Williams IF-OF Jonson Curry MVP of 1A-2A North baseball win
May 29, 2011 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365
Williams High lays claim to former major league Billy Hatcher as its marquee baseball name. For a day at least, another Williams grad made a name for himself.
Jonson Curry made his entrance in the 1A-2A Arizona Baseball Coaches Association all-star tilt mid-game on Saturday. His contribution was notable.
The Williams High School senior stroked three hits and drove in three runs as the North broke open a tight game late and tallied a comfortable 13-5 win over the South in the AZBACA annual clash at Surprise Stadium.
Curry, selected the game's most valuable player, drove in runs with each of his three singles in the fifth-, eighth- and ninth-innings and hit one of the deeper outs in the game with a fly out to center. Combined with three perfect innings of pitching in the seventh, eighth and ninth from teammates Paul Schubring (Chandler Prep), Scott Hiller (Valley Lutheran) and Zach Loveall (Bagdad), the North turned a 6-5 game in to a rout.
"I felt honored to be MVP," Curry, who pitched, played infield and outfield this past season for Williams, said. "I've been working all my life for this moment."
Eight different players knocked in runs for the North. Bourgade's Dan Hass highlighted a five-run, ninth inning with a two-run single. Hass was the only other North player with multiple RBI. Hass also was the winning pitcher, despite giving up three runs in two innings of work.
The North cranked out 19 hits -- 12 in the final four innings. They were also aided by eight South errors, which oddly enough yielded only three unearned runs.
The South had its best inning in the fifth when it scored three times to overcome a 4-2 deficit. Tanque Verde second baseman Luke Herschenroeder's two-run single capped the rally. Herschenroeder made a couple nice defensive plays the inning before to turn back a potential North rally. Herschenroeder, the only South player with two hits or more, was the last South hitter to reach base. The next 14 batters were retired in order.
Five other North players collected two hits. Scottsdale Christian's Logan Domenico, Northwest Christian's Anthony Karrick, Bourgade's Blake Comella, Badgad's Dom Romero and Chandler Prep's Schubring. Romero had the only home run in the game, an inside-the-parker in the ninth inning.