Avondale holds off Oxford’s late rally
HE'S IN THERE: Oxford's Clayton Spiker slides safely back into first base as Auburn Hills Avondale's Tyler Drabek applies the late tag. Staff Photo
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
ROCHESTER HILLS — It’s either that Auburn Hills Avondale finds close ballgames or close ballgames find Auburn Hills Avondale.
Either way, the Yellowjackets were involved in a one-run affair Wednesday for the third day in a row.
This time Avondale built an 8-2 lead through six innings of work and hung on for an 8-7 win over Oxford in an OAA Red Division baseball game at Oakland University.
The win came after an 8-7 setback to Clarkston on Tuesday and a 2-1 win over Rochester on Monday.
“It is what it is,” frowned Avondale coach Tom Kurczewski about his team being involved in “too many” close games this season. “I don’t think it’s going to cause gray hairs. I just can’t put a finger on it. We should have beat Clarkston (on Tuesday) and in this game we’re up 8-2 and next thing you know it’s 8-7 and the tying run is on base.
“When we get teams down, we have experience here (with a lot of seniors and juniors) and you would think that we know how to shut teams down,” added Kurczewski. “They haven’t all been like this, but there have been a lot of close games and a couple where we should have own.”
Avondale (10-7, 6-5) pushed five runs across the plate in the bottom of the sixth to build its 8-2 advantage. Mitch Robinson had a two-run double, Brian Portelli and Tyler Drabek followed with an RBI singles, Drabek’s scoring a pair, and Matt Andrus laced an RBI single up the middle.
In the seventh, Oxford put quite a scare into the Yellowjackets, rallying for a five-spot on its own facing three different Avondale pitchers.
With one out, Nathan Brubaker had an RBI double to begin the rally, Clatyton Spiker and Vincent Griffith drew back-to-back RBI walks, followed by an RBI single from Colin McGeen and an RBI walk from freshman Jeremy White.
Avondale’s Drabek, who pitched one day earlier, came in with two on and one out and forced a pop out and fly out to end the seventh-inning threat and gain the save.
“He asked to come in and get it done,” said Kurczewski of Drabek. “We’re off the rest of the week, so I figured he could do it.”
A.J. Susick pitched 6 1/3 innings before getting into trouble in the seventh. He gave up six runs, six hits, walked six and struck out four but gained the win for Avondale.
The Yellowjackets scored two in the second and one in the fifth in building a 3-2 advantage. Ryan Millmine had an RBI groundout, while Joe Davison walked and later scored on a wild throw to first after Robinson reached base on a dropped third-strike, also advancing to second on the throw. Robinson later added an RBI single in the fifth.
AND THE DELIVERY: Auburn Hills Avondale's A.J. Susick gained the win on the mound Wednesday against Oxford. Staff Photo.
“I was telling the umpire that in the past 10 games, nine have been one-run games,” added Kurczewski. “Maybe those games will help us when we get to the (postseason). We’re in the same district as Clarkston. It’s a tough district.”
Oxford (1-13, 0-10) picked up an RBI bunt from Spiker and an RBI double by McGeen to tie the game at 2-2 in the fourth.
Brubaker, one of the four sophomores on the Wildcats’ roster, suffered the loss in relief.
Oxford upset fourth-ranked Birmingham Brother Rice 12-1 one day earlier and nearly completed the comeback against Avondale. With four sophomores and a freshman on the roster, the young Wildcats are starting to show signs of life after a 0-12 start.
“We’re a lot better than what our record shows,” said Oxford coach Jeff Willis. “We are young but some of these guys are showing promise. They are working hard.
“I know that there are some good teams in this league and a lot of them are veteran (aenior-led) teams,” added Willis. “Clarkston starts (eight) seniors. We’ve had a few close losses where we were a play or two away from winning against some of these veteran teams. I think we can play with a lot of these teams and we showed that when we beat Brother Rice. We’re hoping that we can start to turn some of these games into wins. It’s not about what you do at the beginning of the season, it’s what you do at the end.”
PICKING ON SOMEOME: Oxford catcher Kyle Hartwick throws the ball down to first trying to pick off a runner during Wednesday's class with Auburn Hills Avondale. Staff Photo
THE HEATER: Oxford starting pitcher Keith Paslean fires his fastball during Wednesday's OAA Red Division game against Auburn Hills Avondale. Staff Photo
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Category: Auburn Hills Avondale, Featured Articles, Oxford
