NORTH MANCHESTER -ÊMany coaches believe that high school baseball has three seasons -Ênon-conference, conference and postseason.

Manchester's Jack Rupley is one of those coaches.

Monday evening Rupley's Squires started the Three Rivers Conference season on the right foot with a 6-4 win over Whitko.

After a scoreless first inning, Manchester scored one run in the bottom of the second inning.

The Squire offense got going in the third inning. Josh Staton opened the bottom half of the inning with a bunt for a single and moved to second on a sacrifice by Drew Walters.

Then Anthony Sorg walked and Jediah Carandante was hit by a pitch to load the bases as pitcher Todd Dale stepped to the plate. Dale belted a single to centerfield, driving in two runs to put Manchester up 3-0.

That's where the score stayed until the top of the fifth inning. Gabe Langohr hit a single and scored on a double by Derrick Day. Day moved to third on a balk and then scored on an error by the short stop.

With their lead reduced to one, 3-2, the Squires stepped to the plate with a mission in the bottom of the fifth -Êto increase their lead.

Carandante opened the inning with a double to left-centerfield. He moved to second on a passed ball and scored on a sacrifice fly by Brent Westendorf to make the score 4-2.

After holding Whitko scoreless in the top of the sixth, Manchester was ready to get the bats going again.

Staton hit a single, moved to second on an error and made it to third on a fielder's choice hit by Carandante. Staton scored on an error by the pitcher and Carandante crossed the plate on a double by Westendorf to give the Squires a 6-4 lead.

But the Wildcats were not finished.

Gabe Langohr hit a single to jump-start the top of the seventh. Then Kory Vanderford hit another single and Day walked to load the bases with no outs.

Kevin Feldman hit a two-out single to drive Langohr home, and then Vanderford scored on a passed ball to make the score 6-4.

Then Manchester got the final out of the inning to get the win.

"We got a little sloppy in the top of the seventh," said Rupley. "And Whitko gave us a scare. I was sweating it a little bit."

Staton, Dale and Young led the Squires with two hits each. Walters, Carandante, Westendorf, and Tyler Kelsey each had one hit for Manchester

Whitko's Feldman and Langohr each pounded out two hits, while Alan Robbins, Vanderford and Day each had a hit.

"We are not aggressive at the plate," said Whitko coach John Strayer. "And until we get that way, we will just be an average team. We have a lot of talent, but right now we are not showing it. We have showed signs of it, but we have not put it all together yet."

Manchester's Dale got the win on the mound, pitching seven innings with seven hits and three walks. He struck out five batters and had three earned runs.

Robbins was charged with the loss for Whitko. He pitched five innings with eight hits, three strikeouts, one walk and three earned runs.

The win improves Manchester's record to 4-9 overall and 1-0 in the TRC. Whitko is 6-8 on the season and 0-1 in TRC play. Whitko travels to Tippecanoe Valley and Manchester travels to Southwood Wednesday in the next games of the TRC season.

MANCHESTER 6, WHITKO 4

Whitko 000 020 2 - 4 7 5

Manchester 012 012 x - 6 10 0

Whitko AB R H RBI

Robbins p 3 0 1 0

Feldman 1b 4 0 2 1

Lukens ss 4 0 0 0

Kellogg c 3 0 0 0

Vandewalle lf 2 0 0 0

Hike lf 1 0 0 0

Langohr rf 2 2 2 0

Vanderford 3b 3 1 1 0

Day cf 2 1 1 1

Boardman 2b 3 0 0 0

Totals 27 4 7 2

Manchester AB R H RBI

Staton rf 4 2 2 0

Walters 2b 2 0 1 0

Sorg ss 3 1 0 0

Carandante cf 3 2 1 0

Westendorf lf 3 0 1 1

Dale p 4 1 2 2

Simcoe c 3 0 0 0

Young 1b 3 0 2 0

Kelsey 3b 3 0 1 1

Totals 28 6 10 4

Sac - Walters, Westendorf. SB -ÊRobbins. CS -ÊRobbins, Staton. LOB -ÊWhitko 5, Manchester 9. DP - Whitko 1, Manchester 1. 2B -ÊFeldman, Day, Walters, Young, Carandante, Westendorf. E -ÊLangohr, Vanderford 2, Boardman, Feldman.

