-
Skyline sophomore starting pitchers throws against De Anza College on Thursday, March 13.
-
Skyline sophomore outfielder Marcus Cornelio celebrates reaching third base after De Anza College’s left fielder loses a fly ball in the sun.
-
Skyline freshman pitcher Anthony Kabrich throwing in the seventh inning against De Anza.
-
-
Skyline freshman catcher Josh Kaplan shows the ball to the umpire after tagging a runner at home from a throw by Cornelio in left field.
-
Kaplan celebrates after the call is confirmed to be out on the outfield assist.
-
Skyline freshman pitcher Declan Mendel throws in ninth inning against De Anza.
Skyline baseball bounced back on Thursday, returning to the win column after suffering back-to-back losses against last week Gavilan College and De Anza College to start conference play this week. The 6-2 win over the Mountain Lions was important for the Trojans, tying the series and giving the team a chance to win it this Saturday.
Trojans sophomore outfielder Marcus Cornelio stood out, going 1-for-2 with two walks, a run scored, an RBI, and an outfield assist, throwing a runner out at home. Cornelio hasn’t had many opportunities recently, but he has continued to work hard in practice and made the most of his chance today.
Skyline head coach Tony Brunicardi said that Cornelio keeps improving and brings strong energy to the team. He noted that Cornelio delivered a big hit and made multiple good defensive plays.
“He came in with a big knock and a big defensive play,” Brunicardi said. “Actually made a couple really nice plays on defense. That was the guy that really had us going.”
Cornelio said his main focus is doing whatever he can to contribute and support his teammates.
“I’m just doing whatever I can to help out the team, putting myself on the line and helping whatever way I can,” Cornelio said.
On the pitching side Skyline sophomore starting pitcher Anthony Andrews delivered five strong innings, earning the win while allowing just one run. After Andrews exited, Skyline sophomore Brode Gann came in for relief in the sixth inning and worked a quick, scoreless frame.
Gann also credited the Skyline offense for responding after a quiet stretch.
“The offense really grinded their at-bats today,” Gann said. “It’s a good team over there, but none of their pitchers have anything we can’t handle. We stayed disciplined with our approach and the offense took care of itself and really grinded out those runs.”
Brunicardi added that he was happy with the team’s performance, particularly the offense’s bounce back.
“The offense has been a little quiet lately, not scoring over the last couple games,” Brunicardi said. “But today they did a really good job of grinding out at-bats.”
The Trojans finished the game with freshman Declan Mendel pitching two shutout innings to secure the victory.
Skyline will look to carry momentum into Saturday as it faces De Anza again with the series on the line.
