The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Early errors hamper Mayfield in loss
Early errors proved to be costly when Mayfield and Hudson traveled to Euclid for a Division I district semifinal May 23.
After a pair of scoreless innings from both sides, the Explorers had their bats come to life.
They got their first two runs from a dropped third strike and a pair of errors. A ball also fell between a trio of Wildcats fielders as they saw their postseason run come to an end with a 7-1 defeat to Hudson.
The Explorers return to Euclid on May 25 where they take on Green or University in a district final.
After Hudson plated three in the first, the bats kept the momentum going into the fourth. The duo of John Poole and Henry Caspar recorded a pair of tworun singles that pushed the lead out of reach for Mayfield.
Jack Britton had a strong showing for the Explorers as he went the distance, allowed four hits and had just as many strikeouts. His approach was a challenge for the Mayfield bats all through the contest.
“He kept us off-balance, and we weren’t using our full swings,” Mayfield coach Darren Rapposelli said. “There was a lot of soft contact, and playing from behind we weren’t able to apply that pressure. But the bottom line is he had a good outing and did what he needed to do.”
The small issues for Mayfield allowed for the Explorers to score their first two runs but also showed their heads as the game progressed. There were a pair of rundowns where the Wildcats were unable to get the runner out.
Rapposelli knows in the postseason, the Wildcats can’t have those issues. With every team peaking at the same time, they have to find ways to cut down on those errors when the postseason rolls around again.
“Our last two practices we prepared for small ball,” Rapposelli said. “We were in a conference with Hudson for a while, and we knew how they execute. With two strikes and one out, runners on second and third, he doesn’t execute the bunt. It becomes a passed ball and they get two. When we did struggle this season, the wheels kept falling off.”
But the Wildcats still took a lot away from their postseason run. The Wildcats do see their top two arms in Austin Ziance and Nick Sperling leave in graduation, but many other key pieces return.
While the regular season was up and down for Mayfield, the young players getting early varsity experience in their careers while learning from the seniors will play into the teams future.
That was a goal of Rapposelli’s this season knowing they were going to have a youth movement. Having them learn from experience was the plan all season.
“It sets the tone early,” Rapposelli said. “We had five seniors that controlled the pitching rotation, and these guys saw their work ethic. Guys would partner up and work on everything. They were determined to be the guys to fill a lot of the holes that we had after the prior season. There going to see the performances we had to build the motivation and determination to be a team that can win on any given day but we need to get over the hump of the little things.”
Mayfield got its lone run in the top of the third with a single by Holden Cope.