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Benet bats stay hot vs, Naperville North
If there was an area of concern for Benet baseball entering the season, it was lack of pitching experience.
One way to take the stress off a young pitching staff is to supply it with a lot of run support.
The Redwings did that against Naperville North on Saturday afternoon in scoring a 13-3 nonconference road victory against the Huskies.
"We've been swinging the bat pretty well these past few days and we've been doing so one through nine throughout our lineup - it just hasn't been one guy," Benet coach Jeff Bonebrake said.
The Redwings unleashed a 16-hit attack against the Huskies and the five different pitchers North trotted out to the mound.
Each team tallied a run in the first inning before Benet knocked out North starting pitcher senior Jack Braakman in the second inning. Braakman walked three of the first four batters in the frame before giving way to senior Dave Considine.
Benet senior RJ Gatto greeted Considine with a run-scoring single. Benet senior Nick Moore dealt the big blow with a two-run home run into the teeth of the gusty, chilling breeze that was blowing in from left field.
Moore's blast capped a five-run frame as Benet built a 6-1 lead.
The Redwings (4-2) put the game away with another five-run frame in the fourth inning when Benet connected on four straight two hits from Andrew Mogni, Jim Lynch, Chris Stout and Matt Dorsett to give the Redwings an 11-2 lead.
"We've done a lot of damage with two outs and I know that is devastating to the opposition," Bonebrake said. "We had some great at-bats and we were competitive throughout our entire lineup."
After a rocky beginning, Benet starting pitcher Chris Sanderson calmed down and worked six solid innings.
Sanderson scattered five hits while striking out seven and, more impressively, he did not allow a walk.
"It took me a little while to get going and it was difficult for me to locate my pitches in the first inning, but I settled down really well," said Sanderson, a junior. "Our offense got six runs early and I started to get my curveball working and that really helped my confidence."
Sanderson retired nine of the last 10 batters he faced.
North coach Carl Hunckler has a roster littered with underclassmen and it showed at times throughout the contest.
"We're pretty young," said Hunckler, who started a sophomore or junior at seven of nine positions. "We're not hitting the ball well and we're not pitching the ball well - that will have to change pretty quickly or it is going to be a pretty rough year for us."
North juniors Mariano Long and Alex Moss tallied run-scoring hits for the Huskies, who are 1-3 this season.
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