The win and the rain (05/18/06)

FORT RECOVERY and MINSTER, Ohio — The Fort Recovery softball team’s timing was perfect. The Tribe baseball team simply didn’t have enough time.

The softball game between the Tribe and the Versailles Tigers at Fort Recovery was called because of rain before the Indians could score in the sixth inning. Luckily they had already posted five runs in the fifth and took a 5-2 victory.

The New Bremen and Fort Recovery baseball teams managed to get just two-plus innings in before lightning halted the game and the following rain turned the dirt portion of the Minster infield into a pond. The game, which was tied 2-2, will resume Friday at Minster at 5 p.m. with a Cardinal runner on first base and two outs in the top of the third inning.

Fort Recovery’s softball team trailed 2-0 after the first inning of its game Wednesday, but did not give up another run. The score remained the same until the Indians put up all of their five runs in the fifth. They had more coming as the bases were loaded with no outs when the game was stopped in the bottom of the sixth.

Senior All-Midwest Athletic Conference first-teamers Renee Evers and Ciera Rammel powered the offense for the Indians (9-15, 3-4 MAC). They each had two hits, including a double, and scored one run. Evers also drove in two runs, and Rammel added a stolen base.

Heather Schmackers notched a stolen base and an RBI, and Lauren Wenning had a stolen base and a run.

After allowing two runs in the first inning, Beth May pitched a scoreless second and then gave way to Kinsey Wenning. The freshman scattered four hits in four scoreless innings while striking out two to earn the win.

Fort Recovery’s baseball team gave away a pair of unearned runs in the top of the first inning against New Bremen, but evened the score in the second to set up Friday’s five-inning sprint to the finish.

Brian Garman opened the game with a walk for the Cardinals, but Tribe pitcher Kevin Schoenherr retired the next two batters. He should have gotten out of the inning, but center fielder Brad Fortkamp got turned around and stumbled on a deep fly ball by Logan O’Neill. Garman scored on the play, and Scott McCollum added an RBI single to score O’Neill for a 2-0 lead.

Fort Recovery battled back in the second inning when Curt Heitkamp whacked a one-out single to right field. Tony Diller followed with a towering double to right-center to put runners on second and third.

Heitkamp scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Steve Trobridge, and Toby Metzger brought Diller in with a seeing-eye single up the middle.

Schoenherr sat down the first two Cardinal batters of the third inning before McCollum reached base on an infield single.

Lightning halted the game with McCollum on first and Brad Wendel at the plate.

Fort Recovery is looking for its first trip to the district finals since 2001.[[In-content Ad]]