Baseball: Montini scores 8 in seventh to beat St. Francis
Through six innings Montini's baseball team had one hit and barely managed to get one of its three baserunners to second base.
Then the Broncos decided to flip the script.
Montini exploded for all its runs in the top of the seventh inning while rallying for Saturday's 8-3 Chicago Catholic League crossover victory over St. Francis in Wheaton.
Small ball gave the Broncos (9-1, 1-0) the tie and the lead. Nick Malik's 3-run rocket down the left-field line busted it open before Jack Gerberich's RBI single put a cap on the stunning comeback.
"We just had to get some people on base and make something happen," said Malik, who had 2 seventh-inning hits when the Broncos sent 12 men to the plate. "They had great pitching and we had to adjust to it. You've just got to stay upbeat and do your part."
St. Francis (7-1, 0-1) seemed in command as starting pitcher J.P. Clifford cruised through six innings. Clifford struck out eight and scattered three hits in six-plus innings.
Three walks and a hit batter helped kick-start the Broncos' rally. Jake Rosley, who pitched 6 solid innings to earn the win, J.R. Walsh, Nick Steiner and Alex Luka, who pitched a scoreless bottom of the seventh, each drove in a run without hitting the ball out of the infield.
"We showed a lot of intensity and a lot of resilience," said Montini coach Rich Janor. "We know we can hit the ball one-through-nine. Their pitcher did a great job, but we got it done there in the last inning."
St. Francis scored twice in the first inning on RBI singles by Will Purdom and Foster Heise. Tim Lilly, who went 3-for-4, led off the fifth with a double and scored the Spartans' third run on Purdom's groundout.
While the Spartans suffered their first loss of the season, Montini won for the seventh straight time.
"Tough game," said Spartans coach Nick Hall. "It just wasn't our day. You've got to tip your hat to Montini. They put together that big inning and we couldn't stop the bleeding."
Follow Kevin on Twitter