Benet's Mogni Comes Through With Second Key Pinch Hit

AURORA – Benet baseball coach Jeff Bonebrake looks at the busy spring training schedule for his team as an opportunity to see just what he has on the roster before conference play.

In that proving ground, junior Andrew Mogni is taking advantage of the chance.

For the second straight day, Mogni came up with a key pinch hit. This time, his two-run double on the first pitch he saw in the sixth, again as a pinch hitter, helped Benet to a six-run inning and a 10-4 comeback win over in non-conference play.

“Bones just told me the first pitch was mine,” Mogni said. “I just saw my pitch and hit it. I was pretty cold. We just warmed up in the cage and stuff happens sometimes.”

With key contributors Pat McInerney (back) and Sam Santa Maria (shoulder) sidelined for the foreseeable future, possibly until mid-May and beyond, Bonebrake is looking for all the help he can get.

In addition to Mogni’s key hit, Chris Stout received his first start of the young season and responded with a pair of RBI singles. The first one got Benet (2-2) on the board in the fourth after a slow offensive start.

But Benet fell behind 3-1 after five innings before exploding. The Redwings sent 10 men to the plate in the six-run sixth and added three more runs in the seventh for good measure to keep Waubonsie winless at 0-3.

“We got a couple of walks, got some kids on base and obviously got a big hit from Mogni,” Bonebrake said. “I just think that kind of loosened us up. Both team started slow offensively. I think as the day got warmer and we got a couple of at-bats under our belts, the pitchers weren’t really fooling anybody. We got some big hits, and that’s exactly what we need this time of year.”

Waubonsie looked poised for its first win of the season early on. Connor Readnor picked up a key two-run double in the fourth to give the Warriors a 2-1 lead. They turned around and got out of the top of the fifth unscathed, with Kyle Limanowski ending the inning with a sliding catch in right field.

Add in an unearned run in the fifth to make it 3-1, and it looked like Waubonsie was on a roll.

But starter James Palasz walked the leadoff man in the sixth, his third leadoff walk of the game, which started Benet’s rally. He recorded an out, allowed a James O’Malley double and an RBI single to Stout that cut the lead to 3-2. He then ceded to Limanowski, who faced three batters without recording an out, losing the lead in the process.

“We just didn’t hit spots today,” Waubonsie coach Dan Fezzuoglio said. “Kyle really hasn’t thrown at all in a game situation. With the weather, it’s tough. Usually he’s more consistent than that.”

After the game, Fezzuoglio’s postgame speech to the team was short and to the point.

“Right now, it’s either one way or the other for them,” Fezzuoglio said. “They can either feel sorry for themselves or they can keep working. It’s still early in the year. Right now, it’s their choice. It’s their team. We just have to keep working from here.”