IP R ER H BB SO

Whitko

Robbins, L 5 4 3 8 1 3

Feldman 1 2 0 2 0 0

Manchester

Dale, W 7 4 3 7 3 5

HB - Robbins 2. Balk -ÊDale 1.

Tiger Netters Storm County Foe Valley

By Dale Hubler, TImes-Union Sports Writer

AKRON - While the rains that swept through the area Monday morning had subsided, it was a different storm that Tippecanoe Valley's varsity girls tennis team couldn't weather Monday afternoon - county rival Warsaw.

Even playing without No. 1 singles player Jessica Davis, Warsaw had its way with the host Vikings, posting a convincing 5-0 win. The Tigers won all five varsity matches in straight sets. At the junior varsity level, where Warsaw also won 5-0, the visiting Tigers allowed just two points over the five matches.

"It's a challenge every time we play this Warsaw team," Valley coach Jack Shambaugh said. "They're one of the best teams on our schedule every year. We came in and competed and that's what we wanted to do. We've got a good Valley team this year, we just ran into a great Warsaw team."

The loss drops Valley to 8-2, while Warsaw improves to 9-2.

"All of our girls stepped up," Warsaw coach Joe Beeson said. "We have a lot of depth. That's the strength of this team, depth. I thought the way we matched up we'd be alright. Up and down the line, we did better than I expected."

With Davis on a planned trip with her family, sophomore Kristi Haddad moved up to the No. 1 singles position, downing Valley junior Kelly Sanders 6-2, 6-3.

Though she fell behind 4-1 early in the first set, Sanders kept things close early in the second set, trailing only 4-3 at one point.

"We were able to volley with this team this year," Shambaugh said. "In years past it's been one or two shots and it was Warsaw's point. We hit a lot more balls this time, we were able to stroke with this team. We're taking steps in the right direction."

In the first match to be completed, Tiger freshman Kaitlyn Macdonald downed Viking senior Susie Mende 6-1, 6-1.

At No. 3 singles, the second match completed, Warsaw freshman Jessica Sadler moved up from the JV team and posted a 6-0, 6-1 win over Valley junior Linda Weller.

In Valley's most competitive match of the evening, No. 1 doubles, the Viking duo of seniors Julie Studebaker and Alyssa Anglin fell 6-2 in the first set to senior Lauren Witzky and freshman Ashley Harrison. In the second set, Studebaker and Anglin forced a tiebreaker, but fell to 7-6 (6-4).

At No. 2 doubles, Warsaw's Tracy Yoder and Lili Aguilar downed the Valley junior tandem of Chris Swanson and Beth Carter 6-3, 6-2.

Both Warsaw and Valley will be in action again today, with Warsaw hosting Northern Lakes Conference foe Goshen and Valley entertaining non conference opponent North Judson.

WARSAW 5, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 0

Singles

No. 1 - Kristi Haddad (W) def. Kelly Sanders 6-2, 6-3

No. 2 - Kaitlyn Macdonald (W) def. Susie Mende 6-1, 6-1

No. 3 - Jessica Sadler (W) def. Linda Weller 6-0, 6-1

Doubles

No. 1 - Lauren Witzky/Ashley Harrison (W) def. Julie Studebaker/Alyssa Anglin 6-2, 7-6 (6-4)

No. 2 - Tracy Yoder/Lili Aguilar (W) def. Chris Swanson/Beth Carter 6-3, 6-2

JV - Warsaw 5, Tippecanoe Valley 0

Singles

No. 1 - Gina Cesaretti (W) def. Karissa Fields 8-1

No. 2 - Jessica Hollar (W) def. Autumn Beasley 8-0

No. 3 - Kyla Kesler (W) def. Krista Andrews 8-0

Doubles

No. 1 - Jaclyn Leininger/Katie Lee (W) def. Brandi Smalley/Becky Wright 8-0

No. 2 - Betsy LaSalle/Deb Allen (W) def. Krysta Kindig/Erin Smith 8-1

Zack Smith Hits TImely Home Run For Tigers

High School Roundup

Times-Union Staff Report

With two outs and a full count in the bottom of the seventh inning, Zack Smith hit a walk-off three-run homer to left centerfield to lift Warsaw to a 5-4 victory over Plymouth Monday night in Warsaw.

The Tigers were down 4-1 going into the bottom of the seventh inning when catcher Josh Stork and pinch hitters Jacob Wilson and Brandon Harris each hit singles to load the bases.

Stork scored on a balk, and Wilson and Harris scored on Smith's homer.

