Victory hits spot for Wildcats
Transfers Wert, Aristy help erase early deficit for first victory of season
A couple of transfers helped Arundel get in the win column Thursday morning in the Arundel Invitational.
Champ Wert, a sophomore coming over from St. Mary’s, and Moises Aristy, a senior transfer from DeMatha, got the job done on the mound as the Wildcats recovered from an early deficit and held off Stephen Decatur, 8-6.
Matt Hagemann (2-for-4) and EJ Santana each drove in two runs for Arundel (1-1).
“Wewant to face the best competition out there early in the season and see what we are made of,” Arundel coach Frank Hood said. “This is a team that still needs to figure out its identity, and these games help do that.”
The Seahawks (2-1) made the long trek from Berlin, but were ready to play from the opening pitch. Hayden Snelsire and Tristan McDonough each recorded one-out singles in the top of the first against Arundel starter Dan Ownby. Billy Wheatley then reached on an error and Shane Cicoccio drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Steve Bontempo added another RBI single and a wild pitch drove in another run, giving the Seahawks a quick 3-0 advantage.
“This was a great opportunity to play against some good competition across the bridge, and school was out, so let’s do it,” Stephen Decatur coach Rich Ferro said.
The Wildcats got one run back in the bottom of the third as Garrett Stanard drove in Hagemann with an RBI double to left field. However, it was Wert’s presence on the mound that changed the game’s momentum.
Wert came on in relief of Ownby to start the fourth and retired six straight. Jack Rosenberg started for the Seahawks and allowed just one run over the first three innings, striking out four in the process. But Arundel built off of Wert’s mound presence and got things moving in the bottom of the fourth. Pat Mason had a one-out infield single followed by a single by Dom Bromante. Will Schubert drove in a run with a single to right. Another infield single, this time by Santana, drove in the tying run, and a balk gave the Wildcats a 4-3 lead.
After Wert’s second straight 1-2-3 inning on the mound, Arundel added four more runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Wildcats loaded the bases with no outs. After recording two outs, Stephen Decatur’s pitching encountered a wild streak, as Santana and Eric Maydag each forced in runs with walks, before Hagemann added a two-run single through the right side.
Wert allowed just one hit through three innings of work before struggling in the seventh. He allowed the first two batters on before striking out Ryan Duncan. Snelsire followed with another single and McDonough, University of Miami recruit drove in two with a single. Wert struck out Wheatley, but walked Ciccocio, finishing the day with four strikeouts in 32⁄ innings of relief work. Aristy, whose younger brother Noel had a double, came in and, after forcing in one run with a balk, struck out Bontempo to end the game.