By Matt Feld (@mattyfeld612)
Yesterday’s two Division 1A Super Eight games signaled the exit of one team from the field while another clinched a spot in the title game.
BC High knocked out 13 hits en route to an 8-1 win over No. 6 Xaverian to advance to the Super Eight quarterfinals in the first game of the morning.
In the second of the two games, meanwhile, No. 1 St. John’s Shrewsbury scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth capped off by a walk off single from Jack Fields to defeat No. 3 St. John’s Prep, 4-3.
The loss means St. John’s Prep falls to the one-loss bracket and will await the winner of Sunday night’s quarterfinal matchup between BC High and Braintree.
The Eagles and Wamps have played twice so far this season, both at BC High’s Monan Park. In the first contest between the two teams BC High held a 2-0 lead going into the top of the seventh but the Wamps rallied to score seven runs to grab a 7-2 win.
BC High got revenge on the Wamps in the first round of the Super Eight as behind a complete game from ace Mike Vasil the Eagles came away with a 3-2 win.
Now, with both team’s season on the line on Sunday night, here is how we expect the rubber match between these two teams to unfold.
No. 5 Braintree vs. No. 4 BC High
Probable Starting Pitchers: TBA – Braintree; Brendan Mignone, RHP – BC High
Date/Time/Location: June 11th, 6pm, Campanelli Stadium
Overview: Ever since falling in their Super Eight opener, Braintree has shown that “winning identity” that makes them the two time defending champions. Trailing 4-1 in the bottom of the ninth against Belmont, the Wamps got a game tying three run home run from sophomore Jackson Duffy before winning it in the tenth. Just one day later, the Wamps came out as the aggressor scoring two times in each of the first two innings while mashing their way to 13 hits in a 5-1 win over Central Catholic. In both those games, Braintree was also able to get quality starting pitching from ace Jack Andrews as well as a complete game from John Tellier. With both likely unavailable on Sunday night, the Wamps may follow a similar 2-2-2-2-1 formula that St. John’s Prep has followed this tournament. Kyle Gray, Joe Vannelli, and Brennan Quigley will all have to get key outs.
On the flip side BC High rebounded from a 7-1 loss to St. John’s Shrewsbury in the second round and knocked off Xaverian, 8-1, on Saturday to reach Sunday night’s quarterfinal. The 13 hits the Eagles had on Saturday were their most in a game all season, and they will need to transfer that offensive firepower over to Sunday if they hope to come away with a victory. Brendan Mignone is expected to get the start for BC High. Mignone last made a start for the Eagles back on May 27th against Newton North and went five hitless innings in a 1-0 win. The Wamps are familiar with Mignone as he made the start in the two’s first matchup. He cruised through the first six innings of the game before faltering due in large part to his own throwing error.
While these two teams on the whole have been inconsistent offensively we expect Sunday night to be a bit of a slugfest. The Eagles may have the upper hand in starting pitching, but if the Wamps are able to get into the bullpen early it could open the floodgates for a sea of Braintree. On the other hand we expect BC High to follow up on their offensive explosion yesterday and be the aggressor in a high scoring affair.
Feld’s Pick: 9-6, BC High
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