ALBANY - Monticello pitcher Lukas Kolasch said he felt especially good when he arrived at the ballpark Monday for a Six Rivers East Conference baseball game against Albany.
He wasn't the only one.
A Monticello offense that has had its struggles put five runs on the board before Kolasch took the mound. That was more than enough for the senior right-hander, who recorded 15 strikeouts in a complete-game six-hitter in the Ponies' 7-2 victory.
"It seems like every other day we hit well, whether it's a practice or a game," Kolasch said. "We were on our groove right away today."
Monticello's first seven batters reached base and the Ponies received a two-run double from sophomore catcher Josh Kolasch, run-scoring singles from junior first baseman Aaron Hefty and senior third baseman Austin Steffen, and a bases-loaded walk by their No. 9 hitter, junior right fielder Tyler Pusel.
Three of the four hits off Albany senior Cody Schultz in the inning were of the flare variety, but Monticello coach Jason Pinnow wasn't complaining.
"We'll take it," Pinnow said. "We've worked a lot on that - just putting the ball in play. We had a stretch there where we didn't hit the ball very well. We've worked a ton on two-strike hitting and just putting the ball in play.
"I think they're starting to realize that it doesn't always have to be doubles and triples. Base hits and good baserunning gets it done, too."
Albany collected three of its six hits in the third inning, when it cut the deficit to 5-2. The Comets scored on sophomore center fielder Mitchell Kauk's RBI single and on Lukas Kolasch's errant pickoff throw at third base, allowing Schultz to scamper home.
It was one of the few mistakes Lukas Kolasch made. He pitched out of a bases-loaded situations in the second and sixth innings. In the sixth, the Comets put three men on with one out before Kolasch picked off a runner at third base and induced a pop-up to end the inning.
"I got up, everything felt real regular, I had a decent day at school and once I got on the bus I was ready to go," Lukas Kolasch said. "I was just in a groove when we got here."
Josh Kolasch finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs and Hefty was 2-for-4 with two RBIs to lead Monticello's offense.
The Ponies might lead the league in most games missed due to players attending other school-related activities, Pinnow saying they've had their full team together for less than half their games.
With those distractions over, Pinnow hopes his team has a strong run in it.
"We played a lot of good games where we just haven't come out on top," Pinnow said. "It's nice to get a lead early, hold onto the lead and kind of be in control for once. It's a good feeling, especially toward the end of the year, and hopefully we build off of it."
Albany coach Brandon Bakken lamented two errors committed by the Comets in the Ponies' first-inning outburst.
"They had a couple of bloop hits there that you can't really control," Bakken said. "It's just the errors. We've had problems with errors all along and we finally had a game where they caught up to us.
"They happened to string a couple of (hits) together with the bases loaded. I told the guys, 'If we don't have an error to start the game and an error on the third batter, all that stuff doesn't matter."
Schultz went five innings. He allowed seven runs (two earned) on seven hits, issued two walks and had nine strikeouts. Senior Ty Mauerman pitched two innings of one-hit relief, allowing one walk and striking out two.
He wasn't the only one.
A Monticello offense that has had its struggles put five runs on the board before Kolasch took the mound. That was more than enough for the senior right-hander, who recorded 15 strikeouts in a complete-game six-hitter in the Ponies' 7-2 victory.
"It seems like every other day we hit well, whether it's a practice or a game," Kolasch said. "We were on our groove right away today."
Monticello's first seven batters reached base and the Ponies received a two-run double from sophomore catcher Josh Kolasch, run-scoring singles from junior first baseman Aaron Hefty and senior third baseman Austin Steffen, and a bases-loaded walk by their No. 9 hitter, junior right fielder Tyler Pusel.
Three of the four hits off Albany senior Cody Schultz in the inning were of the flare variety, but Monticello coach Jason Pinnow wasn't complaining.
"We'll take it," Pinnow said. "We've worked a lot on that - just putting the ball in play. We had a stretch there where we didn't hit the ball very well. We've worked a ton on two-strike hitting and just putting the ball in play.
"I think they're starting to realize that it doesn't always have to be doubles and triples. Base hits and good baserunning gets it done, too."
Albany collected three of its six hits in the third inning, when it cut the deficit to 5-2. The Comets scored on sophomore center fielder Mitchell Kauk's RBI single and on Lukas Kolasch's errant pickoff throw at third base, allowing Schultz to scamper home.
It was one of the few mistakes Lukas Kolasch made. He pitched out of a bases-loaded situations in the second and sixth innings. In the sixth, the Comets put three men on with one out before Kolasch picked off a runner at third base and induced a pop-up to end the inning.
"I got up, everything felt real regular, I had a decent day at school and once I got on the bus I was ready to go," Lukas Kolasch said. "I was just in a groove when we got here."
Josh Kolasch finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs and Hefty was 2-for-4 with two RBIs to lead Monticello's offense.
The Ponies might lead the league in most games missed due to players attending other school-related activities, Pinnow saying they've had their full team together for less than half their games.
With those distractions over, Pinnow hopes his team has a strong run in it.
"We played a lot of good games where we just haven't come out on top," Pinnow said. "It's nice to get a lead early, hold onto the lead and kind of be in control for once. It's a good feeling, especially toward the end of the year, and hopefully we build off of it."
Albany coach Brandon Bakken lamented two errors committed by the Comets in the Ponies' first-inning outburst.
"They had a couple of bloop hits there that you can't really control," Bakken said. "It's just the errors. We've had problems with errors all along and we finally had a game where they caught up to us.
"They happened to string a couple of (hits) together with the bases loaded. I told the guys, 'If we don't have an error to start the game and an error on the third batter, all that stuff doesn't matter."
Schultz went five innings. He allowed seven runs (two earned) on seven hits, issued two walks and had nine strikeouts. Senior Ty Mauerman pitched two innings of one-hit relief, allowing one walk and striking out two.