The win improves Warsaw's overall record to 13-4, but more importantly makes the Tigers 8-2 in the Northern Lakes Conference. Plymouth is now 14-3 overall and 8-2 in NLC play as well.

The Tigers take on Logansport at 5 p.m. tonight and then travel to Nappanee to play NorthWood in another NLC game Wednesday.

WARSAW 5, PLYMOUTH 4

Plymouth 100 030 0 - 4 9 1

Warsaw 000 010 4 - 5 8 3

Warsaw pitching -ÊBrandon LaFollette (4 IP, 4 ER, 8 H, 2 K, 0 BB); Ryan DeGeeter (W, 6-0, 3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 K, 0 BB)

LP -ÊEric Teall

Warsaw leaders -ÊZack Smith HR, 3 RBIs; Berto Nunez 2B; William Knepper 2B; Ryan DeGeeter 2B, RBI

JV -ÊWARSAW 7, PLYMOUTH 6

Plymouth 030 010 2 - 6 9 2

Warsaw 103 201 x - 7 11 1

WP - Sharpe.

Warsaw leaders - Sharpe 2 HR, Sherman HR

Monday in Bourbon

Brent Savill hit a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the seventh inning Monday to lead Triton's varsity baseball team to a 6-5 win over Northern State Conference opponent Culver. The win ups the Trojans to 6-9 overall and 5-5 in the NSC. Adam Wanemacher had three hits for the winners, while Todd Blackford had a pair of RBIs. Blackford also picked up the win on the mound.

TRITON 6, CULVER 5

Culver 102 001 1 - 5

Triton 140 000 1 - 6

WP - Todd Blackford 1 1/3 IP, 1 R, 1 H. LP - Chad Hooker 5 1/3 IP.

Triton hit leaders - Adam Wanemacher 3 hits, 2B; Todd Blackford 2 RBIs; Brent Saville game-winning 1B

Monday in Nappanee

Pounding out 16 hits, Wawasee's varsity baseball team downed host Northern Lakes Conference opponent NorthWood 15-5 Monday. The Warriors trailed 3-2 and then blew the game open by scoring six in the third and five in the fourth. Wawasee is now 6-10 overall and 3-7 in the NLC. NorthWood falls to 1-13 and 0-9. Dan Milligan and Brent Doty had three hits each for the Warriors, while Scott Beasley had two hits and five RBIs. Mike Siri added three RBIs. Wawasee hosts Northridge Wednesday.

WAWASEE 15, NORTHWOOD 5

Wawasee 206 500 2 - 15 16 3

NorthWood 301 010 0 - 5 2 2

WP - Dustin Sumpter (2-2). LP - Adams (0-4).

Wawasee hit leaders - Brent Doty 3 for 5, 2 RBIs, 2B, 3B; Scott Beasley 2 for 4, 5 RBIs, 2B; Dan Miligan 3 for 5, 2 RBIs; Mike Siri 3 RBIs; Jake Zaijcek 2B; Sumpter 2B

Monday in Nappanee

JV - Wawasee 10, NorthWood 8

Wawasee 502 210 0 - 10 8 9

NorthWood 200 140 1 - 8 8 4

WP - Jason McDowell. LP - Flickinger.

Wawasee hit leaders - Daniel Hoover 3 for 5, 2 RBIs, 2B (2); A. Hoover 2B; Swihart 2B; Kaiser 2B

Monday in Denver

The Tippecanoe Valley baseball team opened the Three Rivers Conference season with a 3-2 win over North Miami. Things looked bleak for the Vikings in the bottom of the sixth as North Miami had the bases loaded with no outs. However, Kevin Day pitched three straight strikeouts to preserve the 3-2 Valley advantage. In the seventh, North Miami had runners in scoring position again but Stuart Jackson struck out the last to batters to give Valley the win. The Vikings are now 10-6 overall and 1-0 in TRC play.

TIPPECANOE VALLEY 3, NORTH MIAMI 2

Valley 000 030 0 - 3 5 2

N Miami 001 001 0 - 2 4 1

Valley pitching -ÊKevin Day (W 4-2, 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 9 K); Stuart Jackson (7th, S, 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K)

Valley leaders -ÊDerek Sausaman 1 for 4, RBI; Phil Jackson 2 RBI; Kevin Day 1 for 2; Chuck Sterk 1 for 3; Mike Schwenk 1 for 2, 2B; Scott Kindig 1 for 3

SOFTBALL

Monday in South Whitley

Whitko's varsity softball team hosted and downed Three Rivers Conference opponent Manchester 10-0 in five innings Monday. The Wildcats got on the right foot by scoring five runs in the first inning, and then held the visiting Squires to one hit. Manchester committed five errors in the loss. Manchester hosts Southwood Wednesday, while Whitko hosts Tippecanoe Valley.

