Lucas Metzner is an ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications student assigned to cover Paradise Valley for AZpreps365.com

The Cactus Shadows Falcons rolled up to Paradise Valley with revenge on their minds as the Trojans shut down the Falcons 2-0 in their previous meeting. Senior Patrick Kappler was on the mound for Cactus Shadows, and he was locked in, almost going the distance. He pitched for six and a third innings, allowing seven hits and three earned runs, while posting eight strikeouts in the win.

“Well, I think the key for us was right on the mound in the middle of the field where Patrick pitched a great game. He kind of set the tone for us,” said Cactus Shadows head coach Gaetano Gianni. “He threw strikes early and was competitive the whole game and that kept us in the ballgame. And you know, that's great for team psyche when your pitcher on the mound has control and is keeping the game close.”

The first inning went lightning fast with three up and three down for both Cactus Shadows and Paradise Valley. Kappler got two of his eight strikeouts in the first, as he settled in quickly.

“(I) throw fastballs because they're not hitting that, so I … hit them hard with the fastball. They're not touching me,” said Kappler.

The second inning, the Falcon hitters were stifled again. They went three up and three down. Junior Aaron Bird had taken the mound for the Trojans; he recorded three strikeouts through his first two innings of work. The bottom half of the second provided the first hits of the ballgame on back-to-back singles from Andrew Faherty and Jacob Kawar, but still no scoring.

The top of the third inning gave Cactus Shadows its first hit of the game, as senior Nate Bell knocked a single into center field. The Falcons threatened to score the game’s first run, with runners at first and second with two outs. Antonio Gianni stepped up to the plate and delivered a single to left field that almost got through the gap. But a relay from the left fielder, to the shortstop, and then to the third baseman caught the runner from first trying to advance to third. This occured before the runner on second could score, preventing the game's first run.

After a good defensive effort in the field, the Trojans got to work on offense. Back-to-back walks issued to Sean Flynn and Ben Richards opened up the inning. With two on and one out, senior designated hitter Jared Swarbrick unloaded on a pitch, sending it high into the clear night sky and over the left field fence. This three-run homer gave Paradise Valley the game’s first lead at 3-0.

In the fourth inning, Cactus Shadows started chipping away at the three-run deficit. James Williams drew a walk after the previous two batters were sent down. Then, Caleb Nieman got hit by a pitch, putting him on first. A passed ball during the next at bat allowed these two to advance one base each. With two on and two out, Colin Masco drove the ball into right field for a two RBI single.

The bottom half of the fourth wasn’t as kind to the Trojans as only four batters would make plate appearances in that half inning. Paradise Valley was up 3-2 heading into the fifth. This inning looked a lot like the first as both squads went down in order. 

In the top of the sixth inning, things started to unravel for the Trojans, as the Falcons leadoff hitter Zach Valentine blasted one to the left field wall for a double. A walk, a balk, and a few errors led the first three batters to come all the way home. Cactus Shadows now had the lead, 5-3. The bottom of the sixth inning had Faherty and Brett Keene each knocking a single, but they were left stranded relatively quickly, and the contest would come down to the seventh inning.

The seventh inning started well for Paradise Valley: two up and two down. But junior Derek Schaefer found a pitch he liked, and sent that ball into orbit over the left center field fence, one of the deepest parts of the ballpark. The Falcons had extended their lead to 6-3.

“We got the first two outs in that inning, so I knew he was just trying to come at me and just throw me a fastball, get a pitch over the plate. So whether it was a fastball or curveball I was going to swing at it and hit it hard and that's what I did,” said Schaefer.

In their last chance to win the game, the Trojans started off strong as Yaider Ortiz found himself aboard after a leadoff single. Next Ben Richards grounded into a fielder's choice, but reached first safely. A balk placed him on second, a passed ball got him to third, and a throwing error from the catcher scored him. After that, starter Kappler was relieved of his duties by Dom Palma. Palma struck out the final two batters to beat Paradise Valley, 6-4.

“They got the best of us tonight. But I mean, you're gonna have games like that," said Paradise Valley head coach Ira Jeffers. "If we just string a few more things together offensively, I think we would have been right back in it. But I mean, props to them. They played a really good game tonight."