Rosie Davis is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover high school sports for AZPreps365.com

The Saguaro Sabercats earned a walk-off 2-1 win over the American Leadership Academy Patriots Tuesday afternoon.  

Saguaro took the lead in the bottom of the second with a single from center fielder Billy Gregory who stole second and then came into score on a single from infielder Aidan Bronska. Both teams remained quiet until Saguaro senior Miles Crutchley led off the bottom of the fourth with a double. Gregory helped out again with a single to send Crutchley home. 

This was the last time the Sabercats got on the board for the rest of the day. Saguaro head coach Joe Muecke prepared his boys to play tight baseball. 

“We had some tough calls in the field. A couple base running errors, and we kind of ran ourselves out of innings,” said Muecke. “We took some of the pressure off of the batters and put it on our defense and they answered the call.”

Margarella picked up the slack on defense, pitching two more scoreless innings and surrendering three hits for the rest of his time on the mound. He was excited to finally step onto the rubber for his first start back from an elbow injury early in the season. 

“It took me a little bit to get used to working with runners on base, but I knew I had my defense behind me to do their job,” said Margarella. “It felt good to be back.”

Senior Thomas DeChesaro took the mound in the top of the seventh to give Margarella’s elbow some rest. After two strikeouts, a pitch got away from Saguaro catcher Louis Busseri, giving the Patriots their only run of the day by Austin Herbert. DeChesaro responded by striking out the next batter to secure the walk-off win. 

The Sabercats sported their puzzle-piece designed uniforms in support of autism awareness. 
As the special education teacher at Saguaro, Muecke utilizes the baseball team as an opportunity to recognize special needs. 

“I have a cousin with autism, so it's really special to me to be able to wear this jersey to represent her,” said Margarella. “We want to show that just because people may be born differently than us that we are all the same.”

“These kids look up to our team as ball players. It's so important to humble yourself, to (know) just how lucky we are to play baseball at this level,” said Muecke. “We...keep our perspective about what we get to do and how we can use that vehicle.”

When they're not playing ball, Muecke and his boys give their time to the Miracle League of Arizona, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing a safe, successful and enjoyable baseball experience for children with disabilities or special health care needs. 

With this win, Saguaro improves to 8-7 overall making them second in the 4A Desert Sky League. The Sabercats are set to face ALA again on Friday.