L-R: Dawson Netz, Eddie Lopez and Max Blessinger. From Staff Reports The last five days couldn’t have gone much better for the Maranatha baseball program. The Minutemen swept Whittier Christian on Tuesday and Friday, allowing two unearned runs. On Saturday, Dawson Netz and Trevor Marrs combined to shut down the Oxford Academy, 6-1, allowing just […]
L-R: Dawson Netz, Eddie Lopez and Max Blessinger.
From Staff Reports
The last five days couldn’t have gone much better for the Maranatha baseball program.
The Minutemen swept Whittier Christian on Tuesday and Friday, allowing two unearned runs.
On Saturday, Dawson Netz and Trevor Marrs combined to shut down the Oxford Academy, 6-1, allowing just two hits and a run.
Both Marrs and Netz struck out three batters each.
Max Blessinger added to his remarkable week with three more hits, he drove in a run and score once.
Blessinger had three hits on Tuesday, two on Friday and three more today.
Blessinger finished the week with 8 hits, scored five runs and drove in four.
The sophomore also had 7 stolen bases, and credits hitting coach Al Quintana for his success of late at the plate.
Eddie Lopez also had a huge week.
Lopez had two hits on Saturday.
He also finished the series with Whittier Christian with 5 hits, 5 runs scored and 3 RBIs.
Dawson Netz helped his own cause with two hits and an RBI.
Trevor Marrs tripled, drove in two runs and scored once.
Marco Martinez had a hit, scored once and drove in a run.
Charles Acker also had a hit, run scored and an RBI.
For the week, Maranatha outscored its opponents by a combined score of 27-3.
Of the three runs surrendered, only one was earned.
The Minutemen out-hit Whittier Christian and Oxford Academy 31-6.
Box Score:
Oxford Acad: 0-1-0-0-0-0-0-(1)
Maranatha: 3-1-0-1-0-1-X-(6)
Maranatha coach Matt Shupper: “Max continues to get on base. He sees pitches, he hits the ball hard and when he gets on base, he is at his best. Max puts pressure on the pitcher, catcher and the infield with his base running. He is one the top players in the area and is only a sophomore. He has a tremendous work ethic and will become an even better player over time.
This team continues to do a good job of taking each game one at time. The season is long and we are almost at the halfway point. We have a long way to go still to our end goal. It sounds cliche’ to take it one game at a time, but it’s the truth. We can’t afford to look ahead, we need to play in the moment and be present in the moment”
Maranatha infielder Max Blessinger: “You can attribute the success of my teammates and myself to being consistent with our mental approach. I know that my teammates and I worked hard this offseason, so it has really been about sticking to my approach and coming out with intensity.”
Maranatha infielder-DH Eddie Lopez: I feel like everything is finally falling into place and we’re working well as a team now. Our pitching is keeping runs to a minimum and our bats are hot. And for me, all I try to do is put the ball in play and give our team a chance to score. I’ve been seeing the ball really well and when I come up to bat, I try to impact the game in any way possible.”
Maranatha pitcher Dawson Netz: “I really enjoyed being able to watch my teammates work well together, especially in situations where I felt that I had made a mistake on the mound. They always had my back whether it was on offense or defense.”
Olympic League Standings:
Maranatha (11-2 overall, 5-1 in league)
Village Christian (9-2, 5-1)
Valley Christian (9-5, 2-2)
Whittier Christian (9-9, 2-4)
Heritage Christian (5-8, 0-6)
