Connor Gillipsie doesn’t need much, just like any of Miller’s starting pitchers. With his 1.83 ERA coming into Monday’s meeting with Hargrave, he got all he needed early on. His six innings of no-hit pitching paired with some timely hitting and aggressive base running from his teammates proved to more than enough for the Mavericks to pick up a 5-0 win.
“Both teams were throwing strikes and getting quick outs, and that’s the key,” said Miller coach Billy Wagner. “That’s a great thing when you’re in high school, because sometimes, that’s hard to come by. Connor and Jacob (Rich), they both did a great job throwing strikes and throwing a no-hitter. I mean what can you say?”
Gillipsie was on point all day as he struck out eight batters, walked none and allowed just three base runners, each of whom reached after getting hit by a pitch. Between the second and third inning he struck out five straight including the sitting down the side in third.
“Coach Wagner has had a lot of confidence in me this year and he’s helped so much,” Gillipsie said. “I felt like all of that showed up today.”
Miller got on board offensively in the first inning with Jackson Barrett leading off with a single before he stole second base. Will Wagner then drove him in on a sacrifice. In the second Ethan Murray picked up an RBI single to make it 2-0. And then there was Jack Morris. The Miller senior led off the third with a triple and was brought home in the next at bat with Michael Dailey hitting a sacrifice. Morris then drove in a pair of runs in the sixth inning with a double to make it 5-0.
“At this point (in the year) you tell the kids to go out and compete and win the battle,” Wagner said. “We’ve got some good situational hitting going right now and that’s who we are. We don’t try and bang with teams. We try and move guys over and play classic baseball.”
In the top of the seventh Miller turned to Jacob Rich to close out the game on the mound. He struck out two batters and wrapped up the win.
On the day Morris was 3 for 4 with two RBI and a run scored. Barrett was 2 for 3 with two runs scored. Jacob Gavin was 2 for 3 with a run scored.
Miller (15-3) hosts Holy Cross on Tuesday.
