Ursuline clinches first state baseball berth since 2007

June 1, 2013 at 12:05a.m.

Ursuline veterans return for regional championship

MASSILLON

Two dinged-up Ursuline High senior baseball players weren’t about to miss their team’s biggest party in six seasons

Anthony Rohan returned to patrol left field while Matt Lacko put on his catcher’s gear for Friday’s 4-1 Division III regional final victory over Orrville at Ducky Schroeder Field.

Both made major contributions: Rohan hit doubles in the second and sixth innings that drove in three runs while Lacko had a key base hit in the second that led to the Irish scoring three times.

He also helped guide Dion Felger (5-0) to toss a four-hitter, striking out five batters and walking none.

The victory sends the Irish (24-2) back to Columbus for the first time since 2007. It will be Ursuline’s eighth appearance at state in 20 seasons. The Irish won state titles in 1998 and 2000.

“After the game, there’s a lot of pain, but during the game I’m not even thinking about it,” said Lacko, who didn’t start Thursday’s 6-1 win over LaGrange Keystone but contributed a two-run, pinch-hit single.

Lacko said he has a meniscus tear that will require surgery. He admits that crouching behind the plate aggravates it, but he does his best to block out the pain.

“It doesn’t cross my mind because I’m out there trying to win a ball game,” Lacko said.

Rohan, whose leg injury has kept him out of the outfield for several weeks, said the Irish getting back to Columbus has been “the longest struggle.”

“After last year, I had so much time to think about it after the regional final,” said Rohan, referring to a 12-11 loss to Grand Valley. “We lost in the last inning — we’ve finally got that monkey off our backs.”

The run scored by the Red Riders in the sixth inning was unearned.

“He did terrific,” Ursuline coach Sean Durkin said of Felger. “He only threw 81 pitches — he was extremely efficient.”

Durkin said he was prepared to have a quick hook.

“We had guys getting loose pretty much every inning,” Durkin said. “But Dion took the bull by the horns. And after he settled down, he was spot on.”

Felger, a left-handed junior, found success with change-ups to right-handed batters.

“Right around the third inning, his change-up became very effective and I thought that was the difference,” Durkin said.

In the second inning, the Red Riders (16-14) had two baserunners with two outs. Felger ended the threat by striking out Chad Harrison. He then retired the next 10 batters before Stuart Schley doubled in the sixth inning.

“In the third inning, I felt in control,” Felger said. “I felt like it was my game, my rhythm.

“My change-up has always been in and out,” Felger said. ”In some games I really have it and today I really had it. The coach kept on calling it and it kept on working.”

Felger ignited the Irish’s big inning when he drew a lead-off walk in the second inning. Lacko then hit a high bouncer to third baseman Schley and beat it out for an infield hit.

With two outs, Rohan doubled to deep center field for a 2-0 lead.

“I thought I got under it a little bit,” said Rohan, who was the Ursuline batboy in 2007 when his brother Ed was the Irish catcher. “It went further than I expected so I’ll take it.”

Rohan’s doubled prompted a pitching change, with Schley taking over for starter Wes Stauffer. Ryan Strollo greeted Schley with a RBI single for a 3-0 lead.

In the sixth inning, Rohan doubled to score Joel Hake.

Asked if it seems like six years has passed since Ursuline last played in Columbus, Durkin said, “Yeah, it does. It’s been a while.”

Thursday’s state semifinal game will be Ursuline’s first at Huntington Park, the 5-year-old home of the Columbus Clippers.

Durkin said it will be his first game at the downtown ballpark near Nationwide Arena.

“I’ve looked at it online, hoping that one day we’d be able to get back there,” Durkin said. “It looks like a beautiful facility.”