Marquette stays hot, sweeps McCluer North

Marquette Catholic baseball coach Tim Fahnestock hoped there would be some benefit from a 12-1 five-inning loss at Mascoutah on April 3.

But, he conceded, “there really wasn’t much there to make you smile.”

But it has been pretty much all smiles since then for the Explorers, who pushed their record to 15-5 on Saturday with a doubleheader sweep of the McCluer North Stars at Hopkins Field in Alton. Marquette won the first game 12-11 and the second 19-9 in six innings.

The Explorers have won eight of their last nine games, with the only defeat in that stretch a one-run loss to Collinsville. All five of Marquette’s losses have come against Class 3A/4A opposition.

North, a large-school from Florissant, Missouri, could not add to that total. The Stars outhit the Explorers 14-4 in the first game, but Marquette turned four walks – three after two were out — and Sam Cogan’s RBI single for two runs in the seventh inning to walk off a win.

The Explorers led 8-3 after three innings, but North took the lead with a six-run sixth. Matt Lehr had a triple and three RBIs for Marquette, which benefitted from 10 walks. Nolan Rea allowed four runs in two innings of relief and got the win. Starter Jack Warren went five innings, giving seven runs (five earned) on nine hits, three walks and five strikeouts.

Marquette’s bats went to work in the second game with 21 hits, including nine for extra bases with four doubles, three triples and two home runs. Kollin Morrissey went 5-for-5 with three doubles and five RBIs to lead the Explorers’ onslaught. Garrett Weiner had three hits, including a double and homer, with three RBIs, and Cogan had three hits and two RBIs. Will Dixon hit a two-run homer, Lehr had two hits and two RBIs, and Braden Coles and Logan Sternickle each added two hits for Marquette. Justin Godfrey pitched three innings for the win.