Cougars continue to score in bunches

Kennedy continued to pound out hits and runs on the diamond, sweeping district-rival Mepham in a three-game series last week. The Cougars, 8-2 overall (6-0 in Conference AA-III), finished off the sweep on April 19, 13-9, on the strength of home runs from seniors Rob Delgado and Jordan Leopold, and junior Michael McCormick.

The blast by Delgado leading off the sixth was particularly damaging to the Pirates, because they were slowly chipping away at a seven-run deficit. The homer pushed the lead to 11-8, and Mepham would pile on two more. “We got out to a big lead but they started chipping away,” Kennedy coach Eric Passman said. “But our guys came through. He led off the inning and took some of [the Pirates] momentum back. It was a huge home run and a no-doubter.”

Using a collection of pitchers, it was McCormick who finally closed out Mepham, pitching the last two innings to earn the win. “We played pretty clean [defense],” Passman said. “They just banged [our pitchers] around for a couple of innings.”

Leopold, who finished the win 3-for-4 with a homer and three runs batted in was one of a long list of hitting heroes that has helped Kennedy produce at least 11 runs each of its first six conference games. In the second game of the series, a 10-2 win on Apr. 17, he was a perfect 4-for-4 with three RBIs and a home run. Junior Matthew Murphy also had three hits and drove in three runs to support senior Adam Swersky, who pitched a complete game.

Kennedy took the series opener April 16, with seniors Noah Shulman and David Leiderman combining to drive in five runs in the 17-5 victory. Senior pitcher Jordan Boyer went the distance, getting tripped up only in the fifth inning when Mepham plated five runs to cut a 10-0 deficit in half.

From the top — where McCormick is not only getting base hits but also blasting homers out of the leadoff spot — to the bottom where senior Brandon Serota clubbed three doubles in five at bats as the No. 8 hitter in the Mepham series finale — the Cougars lineup is producing Excedrin-sized headaches for pitchers and opposing coaches. Leiderman leads the team with a robust .640 batting average, while Shulman is hitting at a .400 clip. “The guys are really just locked in from one through nine,” Passman said. “It’s not just two or three guys.

If there’s been an improvement from spring training, it’s on the defensive side, where Kennedy has played nearly flawless. “In the preseason I was very concerned because we were kicking the ball around,” Passman said. “But since beginning of the season we’ve picked it up. I am thankful it happened and that the light went on somewhere.”