The Grand Blanc Cats 11u travel baseball team played 4 more games this past week, going 3-1.
Game one, against the Kearsley Sting Gold team, resulted in a 19-7 victory. Grand Blanc continued their aggressive offensive play, with 19 hits. Sean Seaton and Justin Pijaszek led the Cats, both going 3 for 3 with 2 singles and a double each, scoring 3 runs and adding 4 RBI. With a revamped stance at the plate, Zach Wurtz went 3 for 3, with 3RBI. After a shaky start pitching, Brian Lendzion and Logan Fleming were solid on the mound, holding the Sting to 1 hit, 1 walk, and 1 run over the final 3 1/2 innings.
In the next contest, the Cats took on a very good Lapeer Outlaws Black team, and fell just short in their comeback attempt, losing their first game of the year 12-9. The Cats took an early 4-0 lead, after a solid defensive 1st, turning their 4th double play of the year. A patient Lapeer team came up with 6 hits and worked Grand Blanc pitching for 5 walks over the next two innings, pushing 11 runs across the plate which proved to be the difference in the game. Fleming and Keagan Titmuss held the Outlaws to only 2 hits and 2 walks over the final 3 innings giving the Cats a chance to come back. Joey Moore led the way going 2 for 3 with a double and a single. Preston West added 2 singles, scoring and driving in a run.
On Saturday May 21st, the Cats had a double header against the Fenton Crush. Grand Blanc had a huge day at the plate, wining by the scores of 12-0 and 15-2, adding to their league-leading 111 runs through 9 games. In the first game, Cooper Prue was outstanding on the mound, throwing a complete game and giving up only 3 hits and 2 walks. Seaton had a first inning single that drove in a pair of runs. Fleming and Wurtz each had a double in the 3rd inning driving in 3 more runs. In the 2nd game Lendzion and Pijaszek combined to give up only 2 runs on 4 hits. The offense was led by Prue with a single and a double driving in 3 runs.
If you are planning to leave a GB Cats 12U game before the final out is recorded, you might want to reconsider. For the third time in four games the Cats had to battle to the end of a game, resulting in a 10-10 tie with the New Lothrop Hornets in a game called due to darkness in the Greater Flint Baseball League. Gage Sullivan’s two out single drove in the final two runs allowing the Cat’s to remain unbeaten in GFBL action. Brendan Pedrin had a monster game, going 3 for 4 with 5 RBIs in leading his team back after some shaky Cats fielding led to 4 unearned runs earlier in the game. Connor Carlson had a double among two hits while Cal Smeets reached base all 4 times in the game. The Cats are set to face the Michigan Diamond Kings in a battle for first place in the division.
Cal Smeets and Blake Bogan of the Grand Blanc 12U Cats combined to hurl a no-hitter against Mag Auto in Greater Flint Baseball League action. Smeets recorded 5 strikeouts in his two innings of work while Bogan came in and fanned 8 hitters in 3 innings.
The Cats did enough damage in the first inning (6 runs scored) and added runs late to earn a 10-0 victory. Leading the Cats offense was Bogan and Gavin Anderson each with two hits while Smeets, Anderson and Gage Sullivan scored two runs a piece. Next action for the undefeated Cats will be Tuesday night against New Lothrop.
The Grand Blanc Cats 11u travel baseball team had three Greater Flint Baseball League games on their slate in the last week and left no doubt about their team’s potential, posting victories in all three tilts.
In the opener of the week, the Cats defeated the Kearsley Sting 14-5. Starting pitcher Keagan Titmuss threw two shutout innings to begin the game and the combination of Cooper Prue, and Logan Fleming combined to close it out. Garrett Lesser had a great game at the plate, going 3 for 3 with five stolen bases three runs scored. Brian Lendzion added a single and a double, driving in two runs. Zach Wurtz added a stolen base and scored a run.
