April 29, 2015 at 5:49 p.m.
MAC MAGIC
Indians stun top-ranked Coldwater, remain perfect
MAC MAGIC
COLDWATER, Ohio — Jackson Hobbs found himself in a situation every young baseball player dreams about.
With his team clinging to a 3-2 lead, Hobbs was on the mound in the bottom of the seventh inning with two outs and a full count to Coldwater’s Kyle McKibben.
But this wasn’t any ordinary game. McKibben’s Cavalier team is the defending Division III state champion and ranked No. 1 in the state. Hobbs’ Fort Recovery High School squad is the top-ranked team in Division IV and boasted a 15-0 record.
With the game on the line and his team on his back, Hobbs threw a changeup — his 110th pitch of the evening — that McKibben drilled to left field.
Fort Recovery’s Kyle Schroer broke toward the fence, making the catch just before the warning track to seal a one-run victory in a matchup of Midwest Athletic Conference juggernauts.
Schroer threw up his fist and Hobbs pumped his as he ran to catcher Chase Bruns to celebrate.
“It’s awesome, man,” Hobbs said. “You run that (situation) through your head all the time. To actually end up getting through it and winning the game, it’s an awesome feeling.”
While it may not seem like an upset as both teams hold No. 1 rankings, for the Indians (16-0, 5-0 MAC) it was the biggest win in program history. Fort Recovery hasn’t beaten Coldwater since 1981.
“This is a huge win for us as a team standpoint and as a MAC championship game,” Hobbs said. The junior scattered three hits, allowing two runs — one earned — while striking out three and walking four. “We’re 5-0 now in the MAC. (Coldwater) is competing for a MAC championship and so are we.
“This is huge win for us.”
With one out in the top of the seventh inning in a 2-2 ballgame, Kyle Schroer hit a single to left field and subsequently swiped second base off Coldwater catcher Aaron Harlamert to get in scoring position as the go-ahead run.
Nate Lochtefeld, whose sacrifice bunt in the fifth led to the game-tying run, hit a chopper to McKibben at shortstop. With Schroer breaking for third, McKibben rushed his throw to first and Malave Bettinger couldn’t scoop the ball after Lochtefeld had already run through the bag.
As the ball rolled to the fence in foul territory, Schroer never broke stride as he rounded third base and headed home, scoring the eventual game-winning run without a throw.
With his team clinging to a 3-2 lead, Hobbs was on the mound in the bottom of the seventh inning with two outs and a full count to Coldwater’s Kyle McKibben.
But this wasn’t any ordinary game. McKibben’s Cavalier team is the defending Division III state champion and ranked No. 1 in the state. Hobbs’ Fort Recovery High School squad is the top-ranked team in Division IV and boasted a 15-0 record.
With the game on the line and his team on his back, Hobbs threw a changeup — his 110th pitch of the evening — that McKibben drilled to left field.
Fort Recovery’s Kyle Schroer broke toward the fence, making the catch just before the warning track to seal a one-run victory in a matchup of Midwest Athletic Conference juggernauts.
Schroer threw up his fist and Hobbs pumped his as he ran to catcher Chase Bruns to celebrate.
“It’s awesome, man,” Hobbs said. “You run that (situation) through your head all the time. To actually end up getting through it and winning the game, it’s an awesome feeling.”
While it may not seem like an upset as both teams hold No. 1 rankings, for the Indians (16-0, 5-0 MAC) it was the biggest win in program history. Fort Recovery hasn’t beaten Coldwater since 1981.
“This is a huge win for us as a team standpoint and as a MAC championship game,” Hobbs said. The junior scattered three hits, allowing two runs — one earned — while striking out three and walking four. “We’re 5-0 now in the MAC. (Coldwater) is competing for a MAC championship and so are we.
“This is huge win for us.”
With one out in the top of the seventh inning in a 2-2 ballgame, Kyle Schroer hit a single to left field and subsequently swiped second base off Coldwater catcher Aaron Harlamert to get in scoring position as the go-ahead run.
Nate Lochtefeld, whose sacrifice bunt in the fifth led to the game-tying run, hit a chopper to McKibben at shortstop. With Schroer breaking for third, McKibben rushed his throw to first and Malave Bettinger couldn’t scoop the ball after Lochtefeld had already run through the bag.
As the ball rolled to the fence in foul territory, Schroer never broke stride as he rounded third base and headed home, scoring the eventual game-winning run without a throw.
After touching the plate, he jumped into Ben Will’s arms in celebration as Coldwater pitcher Derek Thobe bent down to his knees in disgust.
“We wanted to make (Thobe) work a little bit,” said FRHS coach Jerry Kaup. “I think Aaron is an excellent catcher so it’s difficult to get a free base off of Aaron. You’re going to have to bunt or somehow be creative.”
So with the speedy Schroer on first, Kaup called for a hit and run because he wasn’t sure his team could get a straight steal off Harlamert.
