeded to shut Molloy down (13-4) from there and didn’t allow a hit the rest of the way and waked just one batter.
“He just mixed it up well,” Lyons said. “His breaking pitches early in the count sort of gave our guys a little bit more trouble.”
The defeat doesn’t shake Molloy’s confidence heading into the playoffs. The Stanners, who are playing in memory of former Coach Jack Curran, finished second in the division and feature three of the city’s top pitchers. An eventual rematch with Xaverian is certainly welcomed by the players.
“We are still a strong team,” Gaitan said. “I feel like we are going to do really well and hopefully see these guys again.”
