Hensley Deals Triton Into Finals
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
INDIANAPOLIS - If the polls have closed, now may be the time to re-open them.
Triton's baseball team hasn't asked for a recount, but maybe it should after beating its third ranked team in six days.
The latest team to fall to unranked Triton was No. 3 Madison Shawe, which lost 1-0 in Friday's Class A state semifinals at Victory Field. The win puts Triton into today's state finals against either Tecumseh (20-11) or Adams Central (19-12).
Triton (23-10) may be unranked, but after beating No. 4 Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian (22-4), No. 1 Washington Township (31-2) and now No. 3 Madison Shawe (30-5), the Trojans are one win away from being No. 1 when it counts most: at the end of the season as state champions.
"It goes back to the schedule each team plays," Triton coach Jim Shively said. "You never know how accurate rankings are. We do know we play a tough schedule, and we know we are every bit as good as these other 1A teams down here."
He also knows he has an ace in right-handed starting pitcher Tyler Hensley.
Shively said Wednesday of all the players on the four teams, Hensley is the one player capable of dominating a game by himself.
Hensley (12-4) backed his coach with a complete-game one-hitter against Madison Shawe. He struck out 11 as the Hilltoppers were shut out for the first time this year. The one hit was a second-inning double by Ryan Barringer.
Triton is 6-0 in the postseason; Hensley is 5-0.
"He's one of the top three or four pitchers we've seen," Hilltoppers coach Tim Armstrong said, "All week all we heard about was about Hensley, how he throes well and shuts people down. But I thought we'd hit him."
He thought wrong as the Hilltoppers suffered their first shutout of the year at a bad time.
Hensley throws a fastball, cut fastball, curve and changeup. His curve put the Hilltoppers away.
"He has good breaking pitches," Armstrong said. "To hit him, you have to get him behind in the count so he has to come with a fastball or changeup, something straight. He never had to do that because he spotted his off-speed pitches for strikes."
The only run Triton needed came in the fourth inning.
Derek Manaugh (9-3), the tough-luck loser with a three-hitter, walked Jake Burnett to start the inning. Two outs later, cleanup hitter Landon Grubbs slammed a 400-foot double to the center field warning track to score Burnett.
"Landon came up big," Shively said. "He didn't have any hits to show for it last week, but he's been swinging the bat well. That was a shot."
The one time Hensley pitched himself into trouble, he pitched his way out of it.
Hensley walked two batters in the fifth inning, and with one out, he went to a 3-0 count on Matt Goley. Instead of loading the bases, Hensley coaxed a pop out on a 3-2 count from Goley then struck out Scott Duncan to end the inning.
"[Goley] was a bit out," Shively said. "The way Tyler pulled that off, that takes the wind out of them. They thought they had their chance to do something against us, but they didn't."
Said Hensley: "The curve kept them off-balance. I was getting a little scared in the fifth, but I knew once I got my pitches over, I'd be OK."
Now unranked Triton will face an unranked team, 20-12 Adams Central, in today's state finals. After beating three top-five teams with a combined 83-11 record, you couldn't blame the Trojans if they'd rather play another ranked team.
Shively has a chance to go out on top as he is resigning as coach after this season.
"Triton has a nice ball club, no doubt," Armstrong said. "But I'd like to play them every day. We're much better than we showed today.
"We didn't hit. That's all there is to it." There was a reason for that, and his name is Tyler Hensley."
Hepler Inducted Into Indiana High School Golf Hall Of Fame
Times-Union Staff Report
Denny Hepler will be inducted into the Indiana High School Golf Hall Of Fame June 16 at Prestwick Golf Course near Indianapolis.
"It is a tremendous honor," said Hepler. "It's not something you really think about until an amount of time rolls along."
Hepler played three years on the Warsaw golf team, 1971, 1972 and 1973. The TIgers won three Northern Lakes Conference Titles, one sectional, one regional and placed fifth and 11th in the state. In his senior season, Hepler's stroke average was 74.0, which is a record that still stands.
