OHSAA baseball: Olentangy Berlin, Olentangy Liberty capture Division I district titles
All the Olentangy Berlin baseball team needed was one run to secure its first district championship.
A first-inning RBI single by catcher Parker McDaniels proved to be the difference Thursday as the top-seeded Bears (25-3) earned a 1-0 win against 11th-seeded Pickerington North (18-10) at Upper Arlington.
Berlin will play Olentangy Orange in a Division I regional semifinal next Thursday at Grove City. Orange won the regional title a year ago on the way to a state runner-up finish.
“I feel like with this team, we could take the next step,” Berlin coach Mike Weaver said. “Every win is a school record for us. ... But most importantly about this group – and I think you can see it – is they’re fun. They enjoy each other, they love each other (and) we love them.”
Taking the mound, Berlin pitcher Kyle Haag was thinking about how last season ended: taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning of the district semifinal against Gahanna Lincoln before losing in eight innings.
“Definitely a little bit,” Haag said. “(I) wasn’t trying to think about much – just throw strikes.”
Haag responded by pitching into the seventh, giving up two hits and walking five. He finished with nine strikeouts.
“The fight we have,” Haag said when asked how this team is different from others on which he’s played. “We never let up, never let the foot off the gas.”
The Bears had to battle to secure their win.
Haag started the seventh with a walk and was replaced by Nick Gemeinhardt, who allowed a sacrifice bunt and a single before recording back-to-back strikeouts to secure the victory.
“That is his mentality,” Weaver said. “He doesn’t get fazed ... and that’s why we went with him. He comes in and throws strikes.”
North senior pitcher Will Furry settled in after McDaniels’ single drove in center fielder Daniel Barreca, who began the game with a double. Furry went the distance, allowing four hits and one walk with four strikeouts.
“When we’ve had the success we’ve had, you’re going to get everybody’s best,” Weaver said. “And we got their best. And it was a great baseball game.”
Olentangy Liberty 7, Dublin Scioto 0
Liberty continued its second-half surge by beating Scioto in a Division I district final Thursday at Grove City.
The 13th-seeded Patriots (18-12) took command with five runs in the top of the fourth to open a 6-0 lead. The 12th-seeded Irish (21-8) were playing in their first district final since 2008.
Liberty will play Hilliard Bradley in a regional semifinal next Thursday at Grove City.
“A lot of people said before the season we were rebuilding,” Scioto coach Ryan Longbrake said. “We lost 11 seniors last year in a 23-win season. These guys have taken that to heart and haven’t stepped away, haven’t backed down. (We had) back-to-back 20-win seasons and it’s all because of the seniors.”
The Dispatch previously reported that Liberty played the first portion of its season shorthanded after as many as 19 players were suspended for misconduct during a spring break baseball trip to Georgia.
The Patriots played at full strength for the first time in a 7-1 win over Bradley on April 16.
Liberty coach Ty Brenning declined to comment after Thursday's game and said his players were unavailable to talk.
Parker Van Engelenhoven went the distance for Liberty, allowing two hits and striking out seven.
Aydin Deen had a two-run single and Van Engelenhoven added a run-scoring single in the decisive fourth.
Andrew Leonard and A.J. Clymer each doubled and singled for Liberty.
Liberty outhit Scioto 9-2, but stranded 13 baserunners.
Brooks Marple had both hits for Scioto.
“At this level, if you make mistakes, they’re going to capitalize,” Longbrake said. “Everyone is good at this point, so if you don’t bring your A game and make a few mistakes it causes a ripple effect. I thought our guys fought to the last out even though the scoreboard might not reflect it. I’m super proud of them for that.”
Heath 9, West Jefferson 0
It took just one inning for Heath to put its Division III district final out of reach Thursday at Olentangy Orange.
The top-seeded Bulldogs (24-2) scored twice in the first on West Jefferson miscues. They got their first baserunners of the game – and first run – off two fielding errors from the third-seeded Roughriders (20-6) before right fielder Riley Baum drove in the second run on an infield single.
“We knew coming in we had to play perfect, basically,” West Jefferson coach Jason Bogenrife said. “We just didn’t make a couple plays and they took advantage of it. That’s what good teams do.”
Baum, a senior, finished with four RBIs, leading Heath to a regional semifinal against Cincinnati County Day next Thursday at Wright State.
Coming up to bat in the fifth with the bases loaded and a new pitcher, Ayden Cordle, on the mound, Baum hit a bases-clearing triple to left-center to expand the Bulldogs’ advantage to 5-0.
“He’s been doing that all year,” Heath coach Tom Warren said. “When they brought a new pitcher in, he came down with the bases loaded, I said, ‘do what you’ve been doing all year.’ ”
Senior Jayden Dansby brought Baum in on a sacrifice fly to make it 6-0.
The Bulldogs added to their lead in the seventh, scoring two of their final three runs off wild pitches from West Jefferson reliever Ethan Switalski.
Wyatt Binckley went the distance for Heath, giving up one hit and two walks and recording five strikeouts.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Olentangy Berlin, Liberty capture OHSAA baseball district titles
