Home | Sports
Menlo's win formula holds
By Glenn Reeves, STAFF WRITER
May 17, 2008
SANTA CLARA - The Menlo School baseball team got production from up and down its batting order and a combined shutout from two pitchers. And that's pretty much been the story of the season for the Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division champions.
The Knights had no trouble Friday night in a 7-0 win over Soquel in the quarterfinals of the Central Coast Section Division III playoffs at Washington Park.
Menlo (23-8) will play the winner of today's Live Oak-Stevenson game Tuesday in the semifinals at San Jose Municipal Stadium.
The Knights had two players (Danny Diekroeger and Chris Ryan) with three hits and three players (Trevor Williams, Jack Mosbacher and Kenny Diekroeger) with two hits. Matt Corley and Kenny Diekroeger combined on a five-hit shutout.
"We're tough to pitch to one through nine," Menlo coach Craig Schoof said. "This is the deepest team I've had in my 21 years at Menlo."
And while the tean's depth is a great strength, Schoof was also wary of a potential pitfall.
"If the eight or nine guys on the bench complain about not getting playing time, it can really bring the team down," Schoof said. "But this is just an incredible group of guys. From the first inning on our bench was really into the game."
The depth can also dictate some difficult decisions.
"I didn't decide on my starting pitcher until 2 o'clock," Schoof said. "I was going back and forth between Matt and Gabe (Adelman)."
Schoof decided on Corley, who rewarded the judgment with 4 scoreless innings, allowing four hits, walking four, striking out three. He also rose to the occasion with runners on.
"Matt Corley was just unbelievable," said center fielder Jack Mosbacher. "He stepped up. In big games he's always solid."
Kenny Diekroeger came in from shortstop to relieve after Corley hit two batters in the fifth. Diekroeger pitched out of that jam and held Soquel scoreless the final two innings. Diekroeger gave up one hit and one walk and struck out two.
Menlo scored two runs in each of the first three innings. There were two sacrifice plies and one sacrifice bunt among the first six outs.
A dominant performance that silenced some ghosts.
"This was just a great win, especially with the memories of walking off this field after a loss (in last year's CCS quarterfinals)," said Mosbacher, the Stanford signee who went 2-of-2 with a double, single, hit by pitch and sacrifice bunt. "... Losing in CCS left a terrible taste in my mouth."
Now the Knights get a chance to win two more games and capture their first CCS title since 2004.
Copyright 2008
Powered By Zebra Mobile