Todd Plajzer's bases-loaded, two-run single with two outs in the seventh inning and Jimmy Dunn's subsequent two-run triple lifted No. 4-ranked Mount Saint Joseph to a come-from-behind 11-8 victory over third-ranked Calvert Hall last night.
The victory, achieved about 11: 15 p.m. at Joe Cannon Stadium in Harmans, earned the 20-6 Gaels a berth in tomorrow's championship game of the double-elimination Maryland Interscholastic A Conference tournament.
It also sent Calvert Hall (22-8) into today's semifinal against No. 6 Archbishop Curley, which eliminated No. 8 Loyola earlier yesterday.
The Gaels trailed by as much as 8-2 after four innings, when Calvert Hall's Joey Marcozzi stole home for the Cardinals' final run.
The Cardinals had split regular-season games with Gaels' sophomore Gavin Floyd (10-1), whose fastball has been clocked as high as 92 mph.
Down 3-2, the Gaels came unglued during a three-error third inning where Calvert Hall batted around and scored four runs on consecutive singles by Greg Smoot, Brad Williams, Stewart Kimmel and Luke Thomas for a 7-2 lead.
But Floyd recoverd with support from his offense. He completed the game, striking out nine and allowing seven hits.
Plajzer led the Gaels, going 3-for-4 with four RBIs. Teammate Paul Kern went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and Dunn went 2-for-5.
Calvert Hall, of coach Joe Binder, is trying to win its ninth tournament of the 1990s and its third straight.
For the Cardinals, Thomas went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, Smoot 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI and two runs scored, and Kimmel went 1-for-3, with two RBIs.
Losing pitcher Brent Gossman (6-4) struck out six batters, walked two and yeilded nine hits.
No. 6 Archbishop Curley 10, No. 8 Loyola 6: Scott Kosmicky's three-run homer broke a 6-6 tie and highlighted a five-run sixth inning as the Friars (21-9) fought off elimination from the A Conference tournment with a five-run sixth inning.
Curley, which dropped a 7-6 decision to Calvert Hall in Monday's opening round, trailed 6-3 after three innings. But single runs in the fourth and fifth set up Kosmicky's heroics and helped bail the Friars out of a three-error day in the field.
B Conference
Cardinal Gibbons 10, Chapelgate 1: The Crusaders' Craig King (2-2) and Nick Hoffman shut down the defending B Conference champion Flames after the second-round game's first inning.
St. Mary's 8, Boys' Latin 3: Left-hander George Chmiel (7-0) went the distance yesterday, giving up three runs, six hits, seven walks and striking out seven for the Saints (16-3).
Pub Date: 5/19/99