Orchard Lake St Mary's baseball, Brother Rice split doubleheader
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BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — The Orchard Lake St. Mary's Prep Eaglets (OSLM) (20-3) and the Brother Rice Warriors (13-5) split a doubleheader on Saturday.
Brother Rice won the first game, earning a 6-3 victory, while St. Mary's took a 6-3 victory in the second matchup.
In game one, Brother Rice pitcher Blake Ilitch took the victory with seven strikeouts. St. Mary's pitcher Anthony Pesci won game two with eight strikeouts.
Here are three takeaways from the game.
A strong game one
In game one of their matchup, Brother Rice found its groove on both sides, leading to a one-sided victory.
While St. Mary's started quickly, scoring two quick runs to open the first inning, the third inning was a turning point for the Warriors.
Led by junior Tyler Fox, who drove in a two-RBI single to tie the game, Brother Rice followed up with another RBI before forcing the St. Mary's coaching staff to relieve its pitcher.
But the Eaglets allowed an additional three runs before earning the final out of the inning.
Brother Rice followed that inning by scoring an additional run in the fourth, earning the inevitable 6-3 victory for its first matchup.
Redemption for St. Mary's
Game two for St. Mary's saw the Eaglets catch fire early and never trail. St. Mary's scored all six points in the first three innings.
The first inning saw St. Mary's take control with a lead-off single and follow up with senior Blake Grimmer, who blasted a right-side home run to go up 2-0.
Brother Rice fought to keep the momentum of its first matchup, scoring three runs in the second inning. Its success at the plate began with junior Ryan Tyranski, who drove in the team’s first run following a pair of walks.
This inning was their best performance of the game. Brother Rice continuously secured loaded bases and would capitalize with another run scored by junior Max Orozco, who finished 2-2 on the night.
However, following that outburst, St. Mary's picked back up from their first-inning success and decisively outplayed their counterparts.
On the offensive side, junior Aiden Donovon led St. Mary's with two runs. Defensively, pitcher Pesci led St. Mary's, throwing for six innings and only allowing three hits throughout his performance.
St. Mary's scored four runs in the third inning, which was enough to secure the victory as Pesci kept the Brother Rice offense in check and helped the team face little-to-no pressure for the remainder of the game.
Coach said
Following their victory, St. Mary's coach Matt Petry was proud of his team's ability to comeback following the game one loss.
“We played well in the second game,” Petry said. “This was a good show of characters for our guys, especially after dropping the two games this Wednesday.”
Following tonight, OLSM (20-3) will return home to play the Western International Cowboys (10-7).
Following tonight, Brother Rice (13-5) will travel to Grosse Pointe, Mich. To play The University Liggett Knights (13-5).
