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Baseball Beats Hamden Hall
Published: Saturday, May 07, 2011
Mathews Tosses Two-Hitter
HAMDEN — Sophomore pitcher Simon Mathews didn’t waste any time avenging an early-season loss to rival Hamden Hall.
Mathews struck out the first batter he faced to set the tone Friday. He didn’t stop there.
The right-hander, whose unique windup is reminiscent of former major league pitcher Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, pitched a complete-game two-hitter, striking out six and walking five. That keyed Hopkins to a 6-1 win over the Hornets in Fairchester League play.
“The bigger the moment, the more he achieves,” Hopkins coach Bob Hart said. “He’s been a little down. We’ve made errors behind him. Today, we had a nice, clean defense behind him. He’s a gamer. He’s going to play right to the end. He likes competition.”
It was the first win of the season for the young Mathews (1-3). He was shelled for nine runs in the first two innings in a loss to Hamden Hall in the first meeting between the prep schools. But he got the better of his rival Friday.
The Hornets’ lone run was unearned. Marco Gasparro doubled and later scored on an error in the fourth for Hamden Hall (12-4). Mike Cox, who Hornets coach Joe Fontana said was drawing interest from the New York Mets, also singled. That would be all the Hornets would manage off of Mathews.
“He had a good game plan,” Fontana said. “We couldn’t adjust to that quickly enough. He had us baffled. He used his curveball effectively to set up his fastball.”
Hopkins took a 2-0 lead in the second. Darren O’Brien and Josh Knopf had back-to-back RBI doubles to give the Hilltoppers the advantage.
They held a 2-1 advantage heading into the fifth. That’s when Hopkins broke it open. Jack Lubin highlighted a four-run fifth for the Hilltoppers.
That was more than enough for Mathews, who shut down what is usually a high-scoring Hamden Hall lineup.
“Catcher Jim Martino did a great job calling the game and blocking all the pitches behind the plate,” Mathews said. “I was able to mix up my speeds and keep them off balance. It was great to bounce back from the (earlier) loss and get the win for my team.”
Hopkins (5-8-1) is hoping to turn the corner with the win. The Hilltoppers won the Fairchester title last season.
“That was a very big win for these guys,” Hart said. “I hate to jinx us, but we’re hoping to finish the season strong and finish in the middle of the pack. Then we want to get in the tournament and do some damage there.”
Mathews struck out the first batter he faced to set the tone Friday. He didn’t stop there.
The right-hander, whose unique windup is reminiscent of former major league pitcher Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, pitched a complete-game two-hitter, striking out six and walking five. That keyed Hopkins to a 6-1 win over the Hornets in Fairchester League play.
“The bigger the moment, the more he achieves,” Hopkins coach Bob Hart said. “He’s been a little down. We’ve made errors behind him. Today, we had a nice, clean defense behind him. He’s a gamer. He’s going to play right to the end. He likes competition.”
It was the first win of the season for the young Mathews (1-3). He was shelled for nine runs in the first two innings in a loss to Hamden Hall in the first meeting between the prep schools. But he got the better of his rival Friday.
The Hornets’ lone run was unearned. Marco Gasparro doubled and later scored on an error in the fourth for Hamden Hall (12-4). Mike Cox, who Hornets coach Joe Fontana said was drawing interest from the New York Mets, also singled. That would be all the Hornets would manage off of Mathews.
“He had a good game plan,” Fontana said. “We couldn’t adjust to that quickly enough. He had us baffled. He used his curveball effectively to set up his fastball.”
Hopkins took a 2-0 lead in the second. Darren O’Brien and Josh Knopf had back-to-back RBI doubles to give the Hilltoppers the advantage.
They held a 2-1 advantage heading into the fifth. That’s when Hopkins broke it open. Jack Lubin highlighted a four-run fifth for the Hilltoppers.
That was more than enough for Mathews, who shut down what is usually a high-scoring Hamden Hall lineup.
“Catcher Jim Martino did a great job calling the game and blocking all the pitches behind the plate,” Mathews said. “I was able to mix up my speeds and keep them off balance. It was great to bounce back from the (earlier) loss and get the win for my team.”
Hopkins (5-8-1) is hoping to turn the corner with the win. The Hilltoppers won the Fairchester title last season.
“That was a very big win for these guys,” Hart said. “I hate to jinx us, but we’re hoping to finish the season strong and finish in the middle of the pack. Then we want to get in the tournament and do some damage there.”
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Hopkins is a private middle school and high school for grades 7-12. Located on a campus overlooking New Haven, CT, the School takes pride in its intellectually curious students as well as its dedicated faculty and staff.
