From the get-go, it was clear Newman coach Pat Adams was treating Tuesday night’s game against St. Martin’s as a must win. And while his team was sloppy following four days off, they got the job done.
In a long, drawn-out game that featured 342 total pitches, 21 hits and 19 walks and took nearly three hours to complete, the Greenies earned their ninth consecutive victory, 13-8, at Avenger Field.
With the win, Newman (18-6), also has won 13 of its last 14 games and has moved to within six-tenths of a point of University High in the race for the top seed in Division I Select after the Cubs lost a tight game to Parkview Baptist. Meanwhile, they are now 1.06 points ahead of Rosepine for the second spot.
A finish of first or second would guarantee home games as long as they remain in the playoffs until a potential state championship series in Sulphur.
The Greenies have four remaining games in the regular season before Monday’s finale at Mandeville. They are scheduled to face South Plaquemines at home Wednesday, at Country Day on Friday and will hold Senior Day on Saturday afternoon before facing HL Bourgeois.
“I told them a couple of weeks ago, it doesn’t matter who the opponent is. I am not worried about the opponent; I am worried about us,” Adams said. “The way we play the game, the way we approach the game, the way we do things – the rest will take care of itself.
“I am excited to see how we finish, but I am taking them one game at a time.”
On Tuesday, Adams and the Greenies fans saw something they aren’t accustomed to seeing much of this year, and that’s senior ace Christian Sauska looking human and touchable.
The pitcher who had a perfect game into the sixth against Jesuit, threw a no-hitter against St. Charles and shutout Doyle just last week, was uncharacteristically hittable.
He allowed two first-inning runs on four hits, and it could have been worse if he didn’t also strike out the side. Before he departed with no outs in the fifth, Sauska walked the first two Saints and then allowed a single to Will Lyons that eventually got St. Martin’s (15-6) within 6-4.
However, similarly to how the Greenies came back with four runs in the bottom of the first trailing 2-0, they scored five in the fifth to all but put the game away.
“It’s the energy of this team that allows us to comeback,” said cleanup hitter Atticus LaFleur, who hit a key double in that fifth inning to put Newman up 10-4. “When you have guys like Collier (Villere) and Christian who hit hard lineouts, even though we don’t get any runs from it, it keeps everything positive because we know we can hit the ball.
“I was able to knock in a run (with the double) after a few rough swings before that. Just to be able to lay back on one and rip it was a good feeling. I am super happy with the spot we’re in right now. People told us before the season, ‘Y’all didn’t go far last year, and you have the same group of guys; you aren’t going anywhere.’ I knew we developed a ton, and guys are stepping up and being leaders.”
That includes catcher Charles Wilson, who has kept courtesy runner Thomas Smallpage one of the busiest players on the team. Wilson, who has an on-base percentage north of .550, reached base four out of five times, including three walks.
He also hit a two-run triple in the fifth inning, and he has reached base 12 times in 15 plate appearances in the four Newman games shown on VSN.
And while St. Martin’s had 25 hitters reach base in some form or fashion, not a single one even tried to steal on Wilson.
For the Saints, they have now lost five in a row after a 15-1 start, but they have lost to some incredibly tough opponents. The lost to Catholic, who is No. 2 in Division I Select, Newman (No. 2 in Division III) and three to district foe Riverside (No. 6 in Division IV).
“These are all fixable things during this stretch,” St. Martin’s coach Bobby Ledoux said. “We get within two, and then they pull away again. The way we hit the ball and put it in play, that’s what we try to do. … We get into the playoffs, there’s not going to be anything we haven’t seen.”
LINESCORE
St. Martin’s – 200 022 2 – 8 | 10 | 3
Newman – 402 052 X – 13 | 11 | 1
TOP HITTERS
St. Martin’s (15-6): Tyler Sandlin, 3-4, 2B, BB, R, 3RBIs; Kade Vinju, 2-3, BB, 2R; Alex Scheuermann, 1-2, 3BB, 3R; Will Lyons, 1-4, BB, 2RBIs.
Newman (18-6): Jack Falgoust, 3-5, 3R; Charles Wilson, 1-2, 3BB, 3B, 3RBIs (Courtesy runner Thomas Smallpage, 3R, 2SB); Benjamin Singer, 2-4, 2RBIs; Malcolm Schairer, 1-2, 3BB, 2B, BB, R, RBI.
DECIDING PITCHERS
WIN: Collier Villere, 1.1IP, 2R, 2ER, 0H, 3BB, 3K. (Starter: Christian Sauska, 4+IP, 4R, 3ER, 7H, 2BB, 8K.)
LOSS: Bryce Helwig, 1+IP, 4R, 4ER, 4H, 4BB, 0K. (In relief: Alex Scheuermann, 3IP, 3R, 3ER, 1H, 4BB, 6K.)
WP: Sauska 2, Villere, Helwig, Kade Vinju. IBB: None. Pitches-strikes: Sauska 78-47; Villere 36-16; Falgoust 53-26; Helwig 49-23; Scheuermann 66-34; Vinju 15-10; Will Lyons 25-16; Tyler Sandin 20-11. Weather at first pitch: 74, partly cloudy. Time of game: 2:48.