FR falls in eight

FORT RECOVERY — A Jackson Hobbs single in the bottom of the sixth inning gave the freshman and his Indians the cushion they were hoping for against the two-time defending state champions.
Minster, however, did not panic. Facing 0-2 counts in the top of the seventh, Andrew Knapke and Adam Niemeyer stayed calm.
They both came through with singles off of Hobbs and scored to force extra innings as Division IV No. 7 Fort Recovery’s chance at its first MAC win of the season slipped away in a 5-3, eight-inning loss to the second-ranked Wildcats.
“Today we got a little bit of momentum in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. The first five innings all the momentum was over there,” said Minster coach Mike Wiss, pointing toward the Fort Recovery dugout. “The momentum switched, and I believe it switched with those two at bats.
“We’re happy to get out of here with a win. Fort Recovery has improved, and they’re only going to get better.”
The Indians (10-7, 0-4 MAC) demonstrated just how much they’ve improved since suffering a no-hit, 5-0 loss in five innings to Minster last season in the sectional tournament.
Fort Recovery took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the seventh inning, and Hobbs tossed a couple of strikes past Knapke to open the inning. But Knapke battled at the plate and was able to deliver a single to left field.
“The No. 2 hitter, the Knapke boy, I thought Jackson made some excellent pitches to,” said FRHS coach Jerry Kaup. “And he was capable of fouling those off, and then finally he was able to just get enough bat on the ball and get it just inside the left-field line. That was huge.”
Niemeyer ended up in the same situation, down 0-2 in the count against Hobbs. But he also singled to left field to put runners on first and second base.
Clean-up hitter Devon Poeppelman would have had the green light had he wanted it, but he had another idea.
“Devon had the big hit last year to win the state championship. He looked at me and said, ‘Coach, I’m bunting. Don’t worry, Ethan’s going to get a hit,’” said Wiss. “That’s what he did.”
After Wolf sacrificed himself to put Knapke and Niemeyer in scoring position, Ethan Wolf did as Poeppelman said he would. The 6-foot-6-inch junior catcher connected on his third hit of the game, a single to center field that tied the game.
The Indians got out of the inning with the score tied, but went down one-two-three in the bottom of the seventh.
A one-out walk to No. 9 hitter Brandon Hoying got Minster going in the top of the eighth. He later scored on a passed ball to give the Wildcats (11-1, 3-0 MAC) the lead.
Jay Eilerman reach base on an infield single, and after back-to-back walks Poeppelman drove him in with a sacrifice fly to right field.
Blake Boughman gave Fort Recovery a chance with a one-out single in the bottom of the eighth, but reliever Clay Brown retired the next two batters to end the game.
“Minster is a good ball team,” said Kaup, whose team has dropped four in a row. “We talk about making plays, and you have to make plays to win. I think we made most of our plays. I don’t think we gave this ball game away.
“My kids played very hard and played real well.”
Boughman suffered the loss in relief, giving up two runs on one hit and two walks in one-third inning.
Hobbs, a freshman, started and went seven innings for the Tribe, allowing three runs on 10 hits and two walks. He struck out four batters.
“Hobbs did a nice job,” said Wiss. “He kept people off balance. … As a guy that’s been here for 19 years, you always like to see the young kids and how they mature and how they progress. He’s a good young man.”
Minster grabbed the lead with a run in the top of the first inning, but the Indians tied it in the bottom of the frame thanks to a leadoff single from Chad Schroer, a sacrifice bunt from Collin O’Dell, a wild pitch and an RBI ground out from Jacob Muhlenkamp.
Cole Wendel walked and scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the second inning for a 2-1 lead. Fort Recovery extended the advantage when Muhlenkamp walked in the sixth inning and pinch runner Nate Lochtefeld scored on the Hobbs single.[[In-content Ad]]