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Ursuline, Springfield meet for a tune-up
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Ursuline’s Joel Hake waits at second base for Springfield baserunner Brandon Chamberlain during a game Monday at Springfield High School. Chamberlain was out, and the Irish won 12-4. The two teams met for a “tune-up” before each heads off to state semifinals play in Columbus. The Irish meet Wheelersburg on Thursday in Division III, and the Tigers face Defiance Tinora in Division IV on Friday.
Ursuline, Springfield get ‘reps’ before state
By STEVE WILAJ
NEW MIDDLETOWN
In a final tuneup for Springfield and Ursuline — the two area teams heading to Columbus for the state tournament later this week — Tigers coach Matt Weymer first saw exactly what he wanted to see.
His designated hitter, Dom Gentsy, put a solid swing on the ball and laced a double into the right field corner.
Weymer then saw exactly what he didn’t want to see. After rounding first base, Gentsy pulled up lame and had to exit the game after tweaking his right hamstring.
“It looks like he’ll be all right — we have a couple days so we’ll wait and see,” Weymer said.
It was the only scare of the exhibition game, which the Fighting Irish won, 12-4, in six innings Monday at Springfield High. More important than the final score, both coaches agreed that the main focus was to get their players live repetitions.
“Overall, guys come in, get the work they need and then get out,” Weymer said.
Ursuline coach Sean Durkin said, “It’s just about seeing some live pitching and ground balls in game situations. It just keeps us a little fresher than practicing the whole time.”
That being said, Gentsy’s injury is all the more disappointing. However, Weymer remained optimistic.
“It looks like he’ll be alright, so hopefully everything works out there,” he said.
Minus the injury, the Tigers coach was pleased with what he saw from his lineup. Springfield pounded out seven hits, including four doubles.
Ryan Kohler, Cody Pitzo and Gensty each had a double and an RBI. Brandon Chamberlain had two hits.
“I thought we swung the bats pretty well,” Weymer said. “That’s all it is at this point — fine tuning.”
Watching his Irish rack up 12 runs on nine hits and three doubles, Durkin felt the same way.
“We were off all weekend — I let them enjoy themselves,” he said. “They rested up, so yeah I was pretty pleased with how we swung today.”
Ryan Strollo had a single and a double for Ursuline, while Michael Montalbano hit a grand slam in the fourth inning. Also, Harry Finelli and Joel Hake pitched two scoreless innings for the Irish.
“There were a couple of pitchers we wanted to get some work in that didn’t get any work during the regionals,” Durkin said. “So it worked out pretty well.”
Both coaches said it was their last game before heading to Columbus. Ursuline (24-2) will play Wheelersburg (27-4) on Thursday at 10 a.m., while Springfield (21-7) matches up against Tinora on Friday at 1 p.m.
URSULINE PLANS RALLY
Ursuline will host a send-off rally for the state-bound baseball team at 11:45 a.m. on Wednesday near the shrine on campus, located on Bryson Street.