For the briefest moment Tuesday afternoon, the Marcellus baseball team had to feel like it was 2011 all over again.
Just like in last year’s Section III Class B playoffs, the Mustangs were leading rival Westhill and appeared to solve the Warriors’ left-handed ace, Alex Godzak, in the process.
Not long after that, though, reality returned, in the form of Godzak dominating on the mound and the Mustangs seeing its lead slip away in a tough 5-3 defeat.
In this game, made up from a May 8 rainout, the Mustangs, who lost to Westhill 2-1 in their first meeting on April 19, used its strong top of the order to forge a 3-0 lead. Phil Zdanowski, Nick Sinay and Taylor Vile reached base, and all of them scored as Vile got credit for an RBI.
And that was it, from the Mustangs’ batting standpoint. For the next six frames, Godzak was close to untouchable, putting together a three-hitter that saw a steady stream of Mustang hitters trudge to the plate – and then trudge back after a third strike.
All told, Godzak had 17 strikeouts, giving his fielders a chance to relax. And at the plate, the Warriors rallied against Marcellus pitchers Kyle Hastings and John Crysler, with a run in the second and three runs in the third to move out in front before it tacked on an insurance run in the seventh.
Joe Meluni scored twice, while Jacob Nigolian earned two hits and an RBI. Ben Walsh, who pitched and won the first game against Marcellus, also drove in a run.
Both sides had played the day before. For Westhill, who had lost its previous two games, it did not get easier as it had to work through eight innings before beating Skaneateles 3-2.
Despite a 2-0 lead through four innings, the Warriors could not hang on to it, Skaneateles tying it up with single runs in the fifth and sixth, forcing starter Ben Walsh out.
In stepped Godzak, who had thrown a no-hitter the last time he had faced the Lakers on April 25. Here, he gave up one hit in three innings of relief, striking out four.
Still, Westhill had to wait until the eighth to push across the winning run against Skaneateles pitcher Luke Drancsak, who had just returned from mononucleosis and went the whole way. Tyler Thomas tripled and drove in a run, while Godzak and Nigolian had the other RBIs.
Marcellus did not need any extra innings in last Monday’s game at Hannibal, but two late runs helped produce a 5-3 victory over the Warriors.
Looking to avenge a 10-8 defeat to that same Hannibal squad two days earlier, Marcellus again fell behind, 2-1, before getting a pair of runs in the third. The Warriors tied it, 3-3, but the Mustangs against scored twice, this time in the fifth, to move ahead for keeps.
Hastings led the way, his two hits leading to three RBIs. Vile added two hits and an RBI, while Zdanowski also got a pair of hits. Mike Welch, pitching a complete game, gave up six hits and six walks, but struck out four and constantly stranded Hannibal runners to earn the win.
And right after losing to Westhill, Marcellus rebounded with a 12-1 romp over Jordan-Elbridge, capped when the Mustangs scored four runs in both the second and sixth innings.
Vile was perfect at the plate, going five-for-five, including two doubles. Zdanowski added three hits and four runs scored as Sinay crossed the plate three times. Dan Brown pitched a complete game that included seven strikeouts and just six hits allowed as J-E’s Bryce MacClurg took the loss.
Solvay, coming off back-to-back defeats to Marcellus, took another tough loss, 1-0, to Cazenovia last Monday afternoon.
Dan Fantacone blanked the Lakers most of the way, giving up seven hits but striking out six and constantly escaping trouble. Only in the top of the sixth did Cazenovia convert, that lone run proving enough.
Joey Pelizzari managed two of Solvay’s hits. Fantacone and Jaron Payne also had hits as three Cazenovia pitchers – Tanner Whiteman, Liam Rogers and Mark Dewan – kept the Bearcats off the board.
And the Bearcats could not pull out of it a day later, falling to Skaneateles 7-4. A brief 2-0 lead in the first inning vanished when the Lakers scored three times in the bottom of the first to move ahead for good.
In the fifth, Solvay got within 5-4, only to have Skaneateles restore the margin with two runs of its own in the bottom of the fifth. Fantacone still managed three hits and an RBI, while John Savo and Brandon Pelose each scored a pair of runs and Chris Klein managed two hits. Ryan Prochna led Skaneateles with a home run and three RBIs.
Jordan-Elbridge lost, 5-0, to Homer, last Monday afternoon. Ryan Cooper went the route for the Eagles, earning seven strikeouts. But Homer used runs in four of the first six innings to get through and held J-E to four hits overall.
