John Jay bats come alive in victory over Edgemont

Aidan Chernick singles and drives in a run for John Jay. Jackson Moreo delivers to the plate as he hurled a gem to lead John Jay to the win. Luca Maiuolo rips an RBI single. Ben Kalish slides into home as he scores a run for the Wolves. JIM MACLEAN PHOTOS

By JIM MACLEAN

One bad pitch, first batter of the game, and one run in a hurry across the plate and you are behind, but John Jay pitcher Jackson Moreo didn’t let it get to him as he settled and didn’t allow another run to score.

Moreo hurled six innings and allowed just that one run and two hits while striking out eight, and John Jay came alive at the plate ripping 10 solid hits and cruising to an 11-1 victory at home over Edgemont on March 30.

“Feels great, first time on the bump this year, so I was a little nervous that first inning, but I just trusted my stuff, trusted my teammates and we got it done,” Moreo said after the victory. “The defense was great today, they made a lot of big plays behind me and made it easier for me. Then the bats got us going and everybody was fired up. It’s a lot easier to pitch with a lead and this was great, especially at home with a lot of people that came out for us today.”

A big crowd was on hand to cheer on the Wolves, and Edgemont tried to silence the crowd with a lead off double in the first inning, and the runner scored on a wild pitch before the Wolves had recorded an out.

However, Moreo then struck out the next two batters and he was on a roll for the rest of the game. And John Jay didn’t waste any time at the plate as the Wolves responded in the bottom of the first to take control.

Ty Beshera led off with a walk for the Wolves and he then stole second and third and came in to score on an RBI single from Jacob Storch. Ben Kalish walked, and Storch stole third and came in to score on a fielders choice to give the Wolves the lead at 2-1, and Kalish then scored to make it 3-1 at the end of the first inning.

John Jay then broke it open with a big third inning. Storch led it off with a walk. Amogha Bhat reached on a walk, and then Luca Maiuolo ripped an RBI single to make it 4-1. That was the first of four-straight hits for the Wolves as Aidan Chernick followed with an RBI single, Luke Fisch drilled an RBI double, and Eli Tubbs brought Fisch home with an RBI single to make it 7-1 at the end of the third.

The Wolves added another run in the fourth as Kalish reached on a single and Maiuolo came through once again with another RBI single to make it 8-1.

John Jay closed it out early in the sixth inning as Moreo ripped a double to lead it off. Kalish had an RBI single and Chernick had a sacrifice fly for another and the Wolves made it 11-1 to reach the 10-run rule and finish off the Panthers.

An impressive performance all around on the mound by Moreo, and at the plate and in the field as the Wolves put together a team effort for the win.

“Jackson gave up that lead off double and then he settled right down,” John Jay coach Ted Lawrence said of Moreo. “He found his rhythm and kept throwing strikes, putting the ball over the plate. We made the plays on defense, he got some strike outs and we settled in. Then the bats looked good up and down the lineup. It’s a matter of finding it, with a new team, a new lineup, we’re four games in and starting to get a sense of who will swing the bat. That’s baseball, just keep making adjustments throughout the season and see who’s hot.”

It was the second-straight impressive performance on the mound for the Wolves as John Jay had scored a 3-0 win on the road at Croton on March 27, behind a combined no-hitter from starter Jack Garneau and reliever Mason Federice. Garneau was the starter to record the win, and Federice got the save as he came on to close out the victory and the no hitter.

Maiuolo was hot at the plate as he ripped two doubles, and Storch also had two hits for the Wolves.

John Jay hoped to carry the momentum over to Thursday, April 2, as the Wolves were set to host Ardsley. The Wolves then finish spring break with a game on the road at Harrison on Saturday, April 4, before heading off to Florida for a chance to play at the New York Mets facility in Port St. Lucie.