Parkland High School Baseball

The Parkland Trojans started their Saturday afternoon game against Freedom in what has become a familiar manner this season.  This time they sent ten batters to the plate in the top of the first inning and by the time the third out was made, the Trojans had seven hits, two for doubles, and a 5-0 lead.  If that wasn't enough, Trojan hitters kept pouring it on in the 3rd inning.  Eleven Trojan batters stepped into the box in the top of the 3rd inning and by the time that inning was over, another five runs crossed the plate on three base hits, four walks and a hit-by-pitch.  With a 10-0 lead after three innings of play, the Trojans added two runs in the 5th inning to win by a score of 12-0 in the 5-inning game.  Five Parkland players had two-hit games today.

Connor Higgins earned the win in a two-hit complete game shutout and improved his record to 4-0 on the season.  Higgins walked one and struck out four in his five innings of work on the mound.  After Higgins retired the side in order in the bottom of the first inning, Freedom had their best chance to score in the 2nd inning when they collected their only two hits of the game.  With runners on second and third base with one out, Higgins got out of the inning with a strikeout and a ground out.   Higgins then went on to retire nine of the next ten batters and struck out the last batter of the game to end it.

Lead-off hitter Jeff Strisovsky (1-for-3, BB, 2 R) singled to open the game and Chris Rabasco (2-for-3, double, 2 R, 2 RBI) doubled to the wall in centerfield to score Strisovsky.  Evan McAndrew (2-for-3, 2 doubles, R, 2 RBI) then followed with a double of his own to the left-center gap to plate Rabasco.  After a Tyler Bruno (2-for-3, BB, R) single, McAndrew scored from third base on a dropped third strike.  Harrison Rabenold (1-for-3, R, RBI) hit an RBI single to score Bruno, followed by a single by Andrew Roth (2-for-3, 2 RBI).  Dan Zaccaro (1-for-1, RBI) then hit a two-out single up the middle to drive in Rabenold and give Parkland the 5-0 lead after one inning. 

In the 3rd, Roth hit a sacrifice fly to score Cullan Wadsworth (0-for-1, BB, HBP, R, 2 RBI) who was hit by a pitch to reach base.  After back to back walks to Austin Mueller (0-for-2, BB, R) and Strisovsky, Justin Afflerbach (2-for-3, R, RBI) hit an RBI single to score Mueller.  Rabasco then singled on a ground ball that bounced over the head of the third baseman to score Strisovsky.  Afflerbach then scored on a McAndrew RBI double and Rabasco then came around to score on a Wadsworth RBI base-on-balls.  Parkland finished their scoring in the 5th inning when pinch hitters Kyle Novobilski and Kyle Friebolin were both hit by a pitch to reach base with one out in the inning.   Bruno singled to load the bases.  With two outs and the bases loaded, pinch hitter Michael Jenkins hit a line drive RBI single to score Novobilksi.  Roth then collected his second hit and second RBI of the game to plate Friebolin and increase the Trojan lead to 12-0.  Higgins then ended the game with a 1-2-3 fifth inning for the 12-0 Parkland win.