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Springfield’s game suspended
By JOE CATULLO Jr.
COPLEY
Leading by three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Springfield’s James Hillyer relieved starter Jordon Peterson.
Hillyer threw his warmup pitches and was ready to halt Cuyahoga Heights’ comeback attempt. Instead, Mother Nature took care of that.
Hillyer threw a first-pitch strike to Tyler Gallo and then lightning struck. Ten minutes later, rain poured on the field, forcing the umpires to suspend the Division IV regional final until noon today with Springfield leading, 6-3.
“It’s life,” Springfield coach Matt Weymer said. “You can’t complain about it. You got to come back the next day and hopefully finish up.”
The Tigers (19-7) began in the top of the first inning with an RBI single by Hunter Snyder. The Redskins (14-8) answered, scoring Ryan Rosenlieb on an error, an area that Weymer said after Thursday’s game is the team’s Achilles’ heel.
Springfield then scored twice in the second and third innings, including two RBI singles from Jojo Caraballo. The Redskins also scored twice in the third inning thanks to a balk and a throwing error.
The Tigers, who allowed two runs because of errors, got one back in the top of the fifth inning when Ian Grdina scored on a dropped fly ball.
Kyle Zuber led off the bottom of the sixth inning with a double before the suspension occurred.
“We’ve done everything we needed to do,” Weymer said. “Jordan pitched a great game on the mound [and] did what he needed to do. This is the scenario we wanted. Six outs, three runs — we really like our chances there.”
Peterson pitched five innings and allowed three runs (one earned) on three hits, four walks and struck out three. He is responsible for Zuber on second.
On the other side, Nick Orlowsky struggled for Cuyahoga Heights. He pitched 22/3 innings, allowing five runs on six hits and five walks. Grayson Thacker relieved Orlowsky and has allowed one unearned run on two hits thus far.
With six outs standing between Springfield and a trip to Columbus, Weymer will try to keep his team focused.
“Sometimes it’s really hard to coach high school kids because they’re not the most intelligent people in the world, but this is actually a good situation. They’re not smart enough to realize all the things that are going on,” he said. “They’re just focused on six outs, hopefully. I think it’s a real advantage.”