CENTRAL NEW YORK – Despite a fair amount of ups and downs, the Cazenovia baseball team had mostly done well in the latter stages of the regular season and could prove dangerous for any Section III Class B playoff opponent.
More evidence of the Lakers’ quality was on display in last Tuesday’s 10-0 shutout of Hannibal, where it scored three times in the fourth inning, four times in the sixth and got on the board in ever inning except the second.
Off a poor outing against Westhill May 11, Jack Donlin threw a two-hit, complete-game gem here, striking out seven while also getting two hits at the plate and adding an RBI.
Jack Byrnes was three-for-four as he and A.J. Rothfeld both drove in a pair of runs. Single RBIs also went to Taven Reilley and Logan Nowak as Reilley, Rothfeld, Sully Clarke and Jacob Grevelding had two hits apiece.
When it was Byrnes’ turn to pitch against Bishop Grimes a day later, the Lakers rolled again, topping the Cobras 8-1 for its seventh win in eight games.
Runs in five of the first six innings helped Byrnes, who limited the Cobras to five hits and recorded nine strikeouts (giving him 81 for the season) to overcome issuing five walks.
Byrnes also got two hits at the plate, equaling Donlin, Reilley and Clarke as Donlin and Reilley each contributed a pair of RBIs and Byrnes scored twice.
Seeking another big win Friday against another playoff-bound team, Solvay, the Lakers almost attained it, only to take a 6-5 defeat to the Bearcats.
Cazenovia trailed, 1-0, when it nearly batted around in the top of the third, netting four runs. But Solvay tied it, 4-4, in the bottom of the third and scored twice in the fourth to go in front.
Now down 6-4, the Lakers made it tense in the seventh, getting one run, yet could not force extra innings.
Donlin, pitching four innings, took the loss as he put up a single, double and three RBIs at the plate. Reilley scored twice, but Byrnes was held to one hit as Solvay got two RBIs apiece from Sam Gonzalez and Jonathan Gonzalez-Perez.
Chittenango ran into Homer last Wednesday and lost, 15-5, to the Trojans, who put together a six-run second inning to erase the 5-0 lead the Bears mostly established when it scored four times in the top of the second.
A nine-run fourth inning settled matters, Chittenango still getting RBIs from Ty Kelly, David Bruno, Austin Khammar and Carlos Torres-Carman. Joey Case hit a home run for the Trojans and Tanner Douglass finished with three RBIs.
Then Chittenango lost 11-5 to Marcellus on Friday afternoon, its record falling to 7-10 as an early 4-2 lead disappeared when the Mustangs scored eight runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Even with a 7-10 overall record, though, the Bears did make it to the sectional Class B playoffs as a no. 14 seed, and will face no. 3 seed Westhill in the opening round
Meanwhile, Cazenovia drew the no. 8 seed. If the Lakers could beat no. 9 seed Oneida in the opening round, it likely faces a quarterfinal against top seed South Jefferson on Thursday.
