Highlands Christian Tops Sagemont For District Win

Highlands Christian Knights took advantage of control issues by Sagemont pitchers to earn a 7-5 win Tuesday in 3A-14.

Sagemont pitcher Andres Vazquez began working his pitches well against the Knights’ batters in the top of the first, he disposed of the first three batters in a 1-2-3 inning.

The Lions offense responded in their half of the first inning, when Sagemont shortstop Brynn Martinez got on first courtesy of an infield error. With no outs and a runner on first, center fielder Ashton Martinez blasted a liner to the left-center gap for a double but was thrown out at third on the same play.

After a flyout to center field for the second out, Lions’ first baseman Edison Rodriguez hit a hard liner to left field for an RBI hit that put Sagemont on the board with a one-run lead.

The 1-0 Sagemont lead was short-lived, as the Knights offense came to life and took advantage of the Lions’ control problems.

“Our pitching didn’t really come through for us today,” Sagemont Manager Wesley Morejon said. “It all starts with pitching. We couldn’t pound the zone with strikes. [The Knights] got the timely hit when it counted.”

In the top of the third and with one out, Knights’ left fielder Kyle Galinat lined hard to center field for a base hit. Galinat finished the game going 2-for-4.

With one out and a runner on first, third baseman Kyle Bombadier hit a liner into left field for a base hit. With a runner in scoring position, Knights starting pitcher Kirvin Moesquit helped his own cause, lining to center for a base hit. Moesquit reached base four times, courtesy of a base hit and three walks. He also had a stolen base.

With two outs and runners on first and second (Moesquit having stolen second) Knights’ center fielder Joseph Ortiz drew a walk to load the bases. Next at bat was catcher Deion Rosalia, who came into the game with a .350 batting average. Rosalia negotiated a walk that brought in the first run for the Knights.

The Knights had the bases loaded with two outs and first baseman Saul Velez at the plate. Sagemont’s pitcher threw a wild pitch that brought in the second run of the game for Highlands Christian. Velez drew a walk to complicate matters for Sagemont and load the bases for the second time in the third inning. With two outs, shortstop Mitchell Carroll hit a hard grounder up the middle for an RBI single and the third run for the Knights.

With the bases loaded for the Knights and two outs, a fourth run scored courtesy of a wild pitch.

The Knights scored a run in the fourth and another in the sixth, and sealed the victory with one more run in the top of the seventh.

The Sagemont pitchers combined for a total of 10 walks and struck out only two Knights’ batters. Those walks, wild pitches and timely hits by the Knights’ offense made the difference in an otherwise competitive game.

Knights’ Manager Bruce Charlebois reflected on his team’s performance.

“I’m happy with the win. I’m certainly not happy with our performance today,” Charlebois said. “Our young guys are making the same mistakes. They’re learning, and that’s what young [players] will do.”

The Knights stranded 11 runners on base.

“We’re leaving too many guys on base,” Charlebois said. “Our depth is not very good in our lineup, after our fourth and fifth batter, we tend to drop off a little bit, but they’re young guys who are learning and growing, and we hope they’ll get better.”

Moesquit is having a monster season for the Knights, coming into Tuesday’s game with a .513 batting average and 13 RBIs.

“I always try to do the best I can when I go out there,” Moesquit said. “I have to do everything I can, if it’s a base hit, a home run, a stolen base or pitching every game, I’ll do it to win a district game. I love the game. It makes me happy. If I make a mistake I let it go, I know I’ll get another chance. If you have a bad attitude, everything will change. That’s why a try to have a positive attitude.”

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