THURSDAY, APRIL 20. 2000
Tigers break out whuppin' sticks
By Dave Feltner
Sports Editor
ATTICA -- Kurt Weaver may wake up this morning with a few extra bruises, but he's not likely to complain.
The Seneca East clean-up hitter got mobbed by his teammates at home plate after his three-run homer in the third inning provided a lofty springboard for a 9-2 win over Calvert.
Weaver's blast came after the Senecas (4-6, 1-3 Midland Athletic League) elected to walk .952 hitter Mike Breyman, who entered the game with nine homers in 21 at bats.
"The reception Kurt got when he came home was just great; those guys just beat the heck out of them because they were just so excited," said Seneca East coach Frank Lamoreaux, whose team improves to 7-0 overall and 3-0 in the MAL. "Something like that really builds your team unity, knowing we don't have to rely on just one guy. Let's get all fourteen (players) in there and get it done."
Considering the circumstances, Weaver's homer carried special significance. When Calvert took the bat out of Breyman's hands with a pair of intentional walks, the pressure was placed directly on Weaver, who delivered big both times.
Seneca East's Nate Leber singled to start the Tiger first, and when Jason Burkholder drew a walk, Calvert coach Rick Demith ordered the intentional walk of Breyman to load the bases.
That brought up Weaver, who lined a single to left, bringing home Leber to ignite a three-run first.
Weaver finished the game 3-for-3 with four RBIs, while Burkholder was 2-for-2 with a homer. Brian Bischoff, Seneca East's No. 5 hitter, also homered.
"That was our game plan; make them (not Breyman) beat us, and they did," Demith said. "So after the game I went over and shook Kurt's hand, shook Burkholder's hand and shook Bischoff's hand. They did a great job hitting. When they hit the ball like that, they're going to protect Mike."
Breyman managed to squeeze in a single and a double in his final two at bats, bringing his average to .957, but he did the real damage with his arm.
Breyman fired a two-hitter with nine strikeouts to improve his record to 2-0. He allowed an infield single to Eric Lee to start the game, and a two-run homer by Bart Fisher in the fourth. Breyman retired 10 of the final 11 hitters he faced.
"I think as Mike gets older he's beginning to realize he doesn't have to rely on strikeouts to get people out," Lamoreaux said. "He's got a defense behind him. He can let people hit the ball, and hopefully we'll continue to field it well and help him out that way.
"And that's a good hitting team over there," he said of the Senecas. "Calvert, the last four or five years, has been as good, if not better, than anyone in this league when it comes to hitting the ball."
Joe Holmer doubled, singled and drove in three runs for the Tigers.
Dustyn Risner took the loss for Calvert, giving up eight runs in 3 1/3 innings. A silver lining for the Senecas was freshman pitcher Ryan Keefe, who allowed just one run over the final 2 2/3 innings.
"What we felt coming into the game was that Mike is a great hitter, and (Seneca East) really feeds off him," Demith said. "So we wanted to try and frustrate him a bit by walking him. Now, that only works if you pitch well to the other guys, and they hit the ball well. I mean, home run, double, single, another home run ... they hit it well, and tonight they proved they were a better team."
Breyman is now 22-for-23 this season, with all 22 hits coming in succession. The only time he's been retired all year was his first at bat of the season against Monroeville two weeks ago.