What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas?
Not when it comes to Cody Brown, Brett Tenuto, and the Gloucester Catholic baseball team.
South Jersey's best team got better in the Nevada desert. The Rams brought back more than T-shirts and tan lines.
"It built up our confidence," Brown said after pitching a complete game in a 13-2 victory over host Buena on Tuesday. "We played such good teams out there, and we showed we could play with them."
Gloucester Catholic coach Dennis Barth would never admit it, but his team did everything but hit the jackpot during a spring-break trip to Las Vegas. The Rams went 3-1, beating three teams from California and finishing third in the prestigious Bishop Gorman Easter classic.
But the payoff has been what has happened since the team came home. Gloucester Catholic has gone 6-0, outscoring teams by a combined 71-4 and 10-running its last five opponents.
The victory over Buena looks better on paper than it did in person, although perhaps the Rams' standards have risen as their record has climbed to 15-1.
Brown threw six strong innings, allowing two runs on five hits with seven strikeouts. The senior lefthander also was 3 for 4 at the plate with three RBIs.
"My best hitting game of the season," Brown said.
Tenuto, a junior third baseman, was 3 for 3 with three RBIs. Junior second baseman Joe Brooks drove in three runs, and senior centerfielder Steve Wilgus and junior catcher Elliott McCummings each rapped two hits.
"We didn't play a clean game," Barth said. "I think we might be getting too big for our britches."
Barth didn't like the way the Rams hit, fielded, and ran the bases. Other than that, the coach was pleased.
In truth, the Rams weren't at their best. But it says something about this team that it operated at less than full throttle and still was able to 10-run a solid Buena team that had entered the game with a 10-4 record.
"They put constant pressure on you," Buena coach George West said.
Gloucester Catholic had 14 hits, but a few were of the seeing-eye and opposite-field-bloop variety. They also benefited from Buena breakdowns in a six-run sixth.
But this team is playing with tremendous confidence. One example: The Rams had six two-strike hits.
"We really bonded [on the trip to Vegas]," Tenuto said. "We went out to dinner together every night, spent a lot of quality time together."
Plus, the Rams capped their trip with a 7-6, come-from-behind victory over Oaks Christian, a perennial power from Westlake Village, Calif.
The difference between 3-1 and 2-2 in that tournament? It might be measured by the remarkable way the Rams have played since their return.
"When you beat teams like that, it makes you realize you have a good team, too," Tenuto said.
The Rams are loaded with juniors, and Barth has an open invitation to return to Las Vegas next season. The coach says he prefers a tournament that's closer and less expensive in travel costs.
But who knows? If the Rams keep up this roll, he might be tempted to double down.
Gloucester Catholic 230026 - 13141
Buena 001001 - 253
WP: Cody Brown. LP: Sawyer Brown. 2B: GC-Cody Brown. 3B: GC-Joe Brooks. B-Anthony Lopez.