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Expecting the unexpected
Sophomores aren't expected to make heady plays.They're not expected to be exceptionally smart on the bases, or to handle the bat in sticky bunt situations.
They're especially not expected to routinely fire a strike after gathering a deep fly ball in center field with a two-run ballgame on the line.
That's why McLean's Riley Biero isn't your average sophomore, a point further illustrated by his dead-on throw from center to preserve an 8-6 win at Marshall last Friday.
“He's as good as it gets in center field for a high school kid,” said McLean coach John Thomas, whose team improved to 9-3 overall, 4-2 in the Liberty District after an 8-3 win over Woodson Monday night. The red-hot Highlanders will travel to Langley on Wednesday.
“[Biero] makes a lot of great catches, but to go after that ball as hard as he did and get it in as quick as he did ... that was a huge play.”
Not to pigeonhole him as a one-sided player, Biero has been equally as impressive at the plate this season. He's stolen 17 bases in 19 attempts (89% success rate), while posting team-highs in runs scored (16) and walks (11). That's also without broaching his .355 batting average or .524 on-base percentage.
“That's my job,” said a filthy and smiling Biero, an olfactory nightmare who has vowed not to wash his uniform until his team loses. “Get on base ... steal bases ... any way I can.”
That Biero's throw was so pivotal could be considered a story within itself. McLean exploded for eight runs in the fifth, a rally ignited by Biero's single up the middle on a 2-2 fastball that scored right fielder Kendall Wilkins.
The rally continued with doubles from Denis Buckley and Quinn Pippin, as three Marshall pitchers faced a total of 12 Highlander hitters in the inning.
Not to be outdone, Marshall responded with a four-run burst in the bottom of the frame. Second baseman Bryan Whittington (3-for-4, 2 RBIs and a run scored) started the rally with a single for the Statesmen, and the next four batters also posted hits, capped by first baseman Daniel Blakely's two-run smash to left.
The Statesmen tacked on two more in the top of the seventh to make it a two-run game, sending Whittington to the plate with the bases loaded against McLean's ace, sophomore right-hander Sean Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald surrendered Whittington's shot to center -- a ball that came within about six inches of leaving the park -- and Biero's throw stopped Andy Scroth from trying to score.
“[Fitzgerald] went out there on two days' rest, probably without his best stuff,” said Thomas, whose team starts five sophomores -- all of whom have been playing together since their Babe Ruth days. “We like our chances with all of those [sophomores], but I think the fact that they have had so much experience winning baseball games, it has really injected that type of experience in our program.”
In addition to Biero and Fitzgerald, the three sophomores in McLean's starting lineup include second baseman Chris Russo (0-for-1, 2 walks), winning pitcher Denis Buckley (5 2/3 innings, 4 earned runs, 3 strikeouts and a walk), and catcher/first baseman David Roffman (1-for-3, run scored).
“We realize that we're a big part of the team,” said Biero, who finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs, a stolen base and a run scored. “We just have to do our best every game. We know that in the future we're going to be real good, but we're playing hard right now and that's all that matters.”
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