Fast start for Dock Mennonite in win over Jenkintown
TOWAMENCIN >> Dock continues to land the knock-out punch with its first few swings.
And on Thursday, the Pioneers plated nine runs in their initial at-bat to go hustling towards 11-1.
“We stayed consistent. We had a big first inning and that was nice,” said Dock’s Zach Frederick, who knocked in four runs in his team’s clash with Bicentennial Athletic League rival Jenkintown. “Everybody was getting up there and putting the bat on the ball. It was good to see.”
Frederick had a pair of hits, including a two-run single that was part of that monster first inning, as Dock earned a 12-5 victory over the Drakes.
“I wasn’t finding a whole lot of barrels but I was getting to the gap. So it was good stuff,” Frederick said.
Dock will look to stay hot on Friday, when it hits the road for a battle with West Chester Rustin. Jenkintown (6-5), which got a pair of triples from Sam Schumm, is at Christian Academy Tuesday.
The Pioneers sent 15 batters to the plate in the first on Thursday, with Nate Lapp, Deven Ross, Frederick, Cooper Brannon and Sam Laux all contributing hits.
Dock was off and running.
“We were able to take advantage of some walks and we were swinging the bat. That was the beauty of the first inning – you end up jumping out,” said coach Erik Kratz. “We have (gotten off to fast starts) a lot. We’ve come out swinging it and it always puts you in a great spot to be ahead.”
Frederick and Zach Neff – the two Zachs – each drove in runs in the fifth to pad the lead to 12-3.
Brayden Kratz got the start for Dock, and he threw five solid innings to get the victory.
“For sure,” Kratz said. “Throwing strikes is the biggest thing. Some balls fell in and some things didn’t go our way. But (it’s important that you) throw strikes, field the balls in the infield, catch the balls in the outfield – it sounds very remedial, but it’s very important to do.”
Dock did just that.
“There’s a group of guys here that are really used to winning – in all of the sports that they play,” Kratz said. “Understanding how to win and understanding how to compete is a really, really big thing. And these guys wanna compete. They wanna win.”
Said Frederick: “We gotta lock in and keep doing what we’re doing.”
Dock Mennonite 12, Jenkintown 5
Jenkintown 012 002 0 – 5 10 2
Dock Mennonite 900 030 x – 12 13 1
WP: Brayden Kratz (5IP, 3R, 3ER, 8H, 1K, 2BB).
LP: Milo Condran (1IP, 9R, 9ER, 6H, 0K, 4BB, 1HBP).
3B: J-Sam Schumm.
Multiple hits: J-Schumm 2-for-2, BB, HBP, R, RBI; Will Gouveia 2-for-4, RBI; Tom Walsh 3-for-4, R; D-Nate Lapp 4-for-5, 2R, 2RBI; Sam Laux 2-for-4, BB, 2R, 2RBI; Deven Ross 2-for-2, 2BB, HBP, 2R, RBI; Zach Frederick 2-for-4, SAC, R, 4RBI.
