Malik Dixon believes that Cardinal Spellman will go only as far as its pitching staff takes it. If he pitches anything like he did Saturday against Monsignor Farrell, then the Pilots have a bright season ahead of them.
“We’re playing very well as a team right now, especially our pitching staff,” Dixon said. “We can ride this high for a long time if we keep playing well all around.”
Coming off fellow hurler Chris Scholkoff’s complete game, one-run masterpiece against Iona Prep on Friday, Dixon followed it up with a gem of his own. Like his fellow rotation mate, he also went the distance, giving up just two runs while striking out two, leading Spellman to a 3-2 victory over Farrell in CHSAA Class AA baseball in The Bronx.
Dixon not only dominated on the mound, he also helped his own cause at the plate by driving in what proved to be an all-important insurance run in the sixth inning after John Russo’s second double of the game.
“I was looking for a first pitch fastball like yesterday,” Dixon said. “I got the fastball on the second pitch, and I just put a good swing on it, that’s all.”
“Malik has had the winning hit two games in a row now,” Spellman coach Lou Brescia added. “He can come up big in any role. I’m extremely happy with how hard he’s worked this year and in the offseason.”
The scenario for Dixon’s run-scoring single may have been different if not for his high wire act in the top of the fourth inning. With the score at 2-0, Dixon temporarily struggled with his command and allowed three straight Farrell hitters to reach base. After Rob DeAngelis’ RBI single, he buckled down and struck out Pete Kennedy for the second out. A walk loaded the bases but Dixon was able to escape the troublesome inning by inducing Joe Cannatella to fly out to center field.
“I told Malik to just throw the ball to the catcher and to trust yourself,” Brescia said. “He did that very well today.”
“All I tried to do was bear down and throw strikes,” Dixon added. “I trust my defense behind me completely, too, which made it easier.”
Aside from Dixon’s performance, Tom Montilli went 2-for-3 with a third-inning, run-scoring triple in addition to Russo’s two doubles to lead the strengthening Spellman (4-1) offense. Winners of four of its first five games, the Pilots are starting to emerge as a team to deal with throughout the rest of the season, but this is no surprise to Brescia.
“We’ve beat some really good teams so far this year,” he said. “Kids like Scholkoff and Danny Panasiddi have become real leaders and I told my kids that we can be a very good team. We just have to keep it up all year.”
While Spellman heats up with the weather, Farrell’s struggles continue. Despite a solid pitching performance by Joe Liotta, who allowed only four hits over 5-2/3 innings, Farrell (2-3) now finds itself a loser of two of its last three games. DeAngelis’ run-scoring single and Brett Bracco’s RBI groundout in the seventh inning proved to be the sole amount of offense, leaving coach Bob Mulligan searching for an answer to the Lions’ woes at the plate.
“When your pitcher gives up three runs, you should win most games,” he said. “We’re not a strong offensive club, but we’ll keep working and stay positive. There’s a long way to go and we’ll get better as the season continues.”
It’s hard to start a season much better than Spellman has, which is off to its best beginning in nine seasons. While not getting too confident about their success, Dixon is certainly excited at what the 2012 Spellman season could become.
“If we keep getting timely hits, solid defense, and good pitching, we can have a great season,” he said. “We can go as far as we want to go.”