Baseball
By: Jim Green
The Lawrence High School baseball team nearly got the monkey off its back.
The Cardinals, who were outscored 34-10 during a 0-4 start, battled back from a 5-0 deficit Monday before suffering their fifth straight defeat, 7-6 to Allentown at LHS.
Although Lawrence (0-4 in the Colonial Valley Conference) failed to get into the win column for the first time this year, Cardinals coach Brian Carter was enthusiastic about his club’s performance.
"There were a lot of positives," he said. "We put the ball in play hard a lot."
With staff ace Dave Waseleski, a senior, having been used Sunday in a 12-2 loss to Hamilton at the Hall of Fame Tournament, the Cardinals were forced to use No. 2 starter, Jim Scheideler, a junior right-hander, against the Redbirds. Although Scheideler pitched well in his first start, surrendering only one run in six innings against Nottingham on April 2, Lawrence had to figure it would need to swing the bats well in order to beat Allentown (2-1).
The need for offense became even more pressing, as Scheideler was ineffective early. The starter went just two innings, surrendering three earned runs on three hits and one walk before being lifted for junior right-hander Kyle Gafgen, who gave up two more runs in the third.
But Lawrence fought back, plating two in the third and three in the fifth to tie the game. Waseleski, who finished 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI, and senior catcher Charlie Park, who had a run-scoring triple, sparked the Lawrence comeback.
"We battled the whole game," Carter said. "It just didn’t happen."
Gafgen kept the game tied by shutting out the Redbirds in the fourth and fifth innings. However, he ran into trouble in the top of the sixth.
Gafgen surrendered a one-out single to Allentown center fielder Gary Amatrudo and a walk to second baseman Evan Gallagher. With runners on first and second and one down, Carter chose to lift Gafgen in favor of senior righty Jordan Antieri. The move paid off, as Antieri retired the next two batters, leaving the game tied at 5-5.
But the Cardinals failed to build on that momentum in the bottom of the inning, as they were retired in order. And in the top of the seventh, the wheels came off.
Allentown third baseman Tom Keeley singled up the middle to lead off the frame, and first baseman Rob Marchetts walked to put runners on first and second with no one out. Redbirds catcher Dave Koontz, who was 3-for-4 on the day, followed with an RBI double.
Antieri rebounded with a strikeout, but Amatrudo then delivered a bloop single to right that scored the Redbirds’ seventh run. Although the ball might have been playable, Carter did not feel it affected the outcome of the game.
"That ball to right, if it’s caught, they still get a run out of it," Carter said.
The Cardinals showed their heart for one final time in the bottom of the seventh.
Junior left fielder Tyler Haggerty led off the inning by crushing a double to right center. Junior designated hitter Ryan Robbins then drew a walk, bringing the winning run to the plate in the form of Park.
"He (Park) is the guy we want up at that time," Carter said. "He’s been carrying us for so long."
Park worked a 3-and-1 count before fouling off a low pitch that might have been ball four. On the next pitch, he grounded into a 5-3 double play.
Carter refused to question his leader’s pitch selection.
"I want Charlie (Park) swinging the bat," he said. "If he wants the pitch, I want him swinging the bat."
Park went 3-for-3 with two RBIs the day before against Hamilton.
"He’s been doing everything else right," Carter said. "He’s still a great hitter."
Antieri then drew a walk, giving Lawrence runners on first and second with two down. Waseleski, who was playing shortstop, followed by drilling an RBI single up the middle, closing the gap to 7-6. But the next batter, junior second baseman Jared Smith, grounded out to second on the first pitch of his at bat, bringing the game to a close.
Although the Cardinals showed they are close to turning the corner, they are getting to the point of the season where they need to start picking up wins.
"It would have been huge (to win)," Carter said. "Moral victories right now aren’t going to get it done. It would have been nice to get that first win."
The Cardinals’ problems can be traced to inconsistent play from most of their roster. That inconsistency has forced Carter to use four different lineups through five games.
"We’re still looking to see what nine is going to play well," Carter said. "I like what we did today (Monday)."
Another obstacle has been injuries. Just when Haggerty and Smith returned to the lineup, starting catcher Ben DeHart, a junior, went down with a pulled calf muscle. The injury has forced Carter to move Park, his best position player, from first to catcher.
With so many question marks in the everyday lineup, the Cardinals can ill afford to have their ace pitcher struggle. But that was the case Sunday, as Waseleski surrendered 10 earned runs in 2 2/3 innings of work against Hamilton.
"His (Waseleski’s) ball was moving a lot (against Hamilton)," Carter said. "He was struggling, and we were down by a lot, so I took him out."
If Carter had decided to hold Waseleski back in order to throw him against Allentown, the Cardinals might have had a better opportunity to pick up their first win. However, the coach did not want to concede any game, even to a team as talented as Hamilton.
"I gave it (holding Waseleski back) thought," Carter said. "But if Dave’s on, he can beat anybody. I have to have confidence that my other guys can step up."
The Cardinals will look to continue moving in the right direction when they visit West Windsor-Plainsboro North at 4 p.m. today. The Knights fell to 1-3 Monday with a 6-5 loss to Trenton.
"At this point, we’re just looking to improve in the areas we need to improve on," Carter said. "Everything else will take care of itself."

