Prep baseball: Marin Catholic dethrones Drake in MCAL championship game

May 18--Marin Catholic head coach Jesse Foppert could breathe just a little bit easier once he held the MCAL baseball pennant in his hands on Saturday night.

The Wildcats clinched the league championship with a 6-1 victory over Drake at Albert Park.

"These kids have been doing a fantastic job all season," Foppert said of his players. "There were a few bumps early on, but the guys kept on track, they stayed focused and came together. It's great that they get to experience this, especially for the seniors. I couldn't be happier for them."

As soon as the last out was recorded and the celebrations died down, Foppert was already looking ahead to the North Coast Section tournament.

"We know what to expect. I think we've already played some of the other teams that are going to NCS," Foppert said.

The Wildcats' 6-1 victory over Drake in the title tilt at Albert Park wasn't as easy the score might indicate. Drake kept the pressure on Marin Catholic until the very end. It was just one big inning that made the difference for the Wildcats.

"At the start, it definitely felt a little too similar to the last time we played Drake at Albert Park," said Foppert, whose 19-6 Wildcats split the regular-season series with Drake (18-8).

The Wildcats loaded the bases in the bottom of the second inning, but couldn't bring the runners across home plate.

The Wildcats again put runners in scoring position in the bottom of the fourth inning, but this time they made the most of their opportunities. With an error and two walks to load the bases, Paul Kunst delivered a single to right field to score Sean Shepherd for the winning run.

"It felt good to get that run," said Kunst, who was 2 for 3 at the plate. "It maybe took some of the weight off the team's shoulders."

Once the Wildcats did get on base, Foppert let them run free.

"I love to just turn them loose on the basepaths," Foppert said. "They push the envelope and turn up the pressure on the other team."

The Wildcats got all the insurance they needed when Andrew Celis followed with a three-run double to center field to give MC a 4-0 edge as John MacLean, Peter Armusewicz and Kunst came running full tilt around the basepaths to score.

Matthew Tarantino had two hits for MC. Shepherd hit a double and Bryan Jakiemiec and MacLean each singled during the night.

Wildcats pitcher Danny Spiesberger kept Drake in check, breaking down only once in the top of the sixth inning, when he walked in a run. Spiesberger struck out nine and walked two, while giving up just four hits.

Alex Machado scored Drake's only run of the night.

Drake pitcher Will Martel struggled to keep the Wildcats off the basepaths. He issued six walks and struck out one, while MC tagged him for nine hits, including two doubles. Martel was also betrayed by a pair of costly errors behind him that led to MC runs.

"Martel kept battling. He's a good pitcher," Foppert said.

Singles by Kevin Miles, Marcus Anderson, Machado and Martel accounted for Drake's hits.

Contact Derek Wilson via email at [email protected]

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