Sidwell Friends used a great late-week practice as momentum in a Friday afternoon contest against one of the area’s best programs in Gonzaga College High School, but in the end, it was the Eagles flying away with a 5-2 victory, stealing the win from the host Quakers in the 7th, despite Sidwell besting Gonzaga in hits by a wide margin.

Starter Cody Encarnacion was locked in from the start, finishing three strong frames while relinquishing but a pair of unearned runs before turning the ball over to fellow shortstop Daniel Piho, taking a close game into the 7th. The Eagle eyes of Gonzaga batters would use 10 free passes though on the day, working up pitch counts, and ultimately spoiling the victory.

The lack of run support was aided by Eagle defenders playing in just the right spots to limit damage by stranding more than a handful of Sidwell runners in scoring position. The strong lineup of Quaker bats, firing at just the right time and finishing an impressive 8 for 16 in spots 1-4, did what they could to give the offense a chance, but in the end just couldn’t crack open a close game.

While the offense provided multiple multi-hit games, worth noting is Kabir Lakhanpal and Ezekiel Seldin, notching their first hit and run scored, respectively, playing up a level to help aide the injury-ridden roster.

The Quakers will take the weekend off before hitting the home stretch of the season with games on Tuesday and Wednesday.