Wednesday, May 7, 2008

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

Derek Strandberg came on in relief with one out in the second inning and did not allow a run, giving Weehawken the time to post a 12-6 come-from-behind win over Becton.

WEEHAWKEN – The hangover from Weehawken’s toughest loss of the season was virtually inevitable. After blowing a seventh-inning lead that knocked them out of the BCSL-National Division title race against Lyndhurst on Monday, the Indians were emotionally shaken and lacking confidence. This was evident early when they had to take the field again just one day later against Becton Regional, which sat just a game behind Lyndhurst for the league lead.

When Becton jumped out to a 6-0 lead after two innings, the Wildcats seemed on their way to a showdown for first place with that same Lyndhurst team on Thursday. But the Indians refused to accept losing as an outcome this time around and they got the bats going when their season needed it the most.

Derek Strandberg came on in relief with one out in the second inning and slowed the Becton attack down. His team rewarded him by scoring three runs each of the second, third, fourth and fifth innings as Weehawken downed Becton, 12-6.

K.J. Ross had an RBI double in the first inning as Becton jumped in front.

“We’ve come from behind before, so we knew we were still in the game,” said Weehawken head coach Anthony Stratton. “We’re a pretty good hitting team and we had to play with confidence. The guys on the team are all good friends and they believe in each other to get the job done.”

Becton looked early as if they did not want the game to even go the full seven innings. K.J. Ross had an RBI double and O.J. Younes followed with an RBI single in the first to make it 3-0. The Wildcats doubled their lead the next inning. Jeremy Liebeck’s two-run double just inside the right field line bumped the lead up to 6-0. That normally would be more than enough run support for Liebeck, Becton’s No. 1 starter, who has been lights out all year. However, the Weehawken bats mixed in with defensive miscues allowed the Indians to quickly get back in the game.

Weehawken’s Kelly Hogan single-handedly helped trim the lead in half. He stroked a two-run double, then stole third and scored when the throw went into left field as Weehawken drew within 6-3. Becton committed two errors in the third and it led to three more runs. Not only did it tie the game at six, but knocked Liebeck out of the box.

Weehawken shortstop Andrew Nasti grabbing a line drive at shortstop.

After an RBI groundout by Jeremy Abreu put the Indians ahead in the fourth, another error brought home two more runs and suddenly Weehawken held a 9-6 lead.

“Weehawken is a very good hitting team and we couldn’t make plays. That’s a bad combination,” said Becton head coach Damon Affinito. “You’re going to lose games in baseball, it happens to everyone. We just didn’t play well today. Weehawken flat out played better than we did and they deserved to win.”

Strandberg came on in relief in the second inning for Mike Martinez, and took control of the game. He mixed up his pitches and kept a dangerous Becton lineup off-balance. The Wildcats had a handful of chances to get to Stradberg, only to be thwarted by the Weehawken defense.

The Indians got a pair of double plays, one in the fifth inning and another in the seventh, and Orlyn Molano cut down a Becton baserunner trying to steal second in the sixth to help keep the Wildcats at bay.

Orlyn Molano has helped Weehawken improve to 12-6 and qualify for the state tournament for the first time since 2004.

“I just had to throw strikes because I trust my defense behind me,” said Strandberg. “It’s not the first time coach (Stratton) has brought me in with this type of situation. With the way our team hits, we know just one rip and we can get back on the horse. The Lyndhurst loss was tough to take. But today was a new day and if you keep working hard, good things are going to happen.”

Andrew Nasti laced an RBI double and Edgar Montilla followed with a run-scoring single as Weehawken tacked on three more runs in the fifth for the final margin.

Strandberg came on and did a magnificent job in relief, throwing 5 2/3 scoreless innings for Weehawken (12-6). He allowed four hits, struck out six, and did not walk a batter. Martinez and Montilla paced the Indians’ offense with three hits apiece.

Liebeck took the loss for Becton (14-4), but had a fine day at the plate. The senior went 3-for-3 with two RBI’s and two runs scored. Matt Fleck, Ryan Stuiso, and Ross each added two hits. The loss knocked Becton two games back of Lyndhurst. A Lyndhurst win tomorrow over Becton would all but lock up a BCSL-National title for the Golden Bears.

After some lean years recently, Weehawken has had a resurgent season and will appear in the state tournament for the first time since 2004.

“We don’t like to play from behind, but we know we can do it,” added Stratton. “The last three years, we had (13) wins combined. We already have twelve wins this year, so that shows how hard these kids have worked. We know we’re right there with the top teams in our league and had a seventh-inning lead against the top team in our league. We had no pressure coming into this game and we were ready for this game today.”

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