Lancers overcome injuries
By Andy Drukarev
Los Altos Town Crier

St. Francis will have to make do without top pitcher Evan Sanders (elbow inflammation) for at least another week.

After losing two straight games and its ace pitcher and a top hitter to injuries, there were questions about how the St. Francis High baseball team would respond last weekend against Sacred Heart Cathedral and Riordan.

The Lancers answered those questions definitively, emerging with two victories. St. Francis routed Sacred Heart 12-1 Friday and held off Riordan 9-8 Saturday.

“The guys have rallied behind the adversity this week,” Lancers coach Mike Oakland said. “When you face adversity like this, you start to see the real character in players come out. Our character was really strong the last couple of days.”

St. Francis not only proved it can win without top pitcher Evan Sanders (elbow inflammation) and power-hitting outfielder Scotty Jarvis (broken wrist; out for the season), but that it remains a player in the race for the West Catholic Athletic League title. The Lancers improved to 3-2 in the WCAL.

Friday against visiting Sacred Heart – St. Francis’ first game since the injuries to Sanders and Jarvis – Richard McCaffrey took the mound in his first start since pitching a no-hitter against Cappuchino the previous week. Pitching despite a blister on his pitching hand, McCaffrey was effective into the sixth inning Friday, giving up one run while striking out seven for the win.

The junior received plenty of offensive support along the way. Jordan Bredehoeft, Alex Blandino, Chris Hoo and Sam Meyer each had two RBIs.

Saturday at Riordan, the Lancers jumped to a 7-2 lead by the fifth inning behind the bat of Bredehoeft, who had three hits and three RBIs in the game. Riordan rallied in the bottom of the fifth, however, tying the score at 7 by taking advantage of several walks and St. Francis errors.

Both teams scored a run in the sixth, then Bredehoeft came through with the game-winning hit in the seventh. His single to left scored Nick Schulz from second base, giving the Lancers a 9-8 lead.

Andrew Schwartz earned the win in relief of Cole Baylis. Schwartz gave up one run in two innings of work.

St. Francis (15-5 overall) is scheduled to visit St. Ignatius at 3:30 p.m. Friday.

The Lancers are expected to have Sanders back as early as next week. The senior was injured April 1 in an 8-5 loss to rival Bellarmine.

In the meantime, McCaffrey and Baylis are the No. 1 and No. 2 pitchers, respectively. The No. 3 spot remains up for grabs, according to Oakland.

“One of the things that I always tell my guys from the start is that you’re always one pitch away from playing and you’ve got to make sure you’re ready to go when that happens,” the coach said.