BASEBALL: Troy offense explodes for fourth straight win over Athens
BY JAKE LOURIM
STUDENT CORRESPONDENT
TROY — There was little doubt who owned the city of Troy in 2013 after Troy swept rival Troy Athens, 8-1 and 15-5, in a baseball doubleheader three weeks ago. But any remaining doubt was removed Saturday morning, when the Colts routed the Red Hawks again.
Troy scored five runs in two different innings en route to a fourth win over Athens this season, 13-5, in a Division 1 district semifinal Saturday morning at Troy.
After senior ace Michael Thomas pitched against Pontiac on Friday, the Colts sent No. 2 pitcher Nick Panella to the hill against Athens ace John Van Hoef. Panella pitched four innings and gave up four earned runs and four walks against Athens on April 26.
On Saturday, he pitched five innings and gave up four runs, another strong start.
“I was trying to focus on throwing strikes, especially first-pitch strikes, because I felt I struggled with that earlier,” Panella said. “I was trying not to get frustrated.”
He was also backed by a lineup that scored seven or more runs for the 16th and 17th games.
Athens gave Panella a two-run lead in the second with two infield errors that scored two runs. The Red Hawks, however, fought back with sophomore Nick LaFleur’s two-run single in the bottom half. They came in with confidence, according to head coach Mike Morris, even after losing Troy three times during the regular season.
“We were clicking toward the end of the year,” Morris said. “We won six of our last seven, and we were playing good baseball. We just came out today and threw the ball around a little bit, a few walks, and they took advantage of it.”
In the third inning, Van Hoef lost control of the plate, and Troy went ahead for good. Troy senior Drew Braun hit an RBI double down the right-field line, and senior Mitch Weigand went yard for his first career home run, a two-run shot to left. The Colts tacked on another with a single and three straight walks, chasing Van Hoef with two outs in the third.
Sophomore Matt Lerdahl came out of the bullpen for Athens, walking one but then retiring the next four.
When he came out, Troy hammered LaFleur for five runs in the fifth to put the game out of reach.
Panella (4-1) walked the bases loaded with no outs in the fourth, but allowed only two to score, preserving Troy’s lead. He took a pitch to the head in the top of the fifth, then sent Athens down 1-2-3 in the bottom half, then came out with a win in his first career district start.
“I haven’t pitched in a while, so it felt good to be out there,” said Panella, who has won his last three starts, the last of which came May 15 against Blooomfield Hills Andover.
BOX SCORE
Troy 025 0501 – 13 12 0
Athens 020 2001 – 5 4 3
W – Panella (4-1) – 5 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 5 BB, 2 K, 90 NP
L – Van Hoef – 2 2/3 IP, 6 H, 7 R (5 ER), 5 BB, 3 K, 93 NP
(Jake Lourim is a senior at Troy High School and a member of the S.H.P. Media Group / www.northoaklandsports.com Student Correspondence Program. He is publisher of website www.troycoltsportsupdate.com and a member of the Troy school newspaper editorial staff. He can be reached by e-mail at j.lourim@comcast.net)
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