When asked if anything went well for the Blue Devils in this game, head coach Jay Cook said, “Nope.” He added, “We got outplayed, outcoached, out hustled. We were flat out terrible today, so we have to get better in every aspect of the game, including coaching.”
From the first pitch to the last, ALJ was dominating. After a leadoff triple, they were able to get their first run shortly after, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
In the third inning, Westfield found themselves down 2-0 with the bases loaded and two outs. After a couple of errors, ALJ was able to break the game open with four runs, defeating Westfield’s hopes.
Despite excellent field play from senior right fielder Brian Jordan. His, among a few others, individual efforts were not quite enough to turn the tide for the Blue Devils. Additionally, the Blue Devils had some big hits from senior Liam Sullivan and junior Pete Cabrales.
Another highlight of the game was the low number of strikeouts. Senior Anthony Bulger said, “We had a lot of errors, but other than that, we only struck out once, so that was good. We made solid contact. For the next game, we need to limit the walks and make plays.”
Senior Alex Lawrence said, “From the beginning, we just weren’t executing. Bats weren’t good enough. We didn’t stick to the approach that we talked about all week. The field didn’t show enough urgency.”
Looking forward, he added, “We have a lot of games coming up in the next few days. Sticking to the approach we’re preaching every day. Then the energy off the field, I think it transfers into the field and gets everyone going, so keeping the energy no matter the score is crucial. I think we’ll be alright moving forward.”
Cook, obviously disappointed with the result of the game, didn’t have many areas he thought his team did particularly well, but he was able to identify numerous areas the Blue Devils will look to improve on going forward in the season. Cook said, “We have to get better in every aspect of the game, including coaching.”
In the end, the game ended in a mercy rule loss for the Blue Devils, with the final score being 14-0 ALJ. Next up, the Blue Devils will look to turn their season around as they face off against St. Joseph Metuchen on Monday at 4 p.m.