WHITKO 10, MANCHESTER 0 (5 innings)

Manchester 000 00 - 0 1 5

Whitko 502 21 - 10 7 2

WP - Keirn. LP - Marshall.

Manchester hit leader - Erin Lehman 1 hit

Monday in Syracuse

After scoring eight runs in the fourth inning, Wawasee's varsity softball team downed visiting Northern Lakes Conference opponent NorthWood 12-0 in five innings Monday. Wawasee pounded out 11 hits, while NorthWood had just one hit. Wawasee improved to 8-8 overall and 3-6 in the NLC. The Warriors play at conference foe Northridge Wednesday.

WAWASEE 12, NORTHWOOD 0 (5 innings)

NorthWood 000 00 - 0 1 0

Wawasee 301 8X - 12 11 1

WP - Haley Bird 5 IP, 1 H, 4 K, 1 BB. LP - Michelle Mast 4 IP, 11 H, 1 K, 3 BB.

Wawasee hit leaders - Sara Weisser 2 for 2, 3 R, 1 RBI; Kathy Likens 2 for 3, 2 R, 1 RBI; LeeAnna Sloan 2 for 2, 1 R, 4 RBI, 2B; Nicole Hymer 2 for 3, 1 R, 1 RBI

Monday in Syracuse

JV - Wawasee 5, NorthWood 4

NorthWood 000 003 1 - 4 4 1

Wawasee 100 004 X - 5 3 4

WP - Beth Voirol. LP - Hofer.

Wawasee hit leaders - Kellee Kaiser 1 for 4, 1 RBI; Rachel Canen 1 for 4, 1 RBI, 3B; Ashley Holdeman 1 for 2, 1 RBI

BOYS GOLF

Monday in Leesburg

Wawasee's varsity boys golf team shot a 146 Monday at Tippecanoe Lake Country Club to win a three-way match with Penn and LaVille. Penn shot a 158, followed by LaVille's 202. The win keeps Wawasee undefeated at 9-0. Casey Weade led the Warriors with his medalist score of 34, while teammate Evan Gerard shot 36. Wawasee hosts Northern Lakes Conference rival Warsaw today.

WAWASEE 146, PENN 158, LAVILLE 202

Wawasee scores - Stephen Conrad 37, Joel Bickel 39, Josh Abrams 39, Evan Gerard 36, Casey Weade 34

JV - Wawasee 167, Penn 167, LaVille 210

Wawasee JV scores - Rod Knuckles 41, Tyler Rondeau 41, Darrin Cripe 42, Zach Marshall 43, Derek Blanchard 48

GIRLS TENNIS

Monday in Larwill

Whitko's varsity girls tennis team hosted and defeated Central Noble 3-2 Monday afternoon. The Wildcats picked up their three wins at No. 3 singles and both doubles positions.

WHITKO 3, CENTRAL NOBLE 2

Singles

No. 1 - Sarah Hayes (CN) def. Brooke Workman 6-2, 6-2

No. 2 - Kendra Mangan (CN) def. Emily Crist 6-0, 6-2

No. 3 - Tiffany Hatton (W) def. Abbey Frey 6-0, 3-2 (forfeit)

Doubles

No. 1 - Stephanie Haines/Chelsey Grant (W) def. Angie Gaerte/Susanne Kohl 5-7, 6-3, 6-2

No. 2 - Brandy Bayles/Jennifer Wendel (W) def. Lisa Paul/Ashley Libben 6-1, 6-2

Monday in North Manchester

Manchester's varsity girls tennis team picked up a 3-2 win over visiting Eastern Monday afternoon. The Squires won the match by picking up wins at No. 3 singles and at both doubles positions. The win improved Manchester's overall record to 4-7. The Squires play at Wawasee Wednesday.

