April 29, 2024
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Baseball: L-P routs Alleman in first game at new field

Cavaliers score nine runs in first inning

By Kevin Chlum
L-P's Seth Adams slides safely into home plate on a pass ball as Alleman pitcher misses the tag on Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at the L-P Athletic Complex in La Salle.

L-P's Seth Adams slides safely into home plate on a passed ball as Alleman pitcher C.J. Carruthers misses the tag on Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at the L-P Athletic Complex in La Salle. (Scott Anderson)

La SALLE – The La Salle-Peru baseball team broke in its new field with a big win Tuesday.

The Cavaliers exploded for nine runs in the first inning and rolled to a 13-0, four-inning victory over Alleman in a nonconference game at the L-P Sports Complex.

“It’s nice to have our own complex we can come to that’s L-P’s,” Cavaliers senior Brendan Boudreau said. “It’s nice to win the first game ever played here.”

L-P coach Matt Glupczynski said he enjoyed the experience of the first game.

“It was a great atmosphere and great crowd,” Glupczynski said. “It’s a great facility. To get the first win here is very special for this group and myself. Now we look to keep it rolling.”

The Cavs gave the home crowd plenty to cheer about early.

In the top of the first inning, Alleman loaded the bases with no outs on two singles and a hit by pitch, but L-P starter Brandon Foreman escaped the jam unscathed.

“To get the first win here is very special for this group and myself. Now we look to keep it rolling.”

—  Matt Glupczynski, La Salle-Peru coach

He induced a ground ball back to himself, which he threw to catcher Seth Adams for the first out before Adams threw to first base for the double play.

Foreman then got another ground ball back to himself for the final out.

“To have the bases loaded with nobody out and be able to get out of it with nothing, that’s a huge momentum shift for us,” Glupczynski said. “And we capitalized and put up nine.”

In the bottom of the first inning, the Cavs scored nine runs on three hits, five walks and two hit batters.

Boudreau hit a two-run single up the middle in his second at-bat of the inning, and Jacob Gross hit a two-run single through the left side of the infield in his second at-bat of the frame.

“We didn’t think that their first pitcher was going to overpower us,” Glupczynski said. “I thought where we could get in trouble was not being patient, and we didn’t do that. He left a lot of pitches that were chest high and right over the plate. Those are the type of pitches you want to just kill, and we laid off. We were patient and made him bring the ball down. We took our walks when he gave it to us, and when he did put the ball in the zone, I thought we put some good swings on the ball.”

The Cavs chased Alleman starter C.J. Carruthers before the end of the first inning and continued to tack on runs against the Pioneers’ next two pitchers.

L-P scored three runs in the second inning, highlighted by Boudreau’s second two-run single of the game, and Brevyn Vogel hit an RBI double in the third inning.

“We hit the ball well and had good at-bats today,” Boudreau said. “We just waited back and hit the ball hard. The kid wasn’t throwing as hard, so the key was to wait back and hit the ball hard. We looked for good pitches to hit, and if there was none, we took our base on a walk or hit by pitch.”