A battle to the end: Fairfield Christian Academy pulls out 10-inning win over Berne Union
LANCASTER — Berne Union had Fairfield Christian Academy on the brink a few times during Thursday’s marathon, 10-inning game at Beavers Field, but Knights pitcher AJ Holbrook refused to give in.
He also had some help from his teammates, who made several outstanding defensive plays to keep the Rockets off the board, and just as impressive was Berne Union pitcher Hudson Gerken. He kept FCA’s bats silent for eight innings.
However, in the end, the Knights were able to pull out a heart-stopping 1-0 Mid-State League-Cardinal Division win when they loaded the bases in the bottom of the 10th inning and scored the game-winner when a pitch hit Gabe Linn to force in Brayden Stem with the winning run.
FCA improved to 13-5 overall, and more importantly, 11-0 in the league, while the Rockets slipped to 10-4 and 6-3.
“You never want to see a game end that way, but they kept getting out of rough situations and we kept putting ourselves in poor situations," FCA coach Josh Baker said. "We didn’t execute little things and Berne Union came ready to play, so give them credit.
“Good teams are always going to find ways to win, even when things aren’t going well. I thought Hudson Gerken threw an outstanding game. He did a nice job of mixing up his pitches and was tough on us, but I kept telling our guys to trust it and that we would get an opportunity to win it.”
Berne Union coach Chad Cupp was disappointed with the loss but he loved the way his team competed.
“Losing that way is never fun, but that’s baseball,” Cupp said. “If we get a couple of bounces here or there, things could turn out differently. You tip your cap to (FCA) because they made a lot of great defensive plays to keep us off the board. Both teams battled and pitched great, it was a good high-quality baseball game, and unfortunately, someone has to lose.”
A pitchers’ duel to the end
Both Holbrook and Gerken were outstanding on the mound during their eight innings of work.
Holbrook scattered five hits and struck out four, but he was at his best whenever the Rockets threatened to score, including the eighth inning when the Rockets’ Zach Hartmann singled, stole second and was attempting to score on Clayton Moore’s single. However, FCA centerfielder Jimmy Schmitz made a great throw to home to cut down the runner at home.
“I had already pitched against them earlier this year," Holbrook said, "so I kind of knew how to attack their hitters and I just tried to pitch to that and tried to keep the ball low so they would hit ground balls and let my defense work.”
Baker said Holbrook's poise on the mound was fun to watch.
“He has been ice cold for us the last two seasons,” Baker said. “His first freshman start for us was against the No. 1 team in the state and his composure in that game continues to carry over. He has a game plan, and he is not deviating from it, regardless of who is in the box. He trusts, not only himself but his battery mate behind the plate and his defense. He is mature beyond his years, and he puts on display time after time.”
Gerken was almost unhittable. He gave up a leadoff single in the first inning to AJ Holbrook and then proceeded to retire 18 straight batters. In the seventh inning, FCA loaded the bases with no outs, but Gerken got out of it unscathed. He finished with seven strikeouts.
“Hudson was awesome tonight and did everything we asked him to do and more,” Cupp said. “He gave us a big game and I wish we could have scored some runs for him. He certainly pitched well enough to win.”
Caleb White pitched two innings to pick up the win. Austin Snyder pitched the final two innings for the Rockets and suffered the loss.
Tom Wilson is a sports reporter for the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette. Contact him at 740-689-5150 or via email at twilson@gannett.com for comments or story tips. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @twil2323.
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: A battle to the end: FCA pulls out 10-inning win over Berne Union
