Baseball: Brophy snaps Mtn. View winning streak

April 1, 2015 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


Brophy Prep baseball Tom Succow pulled the right strings to get the final out against host and piping-hot Mesa Mountain View. It took three batters to accomplish, but then Brophy has seen its share and themsome of up-and-down games this season. Wednesday afternoon's contest was no exception.

Right fielder Cade Knox made a sliding grab of what would have been a game-tying or game-winning hit with two outs and the bases loaded in the last of the seventh as Brophy escaped with a 7-5 win over Mountain View in a Division I contest.

"These are the kind of games we've played," Succow said. "Overall I think we've played good baseball. There are times we haven't been able to put the nail in the coffin. We'll get up on teams, and then something we do or they do makes it close. We had a stretch of three one-run losses last week). We're starting to win some tough games."

Brophy ran its overall record to 12-6 and 7-3 in power-ranking games. It's a perfect 4-0 in its section. Adding a some pizzaz to the triumph was ending Mountain View's 11-game winning streak and handing the Toros their first power-ranking game loss. Mountain View is 16-4, 8-1 prg and was No. 1 in D-I in the first power-rankings posted earlier in the day.

Brophy entered the last of the seventh leading 7-3, thanks to its four-run, sixth inning rally. Brophy's Hunter Parks retired Mountain View 1-2-3 in the sixth in relief of starter and winning pticher Chris Ashton. Parks proceeded to notch the first out of the seventh on a comebacker. That's when thing got dicey for Brophy. Parks walked back-to-back hitters and then a fielder's choice for the second out to east the tenison a bit.

Another walk loaded the bases with Mountain View's most dangerous power hitter up next -- Seth Nordlin. Succow called on right fielder Danny Fischetti, a left-hander, to get the final out. Replacing Knox  in right was Brophy's quarterback, Knox. Nordlin line a sharp single to center to make it 7-4 with the bases still loaded. Bailey followed and struck out on a 3-2 pitch that was in the dirt. Bailey reached first safely and another run scored making it 7-5. Casey Lederman and Fischetti battled to a 3-2 count before Lederman lined what seemed to be a hit all the way. Knox got a decent jump and laid out to snare it heading toward the first-base line to end it.

Three hits, two walks and a hit batter saw the Broncos bat around and knock Mountain View starter Brent Bailey from the game, which was tied 3-3 after 5. Two-run singles by Ben Ehmann and Jacob Talamante accounted for the runs.

Brophy outhit Mountain View, 9-6. The power on the day day belonged to Brophy cleanup hitter Adrian Zubia. Zubia, a left-handed hitter, launched a opposite field two-run homer in the first and a long triple to center to start the winning rally in the sixth. Chad McClanahan added an RBI double in the third.

Mountain View enters a tough stretch the next two weeks with three games each week. The Toros start with Perry on Tuesday and the following week face Horizon, Desert Vista and Mesquite. Brophy's schedule slows with only three games between now and April 21- Camelback, Westwood and Chaparral.