Spartans handle Harding

Boardman did all the right things to advance to the Division I district.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BOARDMAN -- The Boardman High baseball team seemed to play a cut above the Division I talent level Wednesday against Warren Harding, in a sectional tournament final at the Spartans' field.
Three of the main reasons were Matt Repac's outstanding pitching, Chris King's power hitting and the entire team's solid defensive play.
Repac fired a three-hitter with six strikeouts and only one walk, and hit a solo homer, while King ripped a three-run double and solo homer, as the Spartans (19-5) rolled to a 10-0 win, advancing to district play.
Boardman also was helped by Mike Krieger's two-run single and Warren Harding's five errors.
Next opponent: The Spartans will play Maple Heights in a district semifinal next Wednesday at Cene Park at 4:30 p.m. Maple Heights advanced Wednesday with a 12-2 victory over Cleveland Rhodes in a Parma sectional final.
First-year coach Scott Knox of Boardman said Repac (8-0), who went the distance, was in control the entire game.
"He had command of three pitches -- fastball, curveball and change-up. He got ahead in the count [and] kept them off balance," said Knox.
Knox also said his team was swinging hard at the plate.
"We were particularly aggressive. We hit the fastball and weren't chasing breaking pitches, and used the count to our advantage," he said. "We got ahead in the count and [then Warren Harding pitcher Craig Bohyer had] to come in with the fastball, and we took advantage of it."
Sharp overall: Knox, whose Spartans already clinched the Steel Valley Conference championship with a 7-1 record, said his team was sharp overall.
"I thought that overall fundamentally and physically we were ready to play," he said.
Repac said that he "felt real strong pitching." He said he tried not to give the Raiders any good pitches, and succeeded for the most part.
"I spotted my fastball real well," said Repac. "I kept everything down and tried to keep the ball near their hands to jam them. I kept them off-balance with off-speed and change-ups and curveballs."
"It was one of my better games. I'm probably peaking now."
Brent Ulicny, Warren Harding's second-year coach, was impressed by the Spartans' performance.
"They got an excellent pitching performance and they played fundamentally sound," said Ulicny. "They are going to make your typical play and not boot the ball around."
Ulicny conceded Repac was very effective on the mound.
"He was moving the ball around at different spots and [hitting the] corners and throwing the curve ball when he needed to."
Although the Raiders (9-13) did hit the ball hard, it usually was at Boardman fielders. And the Spartans made only two errors.
Repac starts it: Repac got the ball rolling offensively when he connected for a towering blast that cleared the center-field fence.
Boardman struck for two more runs in the second inning. Andrew Good's single brought in Sean Curry, who had doubled; and Giancarlo Silvestri's sacrifice fly scored Rick Mosco, who reached on an error.
In the third inning, King's long homer over the right-center field fence made it 4-0.
Boardman got two more runs in the fourth on Krieger's single that scored Good and Silvestri, who both had singled and advanced on Tony Dellapena's bunt.
The Spartans finished their scoring with a four-run sixth, highlighted by King's three-run double, and the help of two errors.
Bohyer gave up 10 hits, struck out five and didn't issue a walk.
kovach@vindy.com