By Bobby Narang- Photos by Lauren Gray
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LISLE – Spencer Marnell made a dramatic entrance to his new team on Thursday.
His ending was even better.
After playing the season for IMG Academy in Florida, Marnell suited up for the first time for the 13U Illinois Wolves.
Marnell wasted little time making an impact on the Wolves, blasting a two-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the fourth inning in a 12-2 win over the Longshots. Fred Sackley started the home run parade with a solo shot in the first inning to tie the game at 1-1, igniting a four-run frame that sparked the Wolves the rest of the game.
Marnell flashed his potential and worth to the Wolves with a 3-for-3 performance in the first game on Thursday. Eight players had at least one hit for the Wolves, with Griff Sinkovich and Sackley also adding two hits apiece.
“This was my first game for the Wolves ,” Marnell said. “I played the whole year for IMG and came back. I couldn’t make it to any of the earlier games and my brother had graduation, So I missed some games. Tonight was the only night I could come since I got back. I’m happy to help the team. It’s amazing.”
Marnell said his two-run blast over the left-field fence felt amazing, especially showing off his game to his new teammates.
“It was a 3-2 count and I didn’t want to strikeout, but I saw it straight down the middle and connected,” Marnell said. “It feels amazing to be back here playing baseball.”
Batting in the two-hole and playing solid shortstop, Marnell is another big bat that who will add a new dimension to the Wolves’ attack. His smooth and effortless play at shortstop forms a nice combination on the right side with third baseman Graham Johnson. Plus, Marnell is calm and collected at the plate and in the dugout, meshing well with his new teammates with his personality.
“Spencer is one of my favorite guys and is just fun to be around,” Johnson said. “He makes all the plays at short and knocks balls down and is a really good hitter with power. He’s been a fresh start for the team. He’s going to really help our team.”
Johnson smacked a solo shot over the left-center field fence into the thick of the trees, drilling a high fastball for his 10th long-ball of the season.
“I think it was a 2-2 count and I was just protecting and got a good look at a fastball,” Johnson said. “It was really nice to the leadoff hitter get a home for our first hit of the game. It boosted morale on the team to hit home runs.”
Sinkovich notched his second homer of the season, powering a three-run shot over the left-center field. Sinkovich drilled a low ball to pad the lead to 10-2 in the bottom of the third.
“I golfed it,” Sinkovich said. “I thought the first pitch was the pitch to hit, but I watched it go by. I tried to redeem myself and just hit a golf swing. It felt pretty good off the bat. It was a revenge game kind off, so it was nice to see us hit some home runs.”
In all, the Wolves banged out 13 hits, smacked four home runs by four different players and scored at least two runs in each of the four innings.
“This was a team we wanted to beat and are a rival of ours, so we wanted to win this game after we struggled last year and lost to them,” Illinois Wolves coach Brandin Muniz said. “We made a point to come out this game and really take it to them. We have history with them. I give the boys props for fielding and hitting well. We had a lot of base hits and our guys came ready to swing,
“It’s starting to warm up a bit and they are starting to do what we thought they would at the beginning of the season.”
Brady Madden pitched one inning in relief and added a second-inning RBI single in a two-run frame. Matthew Wiskowski had a solid effort on the mount to lead the Wolves.
