After losses over the weekend to Palisades and Lehighton, Catasauqua believed it could have a highly competitive game with winless Moravian Academy Monday afternoon.

The Rough Riders were right, but it took longer than anticipated.

Catty rallied from a 1-0 deficit with five runs over the final two innings to post a 5-2 victory on the road. With the win, the Roughies upped their mark to 3-2.

Senior lefthander Brandon Jenny twirled a five-hit, 14-strikeout complete game for the Roughies as he won his second game of the year. Junior Christian Fye had three hits and senior Wes Fotta had two RBIs.

Jenny realizes the young Roughies can piece a good season together, and he can play a big role.

“We are a very young team, and trying to fill positions can be hard,” said Jenny. “We have to play the game 100-percent with every pitch. I have been pitching really well lately and have two good wins.

“I’m throwing the same pitches as last year with my fastball and curveball, but my curveball as improved a lot. I’ve used it a lot this year.

‘I definitely think we have a shot at making the playoffs. We just need to put in the work and keep pushing each other. We all need to want it.

“Jenny threw well,” said Roughies’ head coach Steve Bradley. “He had movement on his ball, and he stayed focused after we were down. He did a nice job overall.

“Their starting pitcher threw well and they took him out after six innings. They are a much-improved team, and their shortstop made four double plays on his own. We hit the ball hard, but it was right at people.

“It was a tough game.”

Last Friday, the Roughies traveled to Palisades, but they never got untracked in a 15-2 loss.

Freshman Matt Fotta started the game and junior Bryann Rivera came on in relief. Sophomore John Pushkar had a pair of hits. Rivera also had four strikeouts.

“Fotta threw some strikes, and he pitched all right,” added Bradley. “He’s a big lefty and kept them off guard for a bit. We’ll keep working with him.

“Bryann Rivera followed him, and he threw the ball hard. Palisades is a good team, and they had nine solid guys out there. They hit the ball hard.”

The next day, the Roughies’ trip to Lehighton also fell short, as they dropped an 8-2 decision. Lehighton pushed across five runs in the first two innings and took advantage of three Catasauqua errors.

Junior McKay Lewis threw 4.2 innings and had four strikeouts.

“Our errors helped them get six unearned runs,” stated Bradley. “McKay did a nice job, and we didn’t make the plays behind him.”

Bradley knows his club will endure their share of growing pains this season.

“We’re making our share of mistakes,” he said. “We have a lot of guys out there who would normally be playing JV ball.

“We have a lot of growing up to do.”