Savaet baffles Reserve batters

The Springfield ace tossed a five-hitter in a 5-2 win.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
NEW MIDDLETOWN -- Jeremy Savaet of the Springfield High baseball team demonstrated Thursday that it isn't necessary for a pitcher's curveball and off-speed stuff to be working effectively to win a high school game.
Instead, Savaet showed that it can be done with just plain fastballs and a lot of control.
Savaet, throwing the ball where he wanted to with the help of catcher Chris Martin's glove target, fired a five-hitter with five strikeouts and no walks as the Tigers registered a 5-2 win over Western Reserve Thursday in an Inter-County League game.
Savaet was backed by a four-run, fourth-inning rally led by three freshmen that overcame the Blue Devils' 2-1 lead.
The win keeps the Tigers undefeated in the ICL (6-0) and also kept Savaet perfect on the mound this season (5-0), after the junior went 5-2 last year as a sophomore.
"I kept my [pitching] mechanics right. I was placing my fast ball where I wanted to," said Savaet, who struggled with his curveball. "I kept placing my fastball. I didn't have much off-speed stuff."
He credited catcher Martin for helping him place the ball where he wanted it.
"My catcher Chris Martin puts the glove where I wanted to aim. He gives me a big target."
Beam in agreement
Springfield (10-2) coach Bob Beam was in agreement with Savaet.
"He did not have a lot of stuff, but his fastball was moving well. He spotted the ball real well. He was moving his fastball well," said Beam, who lauded Savaet's no-walk control.
"If he has had more than five walks in two years that would surprise me. He was hitting his spots. He had good control of his fastball."
Coach Mike Kopachy of Western Reserve (9-6, 6-3 ICL) went ever further, claiming that Savaet was throwing strikes but that his team still had trouble hitting him.
"That's the name of the game -- to throw strikes. He threw a lot of strikes and we didn't hit them, especially early in the game," said Kopachy, also admitting that Savaet "is a good pitcher who mixes it up."
But Beam said that Western Reserve was hitting Savaet's curveball. "When he hung a curveball, they took advantage."
Springfield's four-run fourth was led by three freshmen -- Travis Richey, Bryan Visingardi and Todd Kibby -- and junior Bobby Rogers, who each drove in a run to overcome the Blue Devils' 2-1 lead.
Richey rapped a triple, Visingardi a double and Kibby a single while Rogers had a sacrifice fly to account for the four runs that chased starting pitcher Brandon Moherman (1-2).
"We start three freshman -- Travis Richey, Kibby and Visingardi," Beam said. "That bodes well for the future. We also have three key seniors."
Moherman gave up six hits, four walks with no strikeouts. Reliever Jerod Parker gave up three hits.
Springfield took a 1-0 lead in the first on Dane Dobson's RBI grounder but Western Reserve tied it in the second on Dave Snowden's single, and then went ahead in the fourth at 2-1 on Nick Lude's sacrifice fly. Kibby finished with a double and single while senior John Houser had two singles for Springfield.
"John Houser did a good job at the plate," Beam said. And, "Our 7-8-9 guys [in the batting order] -- Rogers, Kibby and Travis Richey -- played well. They were struggling lately."
kovach@vindy.com