CROSS RIVER, N.Y. - On Friday, April 17, John Jay welcomed its namesake from East Fishkill to the high school, and the Wolves knew exactly what they were up against. AAA versus A, but the home team refused to get caught up in numbers or classifications.
They jumped out to a 5-0 lead and went on to secure an 8-4 victory.
The visitors opened strong, as if size mattered. Anthony Batkay led off with a single, and Aiden Sehkri was hit by a pitch. But the momentum shifted quickly when Storch wheeled around and picked Batkay off first.
The early threat faded further when Noah Santana stepped in. After launching a double to deep center, Santana and Sehkri were stranded as Storch got Kole Mullen to ground out to second.
John Jay responded in the bottom half. Jackson Moreo reached on an infield single between short and third, Storch walked, and after a wild pitch, Ben Kalish put the Wolves on the board with a sacrifice fly.
In the second inning, an injury forced Storch to give way to Moreo, and the transition from center field didn’t slow him down. After two quick groundouts, Moreo worked around a walk and an error that put a runner in scoring position. He struck out Batkay to end the inning, then immediately contributed at the plate.
His teammates set the table. Luca Maiuolo reached on an error, Eli Tubbs singled through the left side, and Nate Summer dropped down a perfect bunt along third. Aidan Chernick flew out without advancing the runners, but Moreo delivered in a big way, driving a bases-clearing double to right.
Ty Beshara followed with a deep drive of his own. Moreo came around to score, extending the lead to 5-0. A single by Kalish nearly added more, but Beshara was tagged out at home trying to slide in.
East Fishkill refused to fold. Lucas Perillo homered to right, and after Mullen walked, Ayden Vitale lined a double to deep center to bring in another run.
John Jay answered immediately. Fisch doubled with one out, Chernick walked, and Nate Summer delivered again with a double down the left-field line. The Wolves extended their lead to 7-2.
Through three innings, a 1-4-3 double play helped keep momentum on John Jay’s side. Still, East Fishkill responded, as Batkay doubled and Austin Seipp added an RBI single.
After a quiet bottom half for John Jay, Moreo took control on the mound. With runners on first and second and no outs, he recorded back-to-back strikeouts to escape the jam.
In the top of the next inning, Moreo helped himself again. With Tubbs and Summer both singling and Chernick reaching after being hit by a pitch, Moreo added another RBI single.
With six outs remaining, Moreo opened the sixth with a strikeout, but Perillo struck again with his second home run of the game. Henrik Zhai entered in relief. Although Santana singled and Mullen walked to spark a rally, Batkay then drove a ball deep to center, just short of changing the game’s momentum.
After Zhai allowed a leadoff single in the seventh, he turned a potential rally into disaster for the Patriots by picking off the runner. Two batters later, the Wolves closed out the win and sent East Fishkill home empty-handed.
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