It’s getting too easy for Benicia High’s varsity baseball team in the Solano County Athletic Conference.
The Panthers scored 16 runs in the second inning and went on to beat visiting Vallejo last Thursday, 18-0. It was the 14th straight SCAC victory for Benicia dating back to last season. The Panthers (15-2 overall) are now 9-0 in conference play this year and have outscored their SCAC opponents 88-5, including six shutout victories and six wins by 10 or more runs.
“There are a lot of young teams in our league right now and I think our experience, our talent and our depth make it hard on those young teams,” said Benicia manager Jim Bowles, who is approaching 300 career victories. “Our team is consistent no matter who we’re playing. We don’t take any team for granted. As long as the other team has a bat in their hands and gloves in the field, we have to do our thing.”
“We have to keep playing with authority and not give in to any teams,” said Benicia senior Fred Williams, who was moved up to the leadoff spot in the lineup and went 3-for-3 with three runs and two RBI.
Williams had two hits in a second inning that simply wouldn’t end. The inning started harmlessly enough with two outs, a runner at first and no runs scored. But that third out took 30 minutes to produce as the Panthers sent 18 more batters to the plate and scored more than three times as many runs in one inning (16) than they’ve allowed in nine SCAC games combined (5).
Caleb Van Blake had a double, a single and three RBI during the outburst. Nate Palmer and Steven Daini each had two-run doubles, and Blake Yarbrough delivered an RBI double. Ramirez added a double, Tanner Marchant had an RBI single, and Anthony Fellman, Jared Hanson and Taylor Greene each had singles.
“We’re starting to swing the bat against everybody and it’s reflected in our margin of victory,” Bowles said.
Benicia pitcher Matt Brown had his usual stellar outing, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out nine in four innings. The senior is now 5-1 with a 0.42 earned-run average.
“It’s hard to pitch after sitting on the bench for 40 minutes, but Matt maintained his focus and continued to do what he needed to do,” Bowles noted.
Adam Draper pitched a scoreless fifth inning to close things out.
Benicia increased its lead in the SCAC to two games thanks to second-place Vanden (7-2 SCAC) losing 4-3 to American Canyon on Friday.
At this point, the Panthers may welcome a little healthy competition from one of their SCAC rivals.
“It does get a little boring, but coming out here and playing the game we all love is still nice,” Williams said.
Benicia hosts last-place Fairfield (1-8 SCAC) on Tuesday.
Leave a Reply