Naperville North's fast start stops West Aurora

Updated: April 25, 2011 6:24AM

One of the worst places a baseball team can find itself is to be down on the scoreboard before it even comes to the plate.

It was a place West Aurora found itself Saturday afternoon against Naperville North in a DuPage Valley Conference game. The Huskies scored three runs in the top of the first and made that lead stand up in a 6-2 win.

North got to work quickly as Nick Solak drew a walk off West left-hander Austin Wyeth to open the game and came around to score on a wild pitch, then Tyler Gehr capped the inning with a two-run double. Winning pitcher Mariano Long later homered in the third and the Huskies owned a 5-0 lead.

Long also had a good game on the mound for North, giving up just two runs on four hits while striking out 11 in a complete-game effort. That's not to say he didn't give the Blackhawks more than their fair share of chances. They just didn't take advantage of them.

"That's been the name of our game lately," West coach John Reeves said. "We left six or seven guys on base in the second game of the series against these guys, and the first game we left 10 on (in a nine-inning win). We have been getting guys on base and a base hit here or there would have been really good."

The Blackhawks put runners on base in five of the seven innings, but never got the big hit to break open a rally and stranded seven. West scored single runs in the second and fourth innings, with Ryan Schaefer providing an RBI single for the Blackhawks second run.

Wyeth took the loss, giving up five runs and walking four in three innings. Bobby Drager came on and threw a solid four innings, giving up a run on two hits.

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