June 2, 2019 at 4:23 a.m.
Regional revenge
Tigers respond to 2018 defeat with walk-off win over JCHS
Regional revenge
GARRETT — Noah Arbuckle strode to the plate, his team trailing by three.
Ryan Schlechty stood on second base, Wyatt Geesaman on first.
Lightning continued to strike in the surrounding sky as it had all evening long.
Then.
Thunder.
Arbuckle hammered an Ian Brumback pitch and sent it roaring over the left field fence for a game-tying home run — his second of the day — that brought his teammates pouring out of the dugout for a home-plate celebration.
A half-inning later, it was not a powerful smash, but a simple infield hopper, that doused the Patriots’ regional spirits.
After Jay County scored four times in the top of the seventh inning to pull even, Yorktown walked off with the regional championship 7-6 Saturday at Garrett when Evan Fauquher beat a throw to the plate on an infield bouncer by Parker Stinson.
“That’s the advantage of being the home team, I guess,” said Jay County coach Lea Selvey. “I just told them, I’m proud of them. We battled. Things didn’t fall through. But those guys, really, they stayed composed. They came back. They battled. … I’m proud of them.”
It was a reversal of fortunes from a year ago, when the Patriots topped Yorktown by the same score to win the regional title at Bellmont. The Tigers also lost in the 2017 regional championship game by a 10-0 score to NorthWood after ending Jay County’s season in the sectional semifinal.
As they had earlier in the day in their 5-2 regional semifinal win over Angola, the Patriots (18-6) fell behind 2-0 against Yorktown. That deficit extended to 5-1 after two innings, and was at 6-2 before the four-run top of the seventh that include a Quinn Faulkner double, an error and a hit by pitch ahead of Arbuckle’s blast.
“The next step was, fortunately it was a tie ballgame and we weren’t down,” said Yorktown coach PJ Fauquher. “So it was just a matter of, ‘Hey, let’s regroup. Let’s shut it down. Don’t give them anything else and then we can go hit.’
“You know, we just scored six in the seventh inning of the last game, so coming back and getting one run, we felt like we could do that.”
The Tigers (19-14), who knocked off New Haven 9-6 for their regional semifinal victory, did, in fact, have more heroics in them.
Evan Fauquher led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a single to center field, and Grahm Reedy made it safely to first on what was intended as a sacrifice bunt. Jay County managed to get Reedy out at second on a fielder’s choice by Gehrig Smalstig, leaving runners on first and third with Stinson headed to the plate.
Patriot coach Lea Selvey, who earned his 500th career win in the sectional semifinal a week earlier, brought his infield to the mound for a strategic chat. Go home? Or go for the double play to end the inning?
When Stinson hit his bouncer to shortstop Ryan Schlechty, the senior four-year starter went home with his throw. It was too late, hitting catcher Gabe Faulkner’s glove at the same moment Fauquher’s foot landed on home plate.
This time, it was the Tigers bursting jubilantly from the dugout while the defending champs ambled off the field, their season over.
“We were fortunate enough to do enough to get the job done today,” said PJ Fauquher. “But it does feel great after last year after those guys got us.”
Arbuckle, who hit a two-run homer in the semifinal, suffered the loss on the mound. He struggled early, giving up two runs on three hits, including back-to-back doubles, in the first inning and then three more runs in the second. He settled down to hold the Tigers scoreless over the next three innings before giving up one run in the sixth and then the game-winner in the seventh.
Jay County got single runs, both from Michael Schlechty, in the second and fourth innings before the eruption in the top of the seventh.
Looking back on a 7-6 game, Selvey said there were any number of moments that could have swung the result. But he didn’t want to dwell on those.
Instead, he again repeated that he is proud of his Patriots, who have gone 39-12 over the course of the last two seasons with two sectional championships and the 2018 regional title.
“It’s been a good run,” he said.
Ryan Schlechty stood on second base, Wyatt Geesaman on first.
Lightning continued to strike in the surrounding sky as it had all evening long.
Then.
Thunder.
Arbuckle hammered an Ian Brumback pitch and sent it roaring over the left field fence for a game-tying home run — his second of the day — that brought his teammates pouring out of the dugout for a home-plate celebration.
A half-inning later, it was not a powerful smash, but a simple infield hopper, that doused the Patriots’ regional spirits.
After Jay County scored four times in the top of the seventh inning to pull even, Yorktown walked off with the regional championship 7-6 Saturday at Garrett when Evan Fauquher beat a throw to the plate on an infield bouncer by Parker Stinson.
“That’s the advantage of being the home team, I guess,” said Jay County coach Lea Selvey. “I just told them, I’m proud of them. We battled. Things didn’t fall through. But those guys, really, they stayed composed. They came back. They battled. … I’m proud of them.”
It was a reversal of fortunes from a year ago, when the Patriots topped Yorktown by the same score to win the regional title at Bellmont. The Tigers also lost in the 2017 regional championship game by a 10-0 score to NorthWood after ending Jay County’s season in the sectional semifinal.
As they had earlier in the day in their 5-2 regional semifinal win over Angola, the Patriots (18-6) fell behind 2-0 against Yorktown. That deficit extended to 5-1 after two innings, and was at 6-2 before the four-run top of the seventh that include a Quinn Faulkner double, an error and a hit by pitch ahead of Arbuckle’s blast.
“The next step was, fortunately it was a tie ballgame and we weren’t down,” said Yorktown coach PJ Fauquher. “So it was just a matter of, ‘Hey, let’s regroup. Let’s shut it down. Don’t give them anything else and then we can go hit.’
“You know, we just scored six in the seventh inning of the last game, so coming back and getting one run, we felt like we could do that.”
The Tigers (19-14), who knocked off New Haven 9-6 for their regional semifinal victory, did, in fact, have more heroics in them.
Evan Fauquher led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a single to center field, and Grahm Reedy made it safely to first on what was intended as a sacrifice bunt. Jay County managed to get Reedy out at second on a fielder’s choice by Gehrig Smalstig, leaving runners on first and third with Stinson headed to the plate.
Patriot coach Lea Selvey, who earned his 500th career win in the sectional semifinal a week earlier, brought his infield to the mound for a strategic chat. Go home? Or go for the double play to end the inning?
When Stinson hit his bouncer to shortstop Ryan Schlechty, the senior four-year starter went home with his throw. It was too late, hitting catcher Gabe Faulkner’s glove at the same moment Fauquher’s foot landed on home plate.
This time, it was the Tigers bursting jubilantly from the dugout while the defending champs ambled off the field, their season over.
“We were fortunate enough to do enough to get the job done today,” said PJ Fauquher. “But it does feel great after last year after those guys got us.”
Arbuckle, who hit a two-run homer in the semifinal, suffered the loss on the mound. He struggled early, giving up two runs on three hits, including back-to-back doubles, in the first inning and then three more runs in the second. He settled down to hold the Tigers scoreless over the next three innings before giving up one run in the sixth and then the game-winner in the seventh.
Jay County got single runs, both from Michael Schlechty, in the second and fourth innings before the eruption in the top of the seventh.
Looking back on a 7-6 game, Selvey said there were any number of moments that could have swung the result. But he didn’t want to dwell on those.
Instead, he again repeated that he is proud of his Patriots, who have gone 39-12 over the course of the last two seasons with two sectional championships and the 2018 regional title.
“It’s been a good run,” he said.
Top Stories
9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit
Chartwells marketing
September 17, 2024 7:36 a.m.
Events
250 X 250 AD