Coldwater (15-2, 4-1 MAC) was on to the play, with Thobe pitching out in an attempt to nab Schroer. Harlamert’s pickoff attempt sailed high and to the right, as McKibben had to leap over Schroer to catch the ball and still try to make the tag.
“As it turns out, what I thought we couldn’t do we ended up doing, which helped decide the winning run,” said Kaup, whose team is now in the driver’s seat to the first conference championship in program history.
Hobbs and Thobe each had a shaky first inning, but Thobe and the defending MAC champions had the advantage. Fort Recovery scored on an RBI single by Jacob Homan in the top of the first inning. He nearly gave the Indians a two-run advantage but he was gunned down at the plate on a perfectly executed relay from the outfield.
Coldwater nabbed a 2-1 lead in the bottom half of the frame. Harlamert first smacked an RBI double for the tying run, and then came around to score on a wild pitch and an infield error.
Then, Thobe and Hobbs settled down. Thobe retired the next nine FRHS batters, needing only four pitches to get through the fourth inning. Meanwhile, Coldwater got a runner to third base with two outs in the second inning but Hobbs got out of the jam with a pop fly to center field.
The Cavs threatened again in the fourth when Brandon Kunk drew a one-out walk, but Bruns picked him off trying to steal second. One inning later, Coldwater had runners at the corners with two outs but Hobbs got Harlamert to bounce out to Lochtefeld at third.
“Tip your hat to Fort Recovery,” Coldwater coach Aaron Harlamert said. “They are a very good team. Jackson Hobbs did a great job and won the game.”
Schroer had two hits and scored two runs against Thobe, who allowed all three runs — two earned — on seven hits and struck out a pair.
“He didn’t have his best stuff,” said Harlamert. Thobe pitched Friday in a 12-0 win against Parkway. “He was in there (and) he competed. He showed that toughness that we have. We just didn’t make a play.”
While this was one of the biggest games in FRHS history, Kaup and the Indians knew before it started they had the potential to beat the Cavs for the first time in a generation. So Kaup wasn’t going to let his players get caught up in the moment.
“We didn’t focus on that so much,” he said. “We don’t dislike Coldwater. We respect them tremendously. When we come over here we just try to do the things we do fundamentally to win a baseball game.”
“We wanted to make (Thobe) work a little bit,” said FRHS coach Jerry Kaup. “I think Aaron is an excellent catcher so it’s difficult to get a free base off of Aaron. You’re going to have to bunt or somehow be creative.”
So with the speedy Schroer on first, Kaup called for a hit and run because he wasn’t sure his team could get a straight steal off Harlamert.
Coldwater (15-2, 4-1 MAC) was on to the play, with Thobe pitching out in an attempt to nab Schroer. Harlamert’s pickoff attempt sailed high and to the right, as McKibben had to leap over Schroer to catch the ball and still try to make the tag.
“As it turns out, what I thought we couldn’t do we ended up doing, which helped decide the winning run,” said Kaup, whose team is now in the driver’s seat to the first conference championship in program history.
Hobbs and Thobe each had a shaky first inning, but Thobe and the defending MAC champions had the advantage. Fort Recovery scored on an RBI single by Jacob Homan in the top of the first inning. He nearly gave the Indians a two-run advantage but he was gunned down at the plate on a perfectly executed relay from the outfield.
Coldwater nabbed a 2-1 lead in the bottom half of the frame. Harlamert first smacked an RBI double for the tying run, and then came around to score on a wild pitch and an infield error.
Then, Thobe and Hobbs settled down. Thobe retired the next nine FRHS batters, needing only four pitches to get through the fourth inning. Meanwhile, Coldwater got a runner to third base with two outs in the second inning but Hobbs got out of the jam with a pop fly to center field.
The Cavs threatened again in the fourth when Brandon Kunk drew a one-out walk, but Bruns picked him off trying to steal second. One inning later, Coldwater had runners at the corners with two outs but Hobbs got Harlamert to bounce out to Lochtefeld at third.
“Tip your hat to Fort Recovery,” Coldwater coach Aaron Harlamert said. “They are a very good team. Jackson Hobbs did a great job and won the game.”
Schroer had two hits and scored two runs against Thobe, who allowed all three runs — two earned — on seven hits and struck out a pair.
“He didn’t have his best stuff,” said Harlamert. Thobe pitched Friday in a 12-0 win against Parkway. “He was in there (and) he competed. He showed that toughness that we have. We just didn’t make a play.”
While this was one of the biggest games in FRHS history, Kaup and the Indians knew before it started they had the potential to beat the Cavs for the first time in a generation. So Kaup wasn’t going to let his players get caught up in the moment.
“We didn’t focus on that so much,” he said. “We don’t dislike Coldwater. We respect them tremendously. When we come over here we just try to do the things we do fundamentally to win a baseball game.”
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