4/2/2008 - AC Wins Eighth Straight With Sweep of Bossier Parish
Bryan Mallett knew he was about to take a big-time hit.
The Angelina College catcher took a one-hop relay throw from an
infielder, turned and braced himself for the impending impact from
Bossier Parish’s 250-pound Jacob Rhodes.
Rhodes didn’t disappoint. The ensuing home-plate collision sent
Mallett sprawling across the left-side batter’s box.
But Mallett hung onto the ball for the out, the Roadrunners held on
for the win and the sweep, and the AC team that started the conference
season 1-5 won its eight straight game by taking down the Cavaliers
6-3 and 11-4 Wednesday at Roadrunner Field.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever been run over at the plate,” Mallett
said afterward. “I felt my hand separate from my mitt, and I wasn’t
sure I still had the ball.”
Mallett had the ball, all right, and the Roadrunners had a ball
against a highly-touted BPCC pitching staff, pounding out 17 runs on
24 hits over the two games to move their record to 19-12-2 and 9-5 to
close out the first half of Region XIV East Zone play.
Jake Rowell drove in four runs with a two-run homer and a two-run
double, and Chris Andreas added a three-run shot in a five-run seventh
to open up what had been a close ball game. Leading 4-3 heading into
the bottom of the seventh, AC sent 11 men to the plate, with eight
straight reaching base safely in the inning.
Matt Thielepape went 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI; Keith
Prestridge drove in a run with a single; and Austin Lasprilla singled
three times, stole two bases and scored three runs to help AC complete
the sweep.
Corey Benevides allowed just three runs over five innings work to pick
up the win. Daniel Franchois tossed three innings of relief, giving up
only a solo homer to Cavalier pinch hitter Stephen Laurent in the
eighth. Nick Huff added a scoreless ninth for the ‘Runners.
“We got a little overly pumped after the big play at the plate,” head
coach Jeff Livin said. “We had guys trying to hit 700-foot home runs
to get some payback. But once we settled down and got back to swinging
the bats the way we’d been before, we looked much better.
“We’ve got a very aggressive offensive team. Our players go up looking
to drive the ball instead of just trying to hit it, and they’re
getting results. That was a good pitching staff we faced today, and we
did what we had to do to come out ahead.”
In the opener, Frank Corolla scattered seven hits and three runs in
picking up a complete-game, 6-3 win. His run support came from Paul
Prestera’s two-run homer – Prestera’s second homer in as many games –
and RBIs from Lasprilla, Prestridge – who went 3-for-4 with a double
and a pair of singles – and Andreas, who tripled home a run in the
third. Joey Latulippe added an RBI double to the Roadrunner scoring
totals.
Corolla struck out four in his seven innings, but only allowed two
walks. His only real trouble came in the BPCC half of the fifth, when
the Cavs strung together three straight hits. Kevin Smith and Rhodes
drove in runs with a double and a groundout, respectively; and Smith
added a solo homer in the seventh.
That was as good as it got for Bossier Parish, with the Roadrunners
leapfrogging the team that had entered the day a single game up on AC
in the standings.
The ‘Runners will start Round 2 of conference play by hosting Paris on
Saturday, with the doubleheader scheduled to start at noon.
