'We're still keeping his name alive': Triway gets meaningful win at Carmichael Classic
WOOSTER TWP. — The Sean Carmichael Classic grew to include nearly the entire Wayne/Holmes area in 2024.
But it still means something a little extra special to Triway.
The Titans made sure to do their part in the showcase named after the Triway coach and athletic director, taking down Smithville 7-4 at Blaine and Sean Carmichael Field.
"Everybody loves Sean Carmichael in the community," Triway junior Brody Snyder said. "We're still keeping his name alive with how much he meant to us."
Carmichael remains synonymous with Triway athletics nearly five years after his death — with the baseball field bearing his name alongside his father Blaine and the Titans' basketball court at their new gym set to be named "Sean Carmichael Court" — speaking to how engrained he was in a community where sports matter a lot.
None of the players on the current team were coached by Carmichael as high schoolers but are fully aware of what he meant to the program and beyond.
"It was a big day for us as a Triway community," Triway junior Grant Schag said. "To be able to play in this situation, under Sean Carmichael watching in heaven, I think he would be proud of us. It means a whole lot to me as a ballplayer and to us as a team."
Triway's Owen Walter was the runner-up for the Sean Carmichael Memorial Scholarship, which was earned by Norwayne's Logan Dichler. Walter will still receive a scholarship as the runner-up.
And while everything surrounding the game was important to Triway (8-6), what happened on the field mattered as well, with the Titans still trying to find consistency during a roller coaster ride of a season.
"A lot of it, unfortunately, is mental," Triway coach Justin McDowell said. "We get in our own heads. That obviously can affect you when you're playing defense, when you're up to bat or when you're pitching. We've been working on that. It's still a work in progress."
While the Titans commanded most of the game against Smithville, some of that inconsistency showed up in the later innings as the Smithies scored three runs in the final two innings to create some drama down the stretch. Ultimately, Triway hung on, thanks to a strong showing from Snyder in his first high school start, tossing six innings and allowing just one hit and no earned runs.
"His stuff is phenomenal," McDowell said. "We really like his stuff and his makeup and his demeanor. If he throws it in, it's usually pretty good."
At the plate, Tyler Snyder led Triway with two hits and four RBIs while Schag and Wyatt Posten added two hits apiece as well.
Gavin Copenhaver, Bryce Butcher, Luke DeRodes and Jace Leach had hits for Smithville (3-7). The Smithies have struggled at times in a stacked Wayne County Athletic League but head into the final weeks of the regular season playing some of their best baseball, with two wins over Northwestern and another over Chippewa in the past two weeks.
Norwayne 8, Orrville 3
Norwayne: Schmidt 2-3, RBI; Balis 2-4; Tanner 2-4; Snyder 2-4, RBI; Bruner 2-5 ... Harklau W, 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 K, 0 BB
Orrville: Marshall 2-4
Buckeye 4, Waynedale 2
Waynedale: Coblentz 2-4, RBI; Solorzano 2-3 ... J. Miller 6 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 6 K, 3 BB
Dalton 5, West Holmes 4
Dalton: Boyer 2-3, RBI ... Wyckoff 2⅓ IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 K, 0 BB
West Holmes: Tanner 2-4, 2 RBI; Smith 2-3 ... Camacho 4⅓ IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 10 K, 4 BB
Hillsdale 23, Tuslaw 5
Hillsdale: Fickes 3-4, RBI, 2B; Stubbs 3-3, 4 RBI; Heller 3-3, 3 RBI; Lewis 3-3, 2 RBI ... Stubbs W, 3⅓ IP, 1 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 K, 2 BB
Tuslaw: Reinhart 2-2, RBI
Wooster 8, Northwest 6
Wooster: Meese 2-2, 2 BB; Nielsen 2-2 ... Oswald W, 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 K, 3 BB
Chippewa 11, Loudonville 1
Chippewa: Marshall 3-3, 2 RBI; Oyler 3-4, RBI; Radebaugh 2-4, 2 RBI; Hatfield 2-3, RBI ... Hatfield W, 5 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 7 K, 0 BB
Loudonville: Serrato 2-3, RBI
Southeast 6, Northwestern 3
Northwestern: St. Clair 1-3, RBI
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Baseball: Triway beats Smithville at Carmichael Classic
