St. Ignatius makes a statement

The celebration following St. Ignatius Prep’s 2-0 season-opening victory over nationally ranked Granada was genuine, but make no mistake, it was muted.

At the risk of sounding like a prisoner of the moment, Tuesday’s win might be the biggest in recent school history, but it did nothing to help the Wildcats in their quest for anything they seek this year, beginning with a West Catholic Athletic League crown and a deep run in the Central Coast Section tournament in May.

So, while there was excitement, it comes with an understanding that there’s still plenty of baseball left to be played.

“That’s the cool thing about this group,” said Brian Pollzzie, the Wildcats coach. “They have perspective.”

If nothing else, they made a statement on Tuesday, they know. “And that means a ton,” says junior Archer Horn who drove in a run and picked up a save by striking out five over the final two innings.

Three Wildcats pitchers – Chase Gordon, Spencer Guido and Horn – combined to limit the Matadors to just one hit in notching the season-opening shutout that had all the feel of an end-of-the-season playoff game.

That was made obvious by Horn, who pitched the final two innings and slamming the door by striking out five of the six hitters her faced.

“Playing a good team definitely had the adrenalin pumping,” he said. “My stuff felt really good in the pen and that carried over into the game.”

Horn threw 26 pitches – 19 of them for strikes.

Meanwhile, Gordon was just as sharp on the front end, allowing just a hit, while striking out five over four innings. He didn’t have his best stuff, he says, but he was aided greatly by getting staked to a lead before throwing his first pitch.

“It’s always good to go out and throw that first pitch knowing that you have a lead,” he said. “… Sometimes, when you don’t have you don’t have your best stuff, you just have to find ways to get out and be grateful you have a good defense behind you.”

His not-his-best was plenty good enough against a team that finished last year as the best in Northern California and were ranked fifth nationally. This year, Granada starts the year ranked 12^th in the nation.

“Scoring early was a big deal,” Horn said.

In the top of the first inning, Emmet Johnson singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. D.J. Delaney then bounced on infield single, putting runners on first and second. A.J. Wineinger singled to left field and the ball was bobbled, allowing Johnson to score.

The Wildcats added a run in the second on a Horn single that scored Ryan Rosenthal.

W: Gordon. L: Ravera. S: Horn.