Lexington's Monovoukas Flirts with No-Hitter

From behind the backstop, to the front row the bleachers, inside both dugouts and atop the pitcher’s mound, the natural tension of a no-hit bid can be felt throughout a ballpark. Each pitch is either one step closer to greatness or the one that sends it all crumbling down.

The tension at began to rise around the middle of the fifth inning and only grew when Minutemen starter Demitri Monovoukas continued flirting with a no-hit bid into the seventh inning against Watertown High School on Wednesday night. But, with just one out separating him from a lifelong memory, Monovoukas surrendered an infield single, and Lexington went on to win 3-0.

“We were all rooting for Demitri to get the no-hitter there in the end. I mean, he pitched so well he deserved it,” LHS coach Tom O’Grady said. “It was disappointing for all of us, but the trademark of a good pitcher and a good baseball player is that he came back and got the next guy.”

As is customary, Monovoukas was left to his thoughts, sitting alone on the bench in the middle of the sixth as the rest of the team stood at the fence. Only when right fielder Scoop Ruxin drove in Lexington’s second run and the Minutemen scored third when shortstop Nick Murray scampered home with the third did Monovoukas join his teammates.

The senior righty took the mound in the second with just three outs between him and a no-hitter. The first two outs were easy, back-to-back strikeouts.

Then came up Watertown senior second baseman Brian Cristello. After a brief battle, Cristello sent a grounder up the middle. Murray ranged far to his left, got to the ball, but couldn't field it cleanly and Cristello was safe at first with what was ruled an infield single.

A bout of disappointment lasted through the next pitch, which went the backstop allowing Cristello to take second, before Monovoukas struck out Greg Geagan to seal the win. The single will forever serve as just a footnote to the stellar pitching performance.

“He had good stuff tonight,” O’Grady said. “He’s a talented kid and I’m just glad he was on tonight. We needed him.”

Monovoukas finished with 12 strikeouts and the only baserunners he allowed besides the one hit were on a pair of errors in the third inning and a hit batsman in the fourth. Only sophomore Logan Riley and Cristello reached as far as second base for Watertown.

Though it was apparent to just about everyone in attendance, Watertown coach Joe Chiodo said Monovoukas’ no-hit bid never crossed his mind.

“I’m not even thinking about [the no-hit bid] on my end of it,” Chiodo said. “I’m thinking of Danny Kelly making his pitches, the defense making the plays, getting on base and just trying to score. I’m looking at the scoreboard and it was 0-0.”

Overshadowed by his counterpart, Kelly, Watertown’s starter, pitched well himself. Despite control problems – he walked seven and hit two batters – the senior kept the Lexington bats at bay by allowing just three hits and striking out five.

Lexington first threatened with the bases loaded in the third inning. Murray walked, designated hitter Will Marcal was hit by a pitch and Chris Shaw walked to put a Minuteman on ever base. Having already struck out Ruxin, Kelly got out of the jam by forcing Charlie Guthrie to ground into a 1-2-3 double play.

“It all starts with Danny,” Chiodo said. “Kell pitched a great game. He kept them off-balance and made his pitches. He basically battled them every single pitch of the game and he had everything working tonight. He caught them off-guard, I think.”

Not until the fourth did the mighty Lexington offense get to Kelly. The Minutemen again loaded the bases on a Connor Murray walk and singles by center fielder Matt Sharma (one of two for him) and second baseman Levi Mattingly.

This time’s Kelly’s command got the best of him, as a wild pitch that bounced in front of the plate skipped to the backstop and allowed Connor Murray to scamper home. The run would ultimately prove the difference in the game.

Lexington added two insurance runs in the sixth on Ruxin’s hard-hit single to center field -- and a bit of gamesmanship on the right fielder’s part. After reaching, he feigned a steal of second to draw the throw from Watertown senior catcher and captain Collin Geagan. Nick Murray took advantage of the opportunity to scramble home.

“The only ball we really squared up on was the one Scoop hit,” O’Grady said. “That was the only ball we hit hard all night. [Kelly] was terrific.

“I think this could almost be good for us, because we haven’t played in a close game with the exception of Lowell in the first game,” he continued. “As we get further along, into the second half of the season, a lot of teams get better and we’re going find ourselves in situations where teams are going to be up on us.”

Two Raiders reached in the third, both on errors. Riley got on when a ball went through Mattingly’s legs and Chris Roche reached on a throw to first by Murray that pulled Shaw off the bag. Monovoukas stamped out the threat by inducing Raiders’ captain Dan Renzella to groundout back to the mound.

The Minutemen next face Reading Memorial on the road on Saturday. The first pitch of that game is scheduled for 10 a.m.