Big hits send Newman past Sherrard fellow TRAC leader Sherrard

STERLING – In a battle between the two division leaders in the Three Rivers Conference, the Newman Comets came through in the clutch Friday against Sherrard.

Two-out hits in three straight innings drove in six runs as the Comets won the crossover matchup of undefeated TRAC teams 10-3.

“It’s the most important time in the game; when there’s two outs and you’ve got guys in scoring position, that’s when the pressure’s on,” Newman’s Garet Wolfe said. “It takes more than just putting the ball in play; you’ve really got to drive the ball to score runs in that situation. Those big hits change games.”

Newman’s No. 8 hitter Jameson Hanlon had an RBI double in the second inning and started the two-out scoring surge with a two-run single in the third – when it looked Sherrard starter Eli Matson was going to escape a bases-loaded jam unscathed after back-to-back strikeouts.

Instead, the Comets (18-3) took a 3-1 lead as Chase Decker and Daniel Kelly crossed the plate.

“The approach is just get the barrel to the ball, meet it out front. I’ve been trying to get out of a slump, so I just changed my approach as much as possible and really just tried to help the team,” Hanlon said. “It’s important to know that every guy in the lineup can step up in big moments. We win games because we’ve got guys like that up and down the lineup.”

“Those were some of the biggest hits in the game, for sure, and it got us going and we fed off of that,” Wolfe said. “When you’ve got guys down there [in the lineup] that can really drive the ball and flip it back to the top [of the order], it gives us a lot of confidence.”

In the fourth, Kelly smacked an RBI double with two outs, then Wolfe followed with a single to drive in Kelly for a 5-1 lead.

Sherrard (11-6) got a two-out, two-run single from Garrett Woodward in the top of the fifth – he also had an RBI fielder’s choice in the first inning – to cut the deficit to 5-3.

But Newman answered in a big way in the bottom of the fifth. Three walks loaded the bases with one out, and Ashton Miner smoked a double off the bottom of the fence in left-center field, clearing the bases on a 1-2 pitch to stretch the lead to 8-3.

“It’s something we work on a lot, that two-strike approach; shortening up [our swing] and doing our job is really what’s key,” Miner said. “Runs are huge, every run matters, and when you’ve got guys in front of you that work really hard to get on base, it’s your job to help them out and get them in.

“I think we’re good top-to-bottom in our lineup, and not every day does everyone have their best. But we’re here for each other every single game, and whoever needs to step up is going to do it.”

After a groundout, Kelly was hit by a pitch and Wolfe followed a double-steal with a single to right to make it 10-3 Comets.

Garret Matznick relieved Newman starter Michael Morse in the sixth and pitched around a two-out single. Liam Nicklaus pitched a perfect seventh inning, notching three strikeouts at the top of the Tigers’ lineup to finish off the win.

Morse allowed three runs (two earned) and three hits over five innings, striking out three, walking two and hitting three batters.

Wolfe went 3-for-3 and reached base four times, while Matznick, Miner and Kelly each reached base three times. Wolfe, Miner and Hanlon each had three RBIs.

“I think that’s one of those games where it might not feel your way at the start, but you know if you just keep grinding, you’ll get there,” Wolfe said. “We stuck with it and got it done today.”

After Sherrard’s first four batters reached base to start the game, Newman ended the first inning with a double play as Miner doubled off a Tigers baserunner at first on a flyout to right. Sherrard managed just three baserunners over the next three innings as the Comets took control.

“Two-out RBIs were big, and they worked the counts on us. We just couldn’t put them away,” Sherrard coach Nick Basala said. “They just grind out at-bats, a very tough team 1 through 9, they battle every pitch. They put the pitchers in a bad spot, and when you make mistakes, they take advantage of it. That’s a very quality team, and we just couldn’t make plays when we needed to.”