Ceci Ferrara
April 5, 2016
Sports Writer
Sports Insider Weekly
With the weather in D.C. feeling more like mid-winter than early spring, it’s hard to believe that it’s early April and baseball is back.
Despite the cooler than usual temperatures–fans at Sunday’s league opener in Pittsburgh spotted snow flurries–the baseball season is officially underway. Most teams had their first games of the season on Monday, including the Nationals. While it was a rainy day in D.C., the Nats kicked off their season under the warm Atlanta sun.
Washington visited the Braves in their season opener, with Max Scherzer taking the mound for the Nats and delivering a strong performance. The Cy Young winner who capped last season with a no-hitter, allowed two runs on three hits before exiting the game in the seventh. Unfortunately, two of those runs were solo homeruns.
“I did a lot of things well today,” Scherzer said. “I was sharp with the off-speed pitches. I was able to execute a lot of things. I got a lot of popups. I made one mistake to Garcia. He hit an 0-2 slider out. That’s what happens in this level. Overall, I was able to keep working ahead in the count and just keep forcing their hand. I was able to get some key outs in some big situations.”
Scherzer received run support early, with Bryce Harper going deep in his first at-bat. But Atlanta responded in kind in the bottom of the inning, with Freddie Freeman hitting a solo homerun to tie the game. It was deja-vu in the fourth, with Daniel Murphy homering in his Washington debut, and Adonis Garcia responding with his own to once again pull his team even.
The Braves took the lead in the bottom of the eighth when Shawn Kelley walked in a run with the bases loaded. Trailing 3-2 in the top of the ninth, the game looked to be slipping away from the Nationals. With two on and one out Michael Taylor, who had been hitless all game, came to the plate. A double-play would’ve ended the game. Instead, the center fielder hit a sac fly to score Jayson Werth.
Werth collided with the catcher at home plate, but the ball came loose and the run was good. The Braves were unable to score in the bottom of ninth which forced extra innings. But the game didn’t last much longer. Murphy came up big again for Washington in the top of the 10th, doubling to score the go-ahead–and ultimately winning–run.
Murphy had a huge game, going 2-of-3 with two RBI’s. Despite his impressive performance, he refused to focus on himself, instead citing the performance of his teammates.
“It was a great win,” he said. “I think it started with Max going seven innings. It was really nice to be on this side of that, and Bryce Harper picks up where he left off last year.”
Murphy was a huge reason the division-rival Mets made it to the World Series last year, hitting .421 with seven homeruns and 11 RBI’s in the playoffs. He signed a three-year deal with the Nationals in the off-season, and if his debut performance was any indication, they certainly got their money’s worth.
The Nationals will get a day to rest before facing the Braves again on Wednesday. They will then travel home for their home opener Thursday afternoon at Nationals Park.
NCAA Championship Game
Every March, over the span of a few weeks, Men’s Division I college basketball takes center stage.
March Madness is always full of upsets, surprises, routs, and unbelievable moments. It captivates the country’s attention and culminates in a championship game that is usually anti-climatic, and not as exciting as the games held in the week’s leading up to it. That was not the case on Monday night, when No. 2 Villanova faced No. 1 University of North Carolina in the 2016 championship game.
UNC entered the game as clear favorites, with many expecting the Wildcats, who routed No. 2 Oklahoma 95-51 in the Final Four over the weekend, to fall short against the Tarheels. Instead, they not only kept pace with North Carolina–they set it. Trailing by seven points in the final seconds of the first half, UNC had a chance to pull ahead by nine. Instead, Nova blocked the shot and was able to score before the buzzer to pull within five.
The game was close throughout the second half, though at one point Villanova led by as much as 10. The Tarheels closed the gap, and tied the game with a three-point jumper with just six seconds left. All the UNC supporters in the crowd, including the legendary Michael Jordan, leapt to their feet. The game, which midway through the second half was Villanova’s to lose, suddenly seemed headed for overtime.
But the Wildcats weren’t done. With the seconds ticking down, senior Ryan Arcidiacono charged up court, ball in hand. He then flipped the ball backward to Kris Jenkins, who jumped in the air to take the game’s final shot. A three-pointer. It rattled through the rim as time expired. There would be no overtime. Villanova had won on a buzzer-beater, 77-74.
The victory almost seemed surreal, with many wondering if the shot had left Jenkin’s hands in time. By the time it was officially confirmed, the Villanova players were already in a pile on the court, covered in streamers and smiles. It was a title game for the history books.
“We knew what play we were going to,” Arcidiacono, who led his team with 16 points, said afterwards. “We work on it every single day.”