Hepler was the medalist at the LaPorte Invitational with a 73 (1 over par) and the next day was the medalist at the Culver Military Invitational with a 68 (3 under par). That is still a record at that tournament.
Hepler made the first All-State team in 1973, one of just five players to receive the honor. He received a golf scholarship to Ball State University and played on the 1974 and 1975 Cardinal teams that played in the NCAA Golf Championships.
"Winning the regional, the LaPorte Invitational and the Culver Invitational, I got on a roll there it led to a full ride scholarship," said Hepler. "I also received the All-State recognition. Then only five players a year were named All-State. It's not like now when there is a second team and honorable mention, there were only five people recognized in 1973."
In his junior year of college, Hepler transferred to Florida State, where he had to sit out for a year. Then he led the Seminoles to the NCAA Golf Championship for the first time in 11 years.
Hepler then went on the pro tour, playing his first two years (1978 and 21979) on the South American Tour. He then move to the Asian Tour and won the Malaysian Open in 1982 and finished third in order of merit, which qualified him for the 1982 British Open. That was the first of four British Opens he played in (1984, 1989, 1990).
Hepler also played in four PGA Tournaments in 1991-92, 1994 and 1995. He won the Indiana State Open in 1985 and 1990.
Hepler was the assistant pro at Rozella Ford in 1984 and 1985 while working with pro Dan Dicker, who was a major factor in Hepler's golf career.
From 1988 tom 1997, Hepler was an assistant pro at Stonehenge Golf Course. During that time, he founded the Stonehenge Pro-Am Charity Classic and raised over $100,000 for local charities.
Hepler is now the owner of Raccoon Run Golf Course, where he enlarged the course from nine to 18 holes. He was the architect and did almost 90 percent of the labor in constructing the new nine holes.
Hepler is and elder in the Presbyterian Church and is active in other community projects. He will be inducted into the Hall of Fame by his former coach Joe Harris. [[In-content Ad]]
INDIANAPOLIS - If the polls have closed, now may be the time to re-open them.
Triton's baseball team hasn't asked for a recount, but maybe it should after beating its third ranked team in six days.
The latest team to fall to unranked Triton was No. 3 Madison Shawe, which lost 1-0 in Friday's Class A state semifinals at Victory Field. The win puts Triton into today's state finals against either Tecumseh (20-11) or Adams Central (19-12).
Triton (23-10) may be unranked, but after beating No. 4 Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian (22-4), No. 1 Washington Township (31-2) and now No. 3 Madison Shawe (30-5), the Trojans are one win away from being No. 1 when it counts most: at the end of the season as state champions.
"It goes back to the schedule each team plays," Triton coach Jim Shively said. "You never know how accurate rankings are. We do know we play a tough schedule, and we know we are every bit as good as these other 1A teams down here."
He also knows he has an ace in right-handed starting pitcher Tyler Hensley.
Shively said Wednesday of all the players on the four teams, Hensley is the one player capable of dominating a game by himself.
Hensley (12-4) backed his coach with a complete-game one-hitter against Madison Shawe. He struck out 11 as the Hilltoppers were shut out for the first time this year. The one hit was a second-inning double by Ryan Barringer.
Triton is 6-0 in the postseason; Hensley is 5-0.
"He's one of the top three or four pitchers we've seen," Hilltoppers coach Tim Armstrong said, "All week all we heard about was about Hensley, how he throes well and shuts people down. But I thought we'd hit him."
He thought wrong as the Hilltoppers suffered their first shutout of the year at a bad time.
Hensley throws a fastball, cut fastball, curve and changeup. His curve put the Hilltoppers away.
"He has good breaking pitches," Armstrong said. "To hit him, you have to get him behind in the count so he has to come with a fastball or changeup, something straight. He never had to do that because he spotted his off-speed pitches for strikes."
The only run Triton needed came in the fourth inning.
