Kass Throws Gem, Marshall Homers, Cardinal Gibbons Prevails

Michael Kass blanked Somerset Academy over six innings and Eddie Marshall clubbed a two-run homer to lift Cardinal Gibbons to a 3-0 regional quarterfinals playoff game victory at home on Wednesday.

Kass yielded just two hits in picking up the win, and walked only two while recording six strikeouts. Jack Campbell earned the save, working out of a seventh-inning jam by slamming the door on Somerset’s final at-bat.

“This game was all about pitching,” said Cardinal Gibbons manager Jason Hamilton. “There were only three hits in the entire game. That wasn’t too expected coming into it but from the Cardinal Gibbons side, we always believe that during this time in the regionals that our seniors and our best players have to step up and they have to win baseball games for us.”

And true to form, they did on Wednesday. “Our best players stepped up and won a baseball game for us today,” Hamilton said. “Our senior, Michael Kass, went six innings strong, shut down one of the best hitting lineups in all of the state of Florida.

“We really believe their 1, 2, 3 hitters rival anybody in the state’s 1, 2, and 3 hitters. They’re really good. And we didn’t allow them hardly to get on base today. So, our plan was if we could control them, we thought we might be in business. So, Mike did a real good job with that.”

And it was Campbell who put out the seventh-inning fire. “Jack Campbell came in, and true to form, this whole year he’s been coming in at the back end of games and closing them out,” Hamilton said.

Marshall provided the Chiefs (21-4-2) with an early cushion, and ironically enough, their only hit of the game. The junior catcher belted a two-run homer to center field in the third inning, scoring George Stringos, who coaxed one of his two walks in the game, to give the home team a 2-0 lead and send them on the way to their 10th consecutive win.

“Eddie Marshall really stepped up and lifted us up to victory,” Hamilton said. “That was really important. That was a big spot (in the game).”

The Chiefs, ranked #6 in Broward, added an insurance run in the fifth without the benefit of a base hit Travis Hogan drew one of two walks in the inning, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on an infield grounder off the bat of Randy Petron to make it 3-0.

“Our offense has been opportunistic all year long,” Hamilton said. “We don’t get a lot of opportunities offensively, but true to form once again, we took advantage of that opportunity. We just basically played Cardinal Gibbons baseball the whole game.”

Somerset pitchers Kareem Amer and Julio Cardosa were outstanding as well. Each went three innings and kept the Chiefs off balance throughout. Amer worked the first three innings, yielding one hit while walking two and striking out two. Cardosa no-hit the Chiefs over the final three innings. The sophomore right-hander struck out four and walked two.

Brandon Mon and Eric Vazquez, Jr. collected a hit apiece for the Panthers (12-14).

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