On a cloudy Tuesday afternoon, the Blue Devils took the field against Barringer for their first game of the North 2, Group 4 sectional tournament. At the core of their 5-0 victory was senior pitcher Grant Como, who threw a one-hit shutout while striking out 13.
“It feels good,” Como said after his dominant performance that propelled Westfield into the second round of the tournament. However, he also added that Westfield needs to “put this game in the past and focus on the next round.”
Head coach Jay Cook echoed praise for Como’s performance, “Grant fields the position very well,” Cook said. “On the mound, he was great. He’s been great all year for us at finding the strike zone and getting weak contact.”
For the first three innings, the Blue Devils struggled offensively, only leading 1-0. However, Como was consistent in getting Westfield back at bat. Senior Jake Alfano said, “It’s easy to get a win when you’ve got a dominant pitcher on the mound like Grant, he pitched very well and that helped the rest of us out a lot.”
In the fourth inning, opportunities would open up for Westfield. A combined effort of batters getting on base allowed for sophomore Pete Cabrales’s double to bring home two base runners. In addition, a bunt from senior Charlie McCormack and a ground out from junior Anthony Bulger would result in RBIs, ending the inning at 5-0.
The bats pitched in to help Como as senior Bradean Trajkovski had an RBI groundout in the first that brought in sophomore Jordan Walsh. Then, when Westfield’s bats came alive in the fourth, it created a comfortable lead for Como.
“We got bunts down and played team baseball,” said Alfano. While Westfield only scored five runs, they had chances for more.
“Situationally, I thought we hit pretty well today,” Cook said. “We could have come up with a couple more timely hits, but those come and go.”
As this was the 3rd seeded Westfield facing the 14th seeded Bears, the Blue Devils were expected to win and they knew that. Even after such a great outing from Como, the team is well aware that this is just the beginning of the tournament. Cook said, “Defensively, we’re going to try to continue what we did today, and then all we can really add is just working on our bats.”
The Blue Devils advanced to the quarterfinal round, where they will face Ferris. The game will take place at home at 4 p.m. on May 29.