Derek Manaugh (9-3), the tough-luck loser with a three-hitter, walked Jake Burnett to start the inning. Two outs later, cleanup hitter Landon Grubbs slammed a 400-foot double to the center field warning track to score Burnett.
"Landon came up big," Shively said. "He didn't have any hits to show for it last week, but he's been swinging the bat well. That was a shot."
The one time Hensley pitched himself into trouble, he pitched his way out of it.
Hensley walked two batters in the fifth inning, and with one out, he went to a 3-0 count on Matt Goley. Instead of loading the bases, Hensley coaxed a pop out on a 3-2 count from Goley then struck out Scott Duncan to end the inning.
"[Goley] was a bit out," Shively said. "The way Tyler pulled that off, that takes the wind out of them. They thought they had their chance to do something against us, but they didn't."
Said Hensley: "The curve kept them off-balance. I was getting a little scared in the fifth, but I knew once I got my pitches over, I'd be OK."
Now unranked Triton will face an unranked team, 20-12 Adams Central, in today's state finals. After beating three top-five teams with a combined 83-11 record, you couldn't blame the Trojans if they'd rather play another ranked team.
Shively has a chance to go out on top as he is resigning as coach after this season.
"Triton has a nice ball club, no doubt," Armstrong said. "But I'd like to play them every day. We're much better than we showed today.
"We didn't hit. That's all there is to it." There was a reason for that, and his name is Tyler Hensley."
Hepler Inducted Into Indiana High School Golf Hall Of Fame
Times-Union Staff Report
Denny Hepler will be inducted into the Indiana High School Golf Hall Of Fame June 16 at Prestwick Golf Course near Indianapolis.
"It is a tremendous honor," said Hepler. "It's not something you really think about until an amount of time rolls along."
Hepler played three years on the Warsaw golf team, 1971, 1972 and 1973. The TIgers won three Northern Lakes Conference Titles, one sectional, one regional and placed fifth and 11th in the state. In his senior season, Hepler's stroke average was 74.0, which is a record that still stands.
Hepler was the medalist at the LaPorte Invitational with a 73 (1 over par) and the next day was the medalist at the Culver Military Invitational with a 68 (3 under par). That is still a record at that tournament.
Hepler made the first All-State team in 1973, one of just five players to receive the honor. He received a golf scholarship to Ball State University and played on the 1974 and 1975 Cardinal teams that played in the NCAA Golf Championships.
"Winning the regional, the LaPorte Invitational and the Culver Invitational, I got on a roll there it led to a full ride scholarship," said Hepler. "I also received the All-State recognition. Then only five players a year were named All-State. It's not like now when there is a second team and honorable mention, there were only five people recognized in 1973."
In his junior year of college, Hepler transferred to Florida State, where he had to sit out for a year. Then he led the Seminoles to the NCAA Golf Championship for the first time in 11 years.
Hepler then went on the pro tour, playing his first two years (1978 and 21979) on the South American Tour. He then move to the Asian Tour and won the Malaysian Open in 1982 and finished third in order of merit, which qualified him for the 1982 British Open. That was the first of four British Opens he played in (1984, 1989, 1990).
Hepler also played in four PGA Tournaments in 1991-92, 1994 and 1995. He won the Indiana State Open in 1985 and 1990.
Hepler was the assistant pro at Rozella Ford in 1984 and 1985 while working with pro Dan Dicker, who was a major factor in Hepler's golf career.
From 1988 tom 1997, Hepler was an assistant pro at Stonehenge Golf Course. During that time, he founded the Stonehenge Pro-Am Charity Classic and raised over $100,000 for local charities.
Hepler is now the owner of Raccoon Run Golf Course, where he enlarged the course from nine to 18 holes. He was the architect and did almost 90 percent of the labor in constructing the new nine holes.
Hepler is and elder in the Presbyterian Church and is active in other community projects. He will be inducted into the Hall of Fame by his former coach Joe Harris. [[In-content Ad]]