After a Slow Start, Park View Gets a New Spring in Its Step

By Matt Brooks (Contact)

Monday, April 13, 2009

One year ago, the Park View Patriots were stuck at 1-4 in the Dulles District, floundering at the bottom of the league standings despite an experienced roster that included seven seniors and eventual Region II Player of the Year Dylan Smith.

This spring started much the same way, with the Patriots stumbling to a 1-4 start overall and 1-3 in the district. And the experience of last year's lineup has been replaced with a slew of young arms and position players.

But after a strong run to the championship game of the Cheers Sports spring break tournament this week, the Patriots (5-5, 2-3 AA Dulles) appear to be turning a corner. With a win over O'Connell in their tournament opener April 4, followed by a come-from-behind victory over county rival Dominion and a shutout of Wakefield, the tournament co-hosts held an unblemished record heading into Tuesday night's championship game against Marshall.

"If you would have told me we were going to be 3-0 going into the championship game, I would have told you, 'I think you're crazy,' " Park View Coach Mickey Leap said. "But the kids played real well, and they hung in there."

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Park View Beats Dominion in Spring Break Tournament

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Park View's Andrew Mason doesn't quite get to the ball hit to short center field in the top of the 3rd inning. He had backup from teammate Hayden Earley. (Katherine Frey)

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Park View's Jonathan Mason beats the ball for an RBI triple in the 3rd inning against Dominion. Park View went on to win 9-5. (Katherine Frey)

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Park View's catcher Jonathan Mason gets the tag and out at home on Dominion's Ryan Doyle in the 4th inning. (Katherine Frey)

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Park View's relief pitcher Trevor Scales celebrates the third out in the 7th inning to clinch the 9-5 win over Dominion. (Katherine Frey)

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Freshman starter Bobby Mason was not effective against the Statesmen, and the Patriots fell, 11-1, in the title game, but the loss capped a weekend in which their younger players gained valuable experience at the plate and on the mound.

Mason notched a save against O'Connell in the opener, sophomore Sam Ryan pitched 362/37 innings to get the win in that game and many of Park View's other freshmen and sophomores played well.

But the seniors led the way, as Johnny Mason went six for 12 for the tournament, including three doubles against Dominion, and Ben Rosado picked up the win against the Titans after allowing a single earned run on six hits while striking out five. Both were named to the all-tournament team.

"It's kind of tough on them, because they've been on a couple of teams that were pretty good, and they've never been surrounded with young talent before," Leap said of his six seniors. "So they have to step up and lead the way, and they're doing a great job at it."

In Losses, Lessons for Panthers

With a 4-0 start that included three straight mercy-rule victories, Potomac Falls traveled to Charleston, S.C., looking to stay hot — and enjoy some warm weather — at the 40th annual Hanahan Invitational.

The weather did not cooperate, and neither did the Panthers' first opponent, James Island (S.C.), which handed Potomac Falls its first defeat of the season. But the Panthers bounced back with two dramatic victories and went away with a 2-2 mark in the three-day event.

Potomac Falls (6-2, 4-0 AA Dulles) needed extra innings in both of its wins. Against Starr's Mill (Ga.) on Tuesday, sophomore Ben Sweger's two-run homer tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, and sophomore Matt Hoover singled in sophomore Ryan Mahoney for the 7-6 final margin.

Then, on Wednesday, the Panthers rallied from 9-5 down against Perry (Ohio) in the bottom of the sixth on sophomore Ryan Miller's game-tying grand slam. After the Panthers fell behind again in the seventh, senior Mike Spring hit a two-out, three-run homer to send the game into extra innings, and Sweger's single in the bottom of the eighth brought home the run for a 14-13 win.

"I think this will help us if we make it through to the postseason," Potomac Falls Coach Joe Terango said. "It's hard to get kids acclimated to sleeping in a strange place and getting up and playing a baseball game the next day. Just to have that experience under your belt, if you do have the opportunity to travel in postseason play, that's something you can't replicate without taking a trip like we did."

Stone Bridge joined the Panthers in Charleston, and after falling in its opener against SW Miami, reeled off three straight victories with a combination of strong pitching and timely hitting. The Bulldogs (8-3, 3-2 AAA Liberty) shut out Hedgesville (W.Va.), 10-0, on sophomore Stephen Putnick's one-hitter, outlasted Perry, 14-8, in eight innings with two home runs from senior Johnny Bladel, and pounded Miami Senior in Wednesday's finale, 13-3.

Extra Points

By Paul Tenorio and Matt Brooks