Jupiter Comes Through Early And Holds On Late To Clip Park Vista

Scott Danek went 2-for-4 with two RBI.

Two perennial powers took the field Friday night in a non-district matchup. With tough district games ahead, one would think both teams would take this as another game before returning to their district slate. However, that is never the case when Jupiter faces Park Vista.

“We did this by design,” Vista head coach Larry Greenstein said. “We wanted two really tough opponents during Spring Break.”

After knocking off Dwyer on Thursday, the Park Vista Cobras fell to the Jupiter Warriors 10-7 on Friday. With two teams riding different emotional swings, no one anticipated what the contest would bring early on.

The Warriors set the tone early on. Still ticked from leaving 11 runners on base on Wednesday, the Warriors made a few changes to their line-up on Friday night.

“Guys worked hard during practice and showed me they needed some extra time. I reward players that continually work hard for me,” Jupiter coach Andy Mook said about the lineup changes. “Scott Danek shows me everyday that he’s capable of starting. He’s a five-tool guy and showed it tonight.”

The moved paid off for Mook as replacements paced the five-run first inning. Back-to-back doubles by Victor Gonzalez and Scott Danek keyed the top of the first. Gonzalez’ double brought in one, while Danek brought in two for an early lead.

Spotted an early 5-0 lead, starter Lance Fry did his best to keep it that way, as he brushed off three easy frames of one-run baseball. The only damage came in the bottom of the third when Tyler Kendall punched an RBI single passed a diving Cole Johnson at second base.

The Warriors quickly added to their lead in the top of the frame, as they took advantage of a miscue on the mound to score two more runs. Johnson fly ball to left field brought in Kyle Keatts, who singled earlier in the inning.

For Fry that was more than enough, as the right-hander went on to throw five strong innings, striking out seven, while giving up four hits.

“I have to hit my spots,” Fry said. “I feel like I came with my ‘A’ game tonight. Ronnie Healy called a great game and I just hit his glove.”

However, the big cushion would not last as the Cobras came roaring back in the bottom of the sixth. The Cobras tallied five runs on four hits. Back-to-back-to-back singles by Matt Paciello, Chris Wurster and Shane Bussey each brought in a run, while Kendall drove in his third run of the game with a sacrifice fly to left to make it 8-7. With the tying run on second base and two outs, Jupiter reliever Gonzalez shut the door on the rally with an inning-ending strikeout.

The Warriors fed of the momentum, as they got their first two men on. After a passed ball that put runners on second and third, the Warriors looked prime for a big inning. However, recently called-up sophomore Bruce Bechtal had others plans, as he set down two batters with a groundout and strikeout. He looked to be out of the inning when he induced a ground ball to the third baseman, but the ball hopped over Bussey and scored both runners to make it 10-7.

After being staked two more runs, Gonzalez mowed down the heart of the order to record the save.

Despite the early deficit, Park Vista never quit.

“It’s a good lesson to learn,” Greenstein said. “When things are not looking good, you can’t just pack it and give up. You have to chip away and good things will happen.”

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