Austin Prep’s final trip through the MIAA ended with some hardware.
Jack Iannibelli fired a complete game three-hitter, striking out nine while Brenden Walsh hit the game-winning, inside the park home run as No. 1 Austin Prep (25-0) finished an undefeated season with a 2-1 win over No. 10 Newburyport to claim the Div. 3 state title on Saturday afternoon at LeLacheur Park in Lowell.
It’s the second state championship in five years for Austin Prep. The Cougars announced in January they will transition out of the MIAA and to the NEPSAC in September.
“You talk about an elephant in the room, we had an elephant exhibit,” Austin Prep coach Jonathan Pollard. “The number one ranking, then the all of a sudden national ranking. Then there was the moving out of the MIAA. It kept getting louder but we didn’t let it get us distracted.”
In the final outing of his high school career, Iannibelli was nothing short of sensational. The senior left-hander spotted all of his pitches for strikes with most notably showcasing a lethal fastball-changeup combination. Iannibelli, who will continue his playing career at Stonehill College, finished his high school tenure with just one loss. Alongside Virginia-bound Evan Blanco and rising sophomore superstar Jake Zawatsky the Cougars pitching staff foiled offenses on a daily basis.
“My mindset was just to do what I can and so my job was to keep them off balance,” Iannibelli said. “I blacked out after the final out. I don’t know what happened. It was so surreal.”
The Cougars grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Zawatsky singled and came around to score on a Matt Chatelle sacrifice fly. Newburyport (18-7) answered in the visitors half of the second when Jack Fehlner doubled and crossed the plate on an RBI groundout from Max Puleo.
The score remained 1-1 until the bottom of the fourth when with two outs Walsh hit a rising line drive to center field that went over the head of Owen Roberts and to the base of the wall. As Roberts went to retrieve it, Walsh darted around the bases before ultimately sliding around the relay throw to the plate made by shortstop Lucas Stalelard for an inside the park home run that put Austin Prep on top 2-1.
“I thought off the bat I lined out, but everyone was screaming like it was going to get over the outfielders head so I just took off,” Walsh said. “I looked up when I get to second and he still did not have the ball in centerfield so that’s when I turned it on and knew I could score.”
Iannibelli took it from there, retiring nine of the last 10 he faced including striking out the side in the seventh to send Austin Prep into a frenzy.
