COLLEGEVILLE >> A pitch count was just about the only thing that could stop Mike Strechay.
The Perkiomen Valley junior had two hits and three RBI out of the leadoff spot on Wednesday against Pottsgrove and was even more masterful on the mound, allowing only four singles in 6 2/3 innings while striking out 10 and walking none in an 8-0 Pioneer Athletic Conference victory. PV head coach Ryan Hinkle only removed his starting pitcher after Strechay hit the 100-pitch mark after recording 20 of the 21 outs.
“Yeah, definitely,” Strechay said with a grin when asked if he wished he could have finished what he started.
The triumph snapped a two-game PAC slide for the Vikings, and it was mostly due to its two-way soft-spoken star who was plenty content to let his right arm and bat do most of the talking against the Falcons.
“It was amazing,” Strechay said. “The last two games (against Boyertown and Norristown), we felt like we should have taken both of them. This one was a must-win to stay in the hunt in the PAC and for the district playoffs, so it was good that we got back on track to get a win streak started back up again.”
Strechay and Pottsgrove starter Zayd Rogers traded zeroes for the first four innings, with only four singles produced between the two lineups. Then, in the home fifth, Perk Valley centerfielder Dino Liberi led off with a walk, got to second on a wild pitch and to third on a sacrifice bunt by Liam McNeill, bringing Strechay to the plate with one out.
A smart leadoff hitter knows not to try to do too much in scenarios such as these, and Strechay followed this creed, hitting a 1-0 fastball the other way into right field for an RBI single. The next inning, after an Andrew Kenworthy RBI double put Perk Valley up 2-0, Strechay again came through, this time with the bases loaded, blooping a two-out single to left-center that plated two more runs.
Then, the floodgates opened, with the Vikings scoring four more after Strechay’s hit. They sent 12 batters to the plate in the sixth, scoring seven runs on six hits, giving Strechay plenty of cushion to go back out for the seventh.
“I was sitting on a fastball and he (Rogers) threw it to me both times,” Strechay said of his two big hits. “In the second at bat, the batter before me walked so I was expecting first-pitch fastball. He threw it to me and I barreled it up over the shortstop’s head. It was a very nice feeling, especially on the mound knowing I had a lot more breathing room and didn’t have to stress out about a one or two-run lead.”
On the mound, Strechay was dazzling. He allowed a leadoff single to Ricky Scott in the top of the first and didn’t allow another hit until the sixth, with the only batters to reach in between doing so on an error and a hit by pitch. Strechay struck out the side in the third and whiffed two more in the fourth.
Armed with more finesse than power, Strechay doesn’t blow opposing hitters away with heat. On Wednesday, he changed speeds and located his curveball and changeup with precision, making it impossible for Pottsgrove hitters to sit on his fastball.
“My curveball was definitely my best and most accurate pitch,” he said. “My arm didn’t feel the best at the beginning of the game, not much juice on my fastball but it definitely felt stronger and felt better throughout the game.”
“He changed speeds and worked in his changeup,” Hinkle added. “The key for him was his curveball was working today too, hitting the outside corner very well. A couple batters we just went curveball the whole time; he’s a much better pitcher when he finds his off-speed stuff.”
The Falcons (2-6, 1-4 PAC) had a few chances but were unable to cash in. They put runners on second and third in the first inning, but Strechay struck out Carter Burg to end the threat. Then, with the game still 1-0 in the top of the sixth, Strechay danced out of a first and third, two-out jam, this time getting Burg on a fly out to right.
The offense couldn’t string together enough hits to back Rogers, whose final line of eight hits, seven runs, five walks and four Ks in 6.2 innings is a bit deceiving on paper. He allowed just one run and four hits through five innings before the slumbering Vikings bats woke up.
“Zayd was tremendous today,” Pottsgrove head coach Jamie Nash said. “His stat line doesn’t do him justice, and he just ran out of gas a little bit. For five innings he was great, keeping them off balance by locating his off-speed stuff really well. He was tremendous today, and we’re expecting big things from him.”
Besides Strechay’s offensive heroics, Aidan Autovino (2-for-4, SB, 2 RBI, R), Tyler Gilbert (3-for-3, RBI, R) and Kenworthy (2-for-4, RBI 2B, R) all had big contributions for Perk Valley, especially in that explosive sixth inning.
“There’s lots of good pitching on this team,” Strechay said. “We just need to hit more with runners in scoring position. I know we’re going to score runs, because it seems like every time I get on base I end up scoring.”
The Vikings (5-4, 4-2 PAC) certainly feel like they have the necessary pieces in place. They have impressive wins over Spring-Ford and Upper Perkiomen, so Hinkle likened the Boyertown and Norristown losses to the bottom of a valley or a rollercoaster hill. Perk Valley got knocked down, but the Vikings hope Wednesday’s result springboards the team on a path toward the postseason.
With Strechay leading the charge both on the mound and at the plate, opponents better watch out. Or, at the very least, drive his pitch count up as much as possible to get him out of the game earlier.
“I know my role,” Strechay said. “I try to do whatever I can to help the team win, whether that’s hitting or pitching. If I’m pitching, I try to focus on that more than hitting, because if I do that then I know the hits will come. It definitely gives me a lot of confidence, and hopefully gives the whole team confidence that we can win more games together.”
Perkiomen Valley 8, Pottsgrove 0
Pottsgrove 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 0 4 1
Perk Valley 0 0 0 0 1 6 x – 8 10 1
WP: Mike Strechay 6.2 IP, 4H, 0R, 0BB, 10K
LP: Zayd Rogers 6.2 IP, 8H, 7R, 5BB, 4K
2B: PV- Andrew Kenworthy
SB: PV- Aidan Autovino, Dino Liberi
