St. Joe’s Prep baseball clinches Catholic League championship
By John Knebels
Some members of the St. Joseph’s Prep baseball team commented about how many of their peers had asked whether facing Monsignor Bonner in the Catholic League championship would be a nerve-racking endeavor.
The team members all smiled in response. Not because they were cocky but because they were confident.
Despite being labeled an underdog by more than few sources, the Hawks silenced naysayers by defeating the Friars, 5-1, last week at Widener University.
That victory successfully defended the Prep’s championship crown — quite an accomplishment, considering that prior to last year, the last time the Prep had won a Catholic League baseball title was in 1925.
“Having had the experience of knowing what it takes to win is invaluable,” said Prep coach Chris Rupertus. “We had (13 players) in uniform for that game, so they knew what to expect.”
Like most successful baseball ventures, the championship squad relied on strong pitching, solid defense and timely offense. That trifecta had helped the Hawks reach the final with a 5-1 win over stubborn Neumann-Goretti in the league semifinal, and finish with an overall record of 19-3.
Meanwhile, Bonner finished 14-6, including a convincing 11-1 win over Archbishop Ryan in the semis. In the regular season, the Friars had split two decisions with the Prep, winning 6-4 on April 15 and losing 5-1 two days later.
“They’re a very good team, and we had a lot of respect for what they had already accomplished and what they were capable of,” said Prep junior pitcher Kyle Mullen, who scattered four hits while throwing a complete game. “We knew we were in for a battle.”
The Hawks scored three runs in the third inning to allow Mullen some breathing room. After Bonner’s Rob Benedict singled home Pat Warrington to cut Bonner’s deficit to 3-1 in the fifth, the Hawks added two more in the sixth to put the game away.
The Prep’s first three runs were manufactured by an error, an infield single, an RBI single by Aaron Haas, and a two-run single by Jeff Lynch. Their final two came courtesy of a two-run single by Brett Tiagwad.
The game’s final out was a strikeout, and both Mullen and catcher Dennis Murphy raised their arms in triumph before being tackled by a sea of Prep players. Meanwhile, the Prep crowd went ballistic.
“He pitched so great,” said Murphy. “I can’t say enough about how well he threw. From the very beginning, he hit his spots.”
Mullen returned the compliment.
“He called a great game,” said Mullen. “I only shook him off a few times. He knew exactly what he was doing. We work really well together.”
As for talk about how the baseball team — which has been in the league final three straight seasons —is a bit tired of being overshadowed by other consistently championship-caliber programs at the Prep, senior Pat Malloy just shrugged.
“We have our own little niche,” he said. “It’s just unbelievable. Coach told us that the Class of 2008 is the best baseball class in school history, since we won two championships. That’s incredible when you think about it.”
Incredible indeed.
John Knebels can be reached at jknebs@aol.com.