43
Five-run first inning key in Clippers’ win
By Jon Moffett
LORAIN
The fat lady wasn’t exactly ready to sing after one inning of at the Pipe Yard on Thursday, but she was at least warming up her pipes.
Columbiana jumped out to an early lead and went on to defeat Buckeye Central 8-3 in the Division IV baseball tournament. A five-run first inning created a lot of momentum and gave the Clippers (20-10) enough breathing room.
“What a lead like that does is it allows your guys to kind of ease into the game,” Clippers coach Scott Knox said. “This is the first time we’ve played in this facility, and it allowed our pitcher to relax a little bit and get ahead of hitters.”
Columbiana captured the momentum in the top of the first inning.
The Bucks (22-8) had Alex Finney on first base when Sam Shafer struck out swinging. Finney took off on the pitch, and was gunned down by Columbiana’s Matt Douglas. Pitcher Hank Schlueter pumped his fist into the air and the team trotted off the field.
It was cruise control after that.
The Clippers batted around in the first inning, scoring five runs on three hits and a Buckeye Central error. The Clippers forced Shafer to toss 52 pitches in the first two innings; 32 in the first.
“It keeps the pressure on [your opponent] because when you get behind, you start swinging at bad pitches and doing things you’re not used to doing,” Knox said. “It was very important for us to get that lead.”
An excellent performance by Schlueter helped halt the Buckeye Central offense. Buckeye Central had only one big inning — two runs in the third. Schlueter (4-3) had seven strikeouts, including the game’s final batter.
“Schlueter did a great job,” Knox said. “He got into a couple of [jams] early, and they took some good swings in the first inning ... But once we got that lead, I think he relaxed a little bit and he was able to get ahead of the hitters.”
Schlueter said the run support he received made his job much easier.
“I thrive on that,” he said. “It helps me because it gives me a lot of confidence out on the mound. And it makes me feel like even if they score a couple, I don’t care because we have some insurance.”
Tyler Denmeade, who was 2-for-3 with two runs, an RBI and a stolen base, said the win was huge.
“This really helped our ego and got us going,” he said. “We came to regionals, and we haven’t been here for a while. But we came here and wanted to get at least one win. And now we’re in the finals.”