Young Grant shows some resiliency
With five sophomores on his roster and four in the starting lineup, Grant coach Dave Behm knew he was in for some bumps along the way this season.
The Bulldogs hit a big bump Friday. A pothole, really.
On a frigid day in which a steady rain made conditions even worse, Grant quickly fell behind by 11 runs to visiting Johnsburg.
But the good news for the young Bulldogs is that they don’t need to visit a mechanic. The pothole caused no permanent damage.
Even though Grant ultimately dropped a 15-8 decision to the Skyhawks, Behm is pleased.
In fighting to get back into the game, his young players showed the resiliency and fortitude that is usually the hallmark of veterans.
The Bulldogs scored 5 runs in the fourth inning to cut their deficit to 5 runs (12-7). They then had a bases-loaded situation in the fifth inning that could have cut their deficit to just one run.
“I was definitely proud of the way we came back,” said Behm, whose team falls to 1-5 on the season. “We were there. We were right there.
“We’ve got a lot of young guys, but those guys know baseball. Some of them were up with us last year as freshmen and did pretty well. I was interested to see what they would do when we got down like that and I was pleased with what I saw.”
Tyler Gorsky, one of the sophomore starters, helped his teammates keep their chins up.
He had 2 hits on the day, including a single in the Bulldogs’ big fourth inning.
Fellow sophomores Jake Ring, Jordan Villarreal and Brent Spor also came up big for Grant with hits or runs.
“We always try to keep each other’s heads up and to be there for each other as a team,” Gorsky said. “Our young guys have a lot of confidence and a lot of faith in each other.
“We’ll be OK. We’re building something here.”
Johnsburg, which improves to 2-5, built up its huge 12-1 lead through four innings thanks in large part to Mike Molway. He belted a home run in the first inning to get the scoring binge started.
On the day, Molway went 3-for-5 with a double as well.
“We’ve been swinging the bats really well,” Johnsburg coach Dann Giesey said. “We came out thundering, everyone in the order, including the bottom of the order. They really couldn’t get Mike (Molway) out. He’s been on fire lately. He had a home run (on Thursday against Antioch). So it wasn’t a surprise how he played today.”
Molway also pitched in relief for starter Brennan Galvin, who now has a 1-1 record on the mound.
The Skyhawks also got 4 hits out of Cam Adams and 2 hits out of Galvin and Colin Ridout.
“(Grant) can hit,” Giesey said. “We knew they were going to come back and make a charge at some point. They didn’t get their heads down at all. They’ve got some good players on that team.”