Cards fall just short

By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
COLUMBUS -- Canfield High senior Nate Porter walked slowly from third base, holding his batting helmet just behind his head, home plate just 90 feet away.
So close, yet so far away.
This is how it ends.
Canfield's season of dreams, dashed with the tying run in scoring position in the seventh inning in Thursday's Division II state baseball semifinal at Cooper Stadium.
Final score: Steubenville 3, Canfield 2.
"We came out and tried to play our game," said Canfield senior outfielder Frank Turocy. "Things just didn't go our way."
After scoring twice in the first two innings, the Cardinals spent the final five innings waiting for the run they knew would come.
Except it didn't. After Josh Geric hit a one-out single in the seventh, Porter came on as a pinch-runner and stole second.
Two infield popups later, Steubenville was celebrating and the Cardinals were walking from the dugout in a daze.
The season
"It was an outstanding year," Canfield coach Tony Ross said.
"Steubenville has a very good team and this was exactly the type of game we thought it would be."
The result, however, wasn't.
"I thought we hit the ball well all day," said Turocy, who had one of Canfield's eight hits. "We just hit them at people."
The loss overshadowed an outstanding game by pitcher Rick Banna, who gave up two hits to lead off the game and just one the rest of the way.
Big Red scored the game-winning run in the second inning when Gary Stubbs was hit by a pitch, stole second and came home on two flyouts.
"They just got the hits at the right time," Banna said. "I don't think this was the best game I pitched, but I pitched pretty much to my capabilities."
So did Steubenville pitcher Tom Brown, who wasn't overpowering but managed to keep the Cardinals off balance for much of the game.
"Both teams started aggressive, but both pitchers settled down," said Big Red coach Fred Heatherington.
"Fortunately, we got the lead in the second and were able to hold on."
Steubenville (20-11), which was playing in the state semifinal for the second straight year, advanced to play Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit (28-5) in Saturday's state final. Heatherington's team lost to Columbus Watterson in the state final in 1991.
What does he remember from that experience?
"We lost," he said. "We've talked about unfinished business. It's a big challenge for us, but we didn't get this far by being afraid."
Over-aggressive
And Canfield didn't get this far by being timid. But the Cardinals' aggressiveness cost them dearly when three base runners were erased in the first two innings.
The big blow came in the second when Canfield had runners at second and third with just one out.
But Geric was picked off at third and Dave Piersante was caught stealing after drawing a two-out walk.
"We're aggressive -- sometimes a little overaggressive," said Banna. "But it's good to be aggressive. That's how we got here."
Canfield's John Virostko -- one of 16 seniors on the team -- tripled and scored the game's first run for the Cardinals (28-5), who also lost in the state semifinal in 1998.
Joe Pitzer added two hits, including a double, and scored a run, while Chad Baker and Josh Novotny added RBIs.
scalzo@vindy.com