Im’s walkoff single leads Justin-Siena past Petaluma in Vine Valley Athletic League extra inning thriller
By Kyle Foster, photo courtesy of Shelby Padgett
Twitter/X: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
When you face top-notch competition, everything is magnified in a game. This means you have to execute when you can do something.
On Saturday afternoon at Braves Ballpark, this is what Justin-Siena was able to do as they beat Petaluma, 3-2, in a Vine Valley Athletic League instant classic that went 8 innings. This game was originally scheduled to take place on Tuesday but was moved to Saturday due to rainy conditions that have wreaked havoc on the league schedule.
The Braves (11-4, 3-1 VVAL) won the game in the bottom of the eighth when Noah Giovannelli doubled to right-center and then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Xiano Ortega.
The game ended when Charlie Im beat out an infield single to bring in pinch runner Chase Padowan and win the game.
“So walking up to that at-bat, I knew I was prepared,” Im said of his game-winning at-bat. “My team was prepared. They trusted me. I trusted myself. So I go up to bat. I already faced him on Thursday, and I told myself, ‘He’s a good ball player, but I’m also a good ball player. I’m gonna do my job and I’m gonna beat this ball out.”
All of this is nothing new as Im is the type of guy you want in between the lines by being a hard worker and having a good mind the the game.
“Charlie is symbolic, I would say, of who we are and what we want to be,” Justin-Siena head coach Jeremy Tayson said of Im’s importance as the starting second baseman. “He’s a tireless worker. He’s a high standard guy, really, really, really working to do a good job, to just be relentless. So for him to put the ball in play right, hit him where they aren’t, good things are going to happen.”
Before that, Justin-Siena took a 2-1 lead in the fifth when Tommy Malloy singled and scored on a Jake Fletcher single as part of a hit-and-run executed to perfection.
“Full count, two outs, and guys in motion, and Jake (is) obviously a four-year varsity guy, one of the best players in California finds a barrel right there, and we got a friendly bounce to score Tommy all the way from first,” Tayson explained of the hit-and-run. “So, yeah, super happy with the execution. But I like to think we’re prepared. Our coaching staff have been working real hard on these tough situations against tough teams.”
The Braves took their first lead of the game in the second inning to go up 1-0. Giovannelli sent a double to the right-center gap and stole third before coming home on a Henry Meyers groundout. On the play at the plate, Giovannelli was able to just get around the tag to score the run.
Leading the Justin-Siena offensive attack in the game was Giovannelli, who was 2-for-3 with two doubles, 2 runs scored, and a stolen base. He has started to get it going at the plate after a somewhat slower start to the year by his standards. When he is hitting, it makes the lineup even tougher to get through.
“At Petaluma, we scored three runs with the bottom of our lineup leading the way,” Tayson explained. “So for the middle to get going, Noah is hard a worker, as you’re going to see, and him and John Accardo, our assistant coach, had a really good side session yesterday, made some good adjustments, and two doubles and got on base there before we lifted him for a pinch runner for the win.”
Others helping were Malloy (2-for-3, stolen base, run), Fletcher (1-for-3), Meyers (1-for-3, stolen base, RBI), Im (1-for-4, RBI), and Braden Butler (1-for-4).
Petaluma (9-1, 2-1 VVAL) tied the game up at 1 with a run in the top of the third. Aidan Wirtz singled and got to second on a sacrifice bunt. He then scored when August Cuneo reached on an error and got to second on the play. On that same play, there was an overthrow to third and the plate that brought in Wirtz.
The Trojans’ only other run of the contest came in the sixth and tied things up at 2. The rally started when Cueneo sent a double to right-center and then moved to third on a groundout. He then scored on a single by Arlo Pendelton.
Getting the win on the bump with a solid inning of work in relief was Meyers. He gave up one hit and struck out 1 in 18 pitches. He has also gained a lot of trust this season to work late-game, high-leverage situations, as the extra inning of play was.
“(I) couldn’t have more confidence in Henry,” Tayson pointed out of the senior righty. “He’s worked really hard to become that guy for us on the mound. And he hasn’t had as many innings, because our starters have been thrown really well, but I think he’s done a good job staying prepared.”
Before that, Spencer Nelson hurled 7 strong innings for Justin-Siena. The senior right-hander struck out 8 and walked 1 on 92 pitches. He also allowed 2 runs to score, 1 of which was earned.
This is quite a massive win for Justin-Siena. After all, they had a chance to beat Petaluma on Thursday, and the Trojans entered the game as the No. 20 ranked team in the state of California while being the top-ranked team in the NCS.
“For us, it just shows that, like we can do it,” Im pointed out. “We’ve been putting work in the off-season, in-season. We’re spending 3,4, 5 hours a day on the field, in the weight room. We’ve been growing our faith, growing our relationship with each other. And what it means is that we can compete with any team on any given day.”
Next week, the two teams will be doing different things. Justin-Siena will have the league bye week and host Sacred Heart Cathedral of San Francisco on Saturday at 1:30 pm. Meanwhile, Petaluma will continue league play with a trip to Napa High on Tuesday at 4 pm.
