Falcons flying lower than expected
Whitnall baseball team yet to bust loose despite high hopes
Ben Schaefer of Whitnall atempts a double play after forcing out Zach Schmidt of New Berlin West on June 17 at Whitnall High School. New Berlin West won the game, 6-5. Photo By John Williams
Greenfield — Consistency. It is something Whitnall baseball coach Brian Johnsen wishes his team displayed more of, yet it is something that eluded his squad the last two seasons.
After turning in a 20-win campaign a year ago (20-15 overall) and enduring an exhilarating postseason run that ended in a 10-inning, 28-run affair with Muskego in the sectional final, Johnsen expected this year's squad to ride that momentum into 2010. This has not happened yet. As of Monday, the Falcons were just 9-7 overall and 6-4 in the Woodland Conference Black Division, and lack of consistency is a big reason why.
"There are a lot of close games we've lost that with a couple plays here and there, we could be a lot better off than where we are," Johnsen said. "I'm a little disappointed with where we are. If we make a play or two, we'd be much better off.
"It is a little frustrating. It's not from a lack of effort. We need our guys to step up and make more plays defensively. Our pitchers have given us a chance to win on a daily basis. We've expected a lot more. We've played some challenging nonconference games and we've also gone through the tougher part of our conference schedule. We know there's a lot of season left and we feel we'll get better and still surpass 20 wins."
One year after failing to win more than four consecutive games, the Falcons entered this week riding their first three-game win streak by taking the second game of a doubleheader against visiting South Milwaukee, 6-5, June 22; beating Brown Deer, 10-5, at home June 24; and edging host Pewaukee, 5-3, Friday.
And of the Falcons' seven losses, five have been by two or fewer runs.
"We need to make a couple more defensive plays and we need to have more consistency day in and day out," Johnsen said. "We at times ride the roller coaster, where we get a little too high and a little too low. Good or bad, we let events ride out a little too long. We need to be more consistent and move on."
Whitnall's winning streak comes on the heels of a four-game losing skid, of which the final loss came in the opener of the doubleheader with South Milwaukee. The Falcons rallied from a 9-5 deficit thanks to a solo home run by Geoff Wisialowski in the sixth inning and a two-out, three-run double by Dustin Devine in the seventh to tie the score but fell, 11-9, in eight innings.
Devine finished with five RBIs.
During the second game, the Falcons survived a game-tying grand slam by South Milwaukee's Eric Marlowe in the seventh inning to win the nightcap, 6-5, on Aaron Hushek's one-out, bases-loaded single in the bottom of the seventh that made Jessie Jimenez a winner in relief of starter Nolyn White.
"I was proud of the way we came back after that grand slam," Johnsen said. "We could have easily folded but we responded for a big win."
In the five-run win over Brown Deer, Ryan Regeth had a two-run single and Ben Schaefer knocked in one during a four-run fourth inning that gave Whitnall an 8-4 lead. Schaefer finished three for three and Luke Mentkowski, Wisialowski, Regeth and Devine had two hits each.
Against Pewaukee, Nathan Dupont allowed three runs through three innings but overcame the rough start to pick up the win by throwing six solid frames. Brock McGinn pitched a scoreless seventh for the save.
Devine went three for three with two triples and two RBIs, including the eventual game-winner in the fifth.
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