Mustangs baseball finishes job vs. Shaw

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by Devan Matthews

Correspondent

It took nearly a month, but the Maple Heights High School baseball team finally finished a game that was suspended because of darkness.

That game was against Shaw. When the contest was suspended April 8, the Mustangs led by the score of 17-12 in the top of the seventh inning.

On May 1, the rest of the game was played. Maple Heights ended up winning by the score of 17-12 on the road.

The two squads played another game, as well. The Mustangs were victorious in that contest, too, pounding the Cardinals by a 12-2 margin in five innings.

Senior Abdul Ismael was the winning pitcher for Maple Heights, improving his record to 4-2.

Offensively, senior Mark Beechuck was 2-for-3 with two RBIs, while sophomore Aaron Russell smacked a triple and drove in a pair of runs. In addition, sophomore Kevin Thomas had a double and RBI, and junior Sean Williams was 2-for-3.

According to Maple Heights head coach Dan Kovalak, Ismael did a tremendous job on the mound, keeping the Shaw batters off balance for the majority of the ballgame.

"We pretty much had dominating pitching," said Kovalak. "Adbul Ismael gave up eight hits in five innings with two runs and one walk. Offensively, we really hit the ball hard. We had three doubles and a triple. For a singles team like us, that's pretty good."

On May 5, Maple Heights battled Lake Erie League (LEL) Erie Division rival Cleveland Heights on the road.

The game was originally scheduled to be at home for the Mustangs. However, Maple Heights' home field has experienced its fair share of problems this season, especially during wet weather. As a result, the contest was moved to Cleveland Heights.

The change of scenery did not do the Mustangs any good. They lost to the Tigers by the score of 10-0 in five innings.

Ismael pitched the first three innings of the game. He sustained the loss, falling to 4-3.

According to Kovalak, his team faced the best pitcher that Cleveland Heights had to offer.

"He held us to two hits," said Kovalak. "He struck out eight batters, including the first four that he faced. He was changing speeds and moving the ball around. He did a good job against us."

Maple Heights now sports an overall record of 5-10. In addition, the Mustangs are 4-6 in the Erie Division of the LEL.

Maple Heights had an away game scheduled against Parma May 2. However, that contest was postponed due to inclement weather.

As of press time, the makeup date for the Parma game is May 22.

On May 8, the Mustangs will clash with Warrensville at home, and on May 10 they'll host Glenville in a doubleheader.

"Consistency is the biggest thing for us right now, booth at the plate and on the mound," Kovalek said. "We'll need to maintain consistency to be successful."

E-mail: stowsports@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3113