Aces cruise past Devils, 10-0
Apr. 28—Owensboro Catholic jumped ahead early — and stayed ahead.
The red-hot Aces baseball team scored five first-inning runs and never looked back in a 10-0 five-inning victory over visiting Owensboro on a made-to-order Tuesday night at Chautauqua Park's Independence Field.
Catholic — improving to 14-2 with its 10th straight win — got a sterling pitching performance from E Munsey, who blanked the Red Devils with a one-hitter.
"The fastball was there, the curveball was iffy, but my knuckleball was working well," Munsey said. "Plus, I had great defense behind me — our guys made some very good plays in this one.
"And, it's always nice to get that early lead and be able to work with it. We have a lot of experience, we love to come to the park and play the game, and we're always looking forward to the next opportunity."
Catholic's first-inning uprising was spearheaded by Hunter Small, who clubbed a two-run double. The Aces also got a run-scoring single, and two more runs scored on a passed ball and a wild pitch.
"Getting on top early in this one was huge for us," OCHS coach Derek Hibbs said. "E was sharp, our defense was sharp, and we were able to get several key hits with runners on base.
"Kudos to our guys — they came out ready to play and they took care of business."
Catholic extended its lead to 7-0 in the third when John Michael Frey stroked another RBI single and Jamison Wall crossed the plate after a wild pitch.
The Aces ended matters with three runs in the fifth inning. Finley Munsey drove in two runs with a single and Wall scored on an infield error.
"We've got a lot of young guys," Owensboro coach Logan Johnson said, "and right now they're getting a lot of valuable experience — the kids are still learning.
"We'll have a bad inning, then a good inning, and right now we're celebrating the good innings and working hard to have more of them.
"Catholic is solid and balanced, with a lot of pitching depth."
The Aces finished with 11 hits and were led by Frey, the ninth-place hitter who was 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored. Wall, batting eighth, was 2-for-2 with two runs scored, and Finley Munsey was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.
Catholic was errorless afield.
The Red Devils, who slipped to 2-3, got their lone hit in the third inning when Cayden Ray reached on an infield single.
The Aces return to action at noon on Saturday with a visit to Henderson County, and Owensboro is idle until Monday when they play host to Heritage Hills (Ind.) at 5:30 p.m.
OWENSBORO 000 00 — 0 1 1
OWENSBORO CATHOLIC 502 03 — 10 11 0
WP-E. Munsey. LP-Delacey. 2B-Small, F. Munsey (OC).