The Cats then played their first of two straight against Linden and shut the Eagles out, 9-0. Morningstar, Lendzion and Fleming combined to throw a 3-hitter with nine strikeouts and a paltry three walks. The defense shined as well, getting out of a bases loaded, no-out, jam in the sixth inning with shortstop Prue making a back-handed snag and throwing home for the out. Sean Seaton had a huge day at the plate, going 3 for 3, with three doubles, and five RBI. Joey Moore and Preston West each had a single and double to add to the Cat’s attack.
Game two against the Eagles promised to be more of a struggle, with Linden looking for some revenge. Linden scored two in the second to take a 2-1 lead, and then the Cats scored two in the bottom half of the second and 3 in both the third and fourth innings to take a commanding 9-2 lead. The Eagles fought back with 3 more in the 5th, but Seaton closed out Linden in the 6th to preserve the victory. Fleming went 2 for 3 with 4 stolen bases and 2 runs scored. Nolan Lawrence added an RBI single 5th andTitmuss was 2 for 2 with a pair of singles to highlight the Cats attack.
Lawson Bainbridge can play every outfield position for Mark Bednar’s 12U Grand Blanc Cats Travel Baseball team and even a little second base when called upon as well. His value, however, was at the plate last week as his sixth inning single broke a 5-5 tie and propelled the 12U squad to a 7-5 win over Frankenmuth at American Legion Field in Flint. Brandon Bednar, fresh off a leg injury that sidelined him for eight weeks, took the mound and stifled the Hawks for four innings, allowing no hits and striking out seven.
Third baseman Brendan Pedrin started the Cats scoring in the first with a sacrifice fly to score Gage Sullivan who had doubled. Pedrin later knocked in another two runs following a double by catcher Andrew Lannon and a single by shortstop Gavin Anderson. Sullivan relieved Bednar and closed out the Hawks to record the save. The 12U Cats take on New Lothrup at American Legion on May 17, looking to improve on their perfect record of 3-0.
The Grand Blanc Cats 12U Cats rallied in the last inning to steal a 9-6 victory from the Linden Eagles in their opening game of the Greater Flint Baseball League season.
Andrew Lannon took the hill in his pitching debut and struck out 4 in 3 innings of work. He left the game with a 2-1 lead after hitting a triple in the top of the first inning, scoring on a fielders choice, and Lawson Bainbridge’s RBI single knocking in Cal Smeets in the second inning. The Cats added 3 in the 4th, with the help of Nolan Hamilton’s 2 RBI single down the right field line.
The Eagles stormed back by scoring 5 runs in the bottom of the 4th. A potential 6th run was cut down at the plate as Blake Bogan fired a dart to the catcher when a Linden player tried to stretch a triple to an inside the park homerun. The Eagles took a 6-5 lead into what was determined to be the last inning due to darkness.
In the top of the 5th, Lannon scored the tying run on a single by Gavin Anderson and Hunter Carnell drove in Sullivan and Anderson on a double to right center field to take an 8-6 lead . After Carnell stole third base, Brendan Pedrin brought him home with a perfect sacrafice bunt up the first base line adding an insurance run to seal the 9-6 win after the Eagles could not score in their last at bats.
The first inning proved to be the decisive one for the Grand Blanc Cats 10U travel team as they sent every player to the plate and scored nine runs enroute to a 17-6 thrashing of the Davison Cardinals. The Cards actually got on the board first with pair of hits in the first inning but Cats starter Eric Delgado settled in and ended the inning with a pair of strikeouts to strand three baserunners. Grand Blanc reupted in their half of the inning with centerfielder Donovan Vanitvelt batting twice and getting two hits in the opening inning. Davison came back with five runs of their own in the second, but a diving catch by centerfielder Tyler Pasko killed the Cardinal’s chances at a huge inning.
Drew Kranz relieved Delgado in the third and pitched two inning of shutout ball to handcuff the heart of the Davison order and the Cat’s Toby McLean highlighted the inning for Grand Blanc with a leadoff double, starting the six run third. Kranz shut down Davison in the final inning as the game halted due to the time limit rule, with a 17-6 Cats win.
