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Keegan McKoskey has always conducted himself as a confident contributor to the baseball team at Prep Charter High School, 1928 Point Breeze Ave., so when his club yielded seven first-inning runs Monday, he believed the Huskies would overcome the deficit and score a thrilling victory. Thanks to three hits from the senior shortstop, the West Passyunk-based athletes fought back yet could not outlast Olney, which left Citizens Adjusters Park, Seventh Street and Packer Avenue, with an 11-9 win.
“It was a rough beginning, but we didn’t get down on ourselves,” the resident of the 2400 block of South Fourth Street said. “We stayed in the game because we have a positive attitude. It’s a shame that we didn’t do enough in the end.”
The Whitman inhabitant and his peers entered the gorgeous afternoon tilt with a 1-2 record and a 1-1 log in Division-A play. Having plated 19 runs in two league triumphs, Olney threatened to make the day miserable for the hosts with its inaugural swings, but, as many folks familiar with Public League sports, particularly baseball, know, few cushions are safe until athletes have shaken hands. Rather than growing glum as they pondered their endeavor, the Huskies immediately hunted for redemption and tallied four scores, with McKoskey and fellow seniors Joe Suppa and Joseph Holmes stroking singles. Suppa returned to the mound to vie with the visitors for lasting momentum and surrendered single runs in the second and third frames.
“We have young talent and great chemistry,” McKoskey, an All-Public pick, said of blending experience with novelty to form a formidable team. “As long as we keep giving ourselves chances, I don’t see why we can’t go really far.”
He again factored into the Huskies’ charge, as coach Shawn Magee’s roster members generated three scores in the second, all with two outs. McKoskey and junior catcher Dean D’Angelo notched hits, the latter a triple that had the bench roaring its approval. Two walks and three steals aided the efforts, too, proving that despite the seven-spot that Olney so rapidly registered, any hopes for a relaxing trip to South Philly would not be coming to fruition for the North Philadelphians.
“That’s who we are,” McKoskey said of Prep Charter’s workmanlike approach to their diamond duties. “We weren’t going to let anybody come in here and blow us out.”
The senior has benefited from great senior guidance over his Prep Charter tenure and looks forward to fulfilling his role as a leader and seeing the season unfold for the Huskies, last year’s Class AA runners-up. Entering the fourth down 9-7, they marveled at how diligently they had persevered in making Olney jittery. Adding two runs, the guests guaranteed that though they would need to acknowledge the gumption of McKoskey et al, they would not necessarily need to become their prey. A quiet home half did not deter the teenagers, who again showed their fortitude in the fifth.
Suppa legged out an infield hit and, after two strikeouts, advanced to second on a passed ball with freshman Charles McKenna at the dish. The underclassman plated the senior with a single and relieved him to begin the sixth.
Three-up-and-three-down occasions were not to be the case for McKenna either, though the newcomer kept Olney off the board for two frames, earning immense approval from Magee. Accustomed to nail-biters, such as their extra-inning win over Philadelphia Academy March 31, the Huskies knew they could conquer their foes and complete a noteworthy comeback. That knowledge encouraged them to engage in a lengthy discussion before their sixth-inning cuts.
Junior outfielder Ratha Meas worked his second walk and swiped his third bag to start the frame. Sophomore outfielder Brian Reynolds brought him home with a single and tried to race around the bases following an outfield miscue but ended up called out at home. McKoskey whiffed, the lone time he did not reach base, and D’Angelo singled and advanced on a wild pitch, but the rally lost momentum when Suppa went down swinging.
McKenna permitted only one runner to reach in the seventh and represented the Huskies’ last hope with two outs in the home portion. Unfortunately for the squad’s fanbase, the youth also fanned, the team’s 16th strikeout victim.
“I love that you fought back,” Magee said upon huddling with his group in the outfield. “We didn’t have the best start, but I admire what you did.”
“We have to overcome mental mistakes,” McKoskey said of sustaining the push to the playoffs, which the Huskies will continue tomorrow versus the Girard Academic Music Program, 2136 W. Ritner St. “We’re trying to advance as far as we can. We can’t have any more games like this. It’s great that we came back, but we want to be in better positions to win.” SPR
Contact Managing Editor Joseph Myers at [email protected] or ext. 124.
Keegan McKoskey tallied three hits, two RBI and a stolen base in the defeat.
Photo by Rob Torney
Joe Suppa collected collected two of Prep Charter’s seven hits.
Photo by Rob Torney
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