ST. LOUIS – The Father McGivney Catholic High School baseball team remains undefeated at Busch Stadium.
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The Griffins met up against the Alton Redbirds inside ‘Baseball Heaven’ in Downtown St. Louis for the second straight year. And for the second straight year, Father McGivney won.
The Griffins tacked on two runs in the first and three more in the second en route to a 5-0 win, improving to 21-2 on the season. It was their 19th straight win.
“We got her done,” Father McGivney head coach Chris Erwin said after the win. “That’s a good team over there. They threw [Reid] Murray in the first inning and their other varsity guys early, and it was a good test for us, especially for the environment.”
“The environment’s so big, in a stadium like this, guys’ nerves get amped up about playing in the game, and it’s just a lot of fun to be a part of.”
A little more fun when you win. The Griffins are now 5-0 at Busch Stadium.
They played their first game there in 2021, beating crosstown rivals Metro-East Lutheran by a score of 15-0. In 2022, McGivney beat East Alton-Wood River 9-1, and in 2023, they put a 22-game winning streak on the line against St. Pius X of Festus, Missouri, winning 4-0.
The Griffins beat Alton at Busch 10-2 exactly a year ago.
Father McGivney enjoyed the experience of playing in a Major League ballpark, but also welcomed the challenge of playing another IHSA Class 4A school out of the Southwestern Conference.
McGivney beat Belleville East 12-1 last Saturday and has later scheduled games against Belleville West and O’Fallon.
“It tests us. It pushes us hard,” Erwin said. “They’re good programs and good teams. They all throw the ball really well. I think it prepares us very well for the playoffs. Playing heavyweights at the end of the season really gets you ready for the playoffs, and I love that.”
With both teams’ full varsity teams opening up the game, Alton’s Reid Murray threw out the game’s first pitch Monday night.
Kannon Kamp hit a leadoff single and then moved to third after a double from Omar Avalos. Drew Kleinheider recorded the team’s first RBI, grounding out to the first baseman, advancing Avalos to third, and scoring Kamp to make it 1-0.
Justin Terhaar was then walked to put runners on the corners for Isaac Wendler. He hit a sacrifice fly to the center fielder, scoring Avalos to double the lead.
Murray gave up back-to-back walks before Scott Phelps hit into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.
Mason Holmes started on the mound for McGivney and went three-up, three-down to start off.
Trying to get as many players into the game as possible, Alton head coach Scott Harper planned to throw a different pitcher every inning. Carson Bristow strode out to the mound in the second.
He gave up a lead-off walk to Reilly Sutberry. Sutberry was brought around to home thanks to Kamp’s triple to make it 3-0. Avalos hit an RBI single to score Kamp and then later scored himself on a wild pitch to make it 5-0.
From then on, McGivney’s players could relax a little bit, meanwhile coach Erwin was scrambling to ensure all his players could touch the field.
“That’s the whole point of coming here,” Erwin said. “You want it to be a competitive game for the first part of it, and then it’s all about the experience and getting everybody in. I love all these guys, everyone from the seniors down to the freshmen. They all put so much heart and effort into the program. This is just one of those things where you want everybody to get in, have a good time, and enjoy Busch Stadium.”
McGivney brought 35 players on the trip. All 35 of them got some time.
Erwin and Harper have a mutual agreement for the Busch Stadium game in that they’ll play their varsity guys for the first six innings, JV during innings seven and eight, and the freshmen in the ninth.
All games played at Busch Stadium are nine-inning games or have a two-and-a-half-hour time limit, whichever happens first. Whatever the score is after seven innings is the official IHSA score.
Monday’s game went the distance, and both teams were able to get everyone some time. Alton even made mid-inning defensive changes, similar to a full line change in hockey, getting some chuckles from the many Alton and McGivney fans that made it out to the stadium.
McGivney used three pitchers at Busch Stadium. Holmes went three innings with five strikeouts, only allowing a single hit. Chase Kelly took over and threw three innings with three K’s. Dane Keeven closed the game out in the ninth and struck out the side.
Kamp went 3-for-4 with a triple and two singles.
“It’s always a great time, especially under the lights,” he said after the game. “Being able to play with my senior buddies one last time here. It’s pretty cool.”
Avalos went 2-for-3 with a double, and Justin Terhaar went 1-for-2 with two walks.
Alton stuck to its plan and used seven pitchers. Murray, Bristow, Brayden Hogle, Nolan Parker, AP Humm, and Blake Rensing.
Ayden Calvert, Logan Hickman, Ivan Ferreiro, and Soren Munson had hits for the Redbirds.
After opening the season to a 6-1 start, Alton lost three straight in Kentucky. They then won five straight to get to 11-4. Since then, they’ve lost four out of their last six and now sit at 13-8. The Redbirds are set for a home-and-home series against SWC rivals Edwardsville this week.
The Griffins jump right back into Gateway Metro Conference action as well against Maryville Christian with an away game against Parkway South (Manchester, Mo.) in between.
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