By Dennis Bowling

On Tuesday, March 28, it was Beecher Coach Brandon DuBois’ worst nightmare when he saw the Bobcats’ senior starting pitcher Jacob Graniczny stumble into second base and injure his right knee in the first inning.

Trevor Stout, a junior who came in relief of Graniczny, pitched four innings, fanned five batters, and drove in one run, to help the Bobcats beat St. Anne, 3-2, in a River Valley Conference contest in Beecher.

After Graniczny was helped from the field, he sat on the bench, with his right knee wrapped in an ice pack. DuBois commenting on the Graniczny injury said, “When Jacob went down, everyone on the team stepped up. This was a huge team effort. Trevor, on the other hand, is as steady as a watch, came in, and was able to find his zone.”

Catcher Quinton Allen, who was 3-for-3 and drove in one run, summarized the impact of Graniczny’s injury, “Trevor had big shoes to fill and did very well. He just did his job.”

When Graniczny went down, Stout, who started the game in left field, sprinted in, went to the mound to warm up, and didn’t miss a beat against the Cardinals.

“Jacob just tripped on the base,” Stout said. “I was nervous when I came in to pitch, but I just had to stay focused and keep my head up.”

In the first frame, after two outs, Graniczny was hit by pitch from the Cardinal pitcher and went to first. He then tried to steal second base, injuring his right knee in the action, with Michael Gaidar sent in to run for Graniczny. This was followed by an Allen screaming double to left field, which plated Gaider for the first run.

“Trevor pitched a great game and really came through when we needed him,” said Bobcat Ethan Turney. “It was scary when Jacob got hurt, but he’ll be all right.”

In the second inning, after one out, Beecher’s Zachary Del Rio walked, then stole second base. AJ Snell followed with a hard hit double to left field that drove in Del Rio for the second run.

After one out in the third, Allen singled, Zak Gorcowski smashed a double to centerfield, and Allen crossed the plate for a 3-0 lead.

Beecher loaded the bases in the fifth, but three straight outs ended their scoring threat.

Gorcowski, who pitched the last two innings, went 3-for-3 and drove in one run.

In the top of the seventh inning, with the Bobcats leading 3-1, the Cardinals scored another run, but Gorcowski was able to retire the side, ending the game.

Hopefully, for Graniczny, he will quickly recover from his knee injury!