South Dade’s Manoah Stifles Killians’ Bats In 2-0 Win

South Dade and Killian are among the leaders in 8A-16. With the Buccaneers tied with the Palmetto Panthers for first in the district, South Dade is known to have some big weapons in its arsenal. Thursday’s game against Killian showcased what probably is its most dangerous one.

Starting right-handed pitcher Erik Manoah displayed his abilities on the mound after throwing a complete game in South Dade’s 2-0 victory. The sensation left Killian paralyzed and unable to adjust to South Dade’s starting pitcher, who was backed up by a flawless infield performance.

“We lost today to a pitcher who threw an amazing game,” Killian Manager Angel Herrera said. “He’s a fine, fine pitcher, and he has a bright future in this game if he keeps throwing that way.”

Herrera’s modest response was not just good sportsmanship. It was a fact. Manoah’s beastly performance included 15 strikeouts, nine of which were consecutive. The Cougars bats could not respond to the 6-foot-2 athlete, who allowed just three hits from Killian’s powerhouse lineup. The righty had three solid pitches to chose from his arsenal. Among them was his changeup, which had a good drop that caught more than one batter off guard.

The game stayed quiet for the most part — except for Killian’s dugout, despite the Cougars trailing behind. South Dade’s offense managed to get two runs in the first two innings.

Adam Roush’s speed in the first inning is what broke the ice on the scoreboard. Roush, the first batter in the lineup, walked and stole second. Buccaneers catcher Shane Castro came up to bat with two outs. The visiting team’s crowd made some noise for the clean-up hitter, who has a .333 batting average for the season. Castro hit a ground ball to the shortstop, which stifled cheers as it seemed like a routine out, but the throw to first was low and the first baseman couldn’t make the out in time as Castro was safe and Roush crossed home.

The Buccaneers added another run in the second inning. Roush, who was the most productive batter in the game, hit a line drive up the middle to score in Sergio Lopez. The RBI double off of Roush’s bat woke up Killian’s starting pitcher, Vladmir Nunez, who settled down after that.

The Cougar’s determination on the field was also something to take note of. Killian’s infield stayed intact even when they were behind and they still managed to pull big plays, including a double play created by the combination of Mike Perez and Spencer Levine. Perez tagged second and threw to first where Levine made a front split to get the out in time.

Manoah was just pitching too well for Killian to catch up, though.

“That’s an easy game to coach,” Buccaneers Manager John Burnside said. “Not to take anything away from our shortstop, but I can play short with him pitching.”

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