The baseball team pulled through against the Capuchino Mustangs, 6-4, on senior night on Friday afternoon.
The Bears celebrated their seniors with balloons and photos to commemorate their time at M-A. The fans enjoyed words about each of the players, and lots of posters and food to celebrate the occasion.
“I mean, I’ve grown up with pretty much all of them playing baseball. I mean, I got my best friend on the team, I’m just gonna miss all of them. Made a lot of memories,” junior center fielder Merrick Lee said.
After taking the field, M-A faced difficulties defensively, giving up two hits to the outfield. The Mustangs were able to score a runner from second after a hit to right field, setting the score at 1-0. Still, senior pitcher Caden Lewis continued to battle, striking out a Capuchino batter and working his off-speed pitches. The Bears faced trouble after the Mustangs doubled and sent another runner home. M-A was eventually able to escape the inning by forcing a groundout, trailing 2-0.
The Bears had a slow start at the plate, and they were unable to get a runner on base. The inning ended quickly after a strikeout and two ground balls.
M-A began to gain momentum, with Lewis forcing ground balls and Lee making a heroic diving catch in deep right-center field to prevent a double. The Bears walked out of the top half of the second inning untouched, converting another ground ball into an out.
Back on offense, M-A’s hitting struggle continued. They went down 1-2-3 with ground balls, concluding the inning behind, 2-0.
On offense, the Mustangs couldn’t connect with the ball, ending the half after three batters. The Bears also failed to hit the ball, ending the third inning after three plate appearances.
Going into the fourth inning, the Bears were hoping to keep the Mustangs from putting more runs on the board. The Bears shifted the momentum after Lewis struck out two batters and forced a groundout to end the top half. Lee singled through the second base gap and advanced to second after senior shortstop Ryder Kelly was hit by a pitch. Both runners attempted to steal a base, and while the Bears were tagged out at second, they were still able to advance a runner into scoring position. Unfortunately, the rally was put to a halt after senior designated hitter MJ Ellazar struck out to close the fourth inning 2-0.
The Mustangs began the fifth inning with a ground ball in the center field gap. After a bunt down the third base line, senior third baseman Max Brubacher made an across-the-body throw to freshman first baseman Jake Scott, who picked the ball for a heroic out. Capuchino managed to score off a double to deep right field, and after moving a runner forward after a single, the Bears ended the top half of the inning down 4-0.
The Bears started to rally with a walk by senior left fielder Masataka Shudo. Lee backed this up with a blasted double to right field, gaining much-needed momentum. Kelly continued the hot streak by pounding a ball to center field, advancing runners and bringing the total to 4-3. Despite striking out to end the inning, the Bears tightened the game, putting pressure on the Mustangs.
Lewis continued to assert dominance on the mound, stumping batters with a variety of pitches and spot-on accuracy. The Bears exited the inning with fire after a skillful double play by Kelly to continue the Bears’ energy. Back at the plate, Ellazar took first base after being hit by a pitch. Shudo advanced Ellazar with a fielder’s choice, but was called out at first base. Brubacher singled, advancing runners and tying the game at 4-4. Freshman catcher Owen Coupe silenced the Mustangs after crushing a ball to right field for a double, sending numerous runners home and putting the Bears ahead 6-4.
“I think that we are down at the start, but coming through at the end felt awesome, and it was a great one overall, and our energy was loud,” Coupe said.
The inning ended with a strikeout by Kelly, but forced the Mustangs to recover in the seventh inning. Lewis closed out senior night with three incredible strikeouts in the bottom of the seventh, finishing the game in a 6-4 victory.
“I’m going to miss the culture and our guys. It’s just super fun here. We have a good vibe all the time,” Lewis said.
“I’m gonna miss all the leadership and things that they’ve taught me and the fun that I’ve had with them,” Coupe said.
The Bears will play the King’s Academy Knights away at 12 p.m. on Saturday.