MANCHESTER 3, EASTER 2

Singles

No. 1 - Tara Oman (E) def. Megan Keffaber 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (8-6)

No. 2 - Julie Northcutt (E) def. Concetta DeFusco 6-4, 6-4

No. 3 - Bri Foster (M) def. Kacee Bauer 6-1, 6-1

Doubles

No. 1 - Dawn Lauer/Brittany Falk (M) def. Elizabeth Andrews/Miranda Parrish 7-5, 6-2

No. 2 - Catey Dea/Kessie Karg (M) def. Emma Lowman/Ann Elise Echelbarger 6-4, 6-3

JV - Eastern 3, Manchester 2

Singles

No.1 - Meagon Parris (E) def. Ali Norton 8-4

No. 2 - Chelsey Graham (E) def. Holly Walters 8-4

No. 3 - Danielle Hodge (M) won by fofeit

Doubles

No. 1 - Jessica Tacheney/Sarah Neuhalfer (E) def. Abbey Keffaber/Libby Olinger 8-6

No. 2 - Kendra Gidley/Brittany Denney (M) def. Laura Fincher/Stephanie Dunn 8-2

BOYS TRACK

Monday in Akron

Tippecanoe Valley's boys track team hosted a three-way Three Rivers Conference meet with Whitko and North Miami Monday. The host Vikings scored 79 points to get the win, while Whitko and North Miami tied with 53 points. Valley's win was highlighted by sweeping the first three positions in the 300 hurdles.

TIPPECANOE VALLEY 79, WHITKO 53, NORTH MIAMI 53

3200 relay - 1. Valley 8:50.8, 2. North Miami

400 relay - 1. Whitko :46.2, 2. North Miami

1600 relay - 1. Valley 3:39.5, 2. Whitko

110 hurdles - 1. Schrader (W) :15.9, 2. Vanlaningham (TV), 3. Spangle (W)

100 - 1. Waterson (W) :11.2, 2. Wise (TV), 3. McCorter (NM)

1600 - 1. Olsen (TV) 5:05, 2. Ash (NM), 3. Anglin (TV)

400 - 1. Wolfe (NM) :52.3, 2. Stutzman (TV), 3. Walker (W)

300 hurdles - 1. Gast (TV) :43.7, 2. Hurd (TV), 3. Vanlaningham (TV)

800 - 1. Vanlaningham (TV) 2:08.0, 2. Zimpleman (NM), 3. Deeds (NM)

200 - 1. Wise (TV) :24.1, 2. Walker (W), 3. Alspaugh (W)

3200 - 1. Barker (TV) 10:54.6, 2. Byram (W), 3. Ross (TV)

Shot put - 1. Fields (TV) 43-3, 2. Ringle (W), 3. Kottkamp (TV)

Discus - 1. Kottkamp (TV) 117-0, 2. Long (TV), 3. Pritts (NM)

High jump - 1. Schrader (W) 6-0, 2. Williams (NM), 3. Stutzman (TV)

Long jump - 1. Wolfe (NM) 18-5 1/2, 2. Wilkinson (W), 3. Williams (NM)

Pole vault - 1. Schrader (W) 12-0, 2. Peters (W), 3. Stutzman (TV)

GIRLS TRACK

Monday in Akron

Tippecanoe Valley's varsity girls track team picked up a convincing three-way Three Rivers Conference win over Whitko and North Miami Monday afternoon. The host Vikings won with 93 points, while Whitko had 33 and North Miami 30. Valley took first place in 13 of the meet's 15 events.

3200 relay - 1. Valley 11:00.0, 2. Whitko

400 relay - 1. Valley :52.8, 2. North Miami

1600 relay - 1. Valey 4:28.4, 2. Whitko

110 hurdles - 1. Sunday (NM) :17.2, 2. Paker (TV), 3. Jeffery (W)

100 -1. Wiley (TV) :13.1, 2. Rathbun (TV), 3. Wilkinson (W)

1600 - 1. Zehr (TV) 6:02.4, 2. Juricak (W), 3. Puckett (W)

400 - 1. Kramer (TV) 1:04.5, 2. Weaver (TV), 3. Laycock (NM)

300 hurdles - 1. Lindenmier (TV) :49.8, 2. Sunday (NM), 3. Dilling (W)

800 - 1. Rosenstiel (TV) 2:36.1, 2. Juricak (W), 3. Lynn (NM)

200 - 1. Wiley (TV) :27.1, 2. Green (TV), 3. Wilkinson (W)

3200 - 1. Lash (TV) 12:48.4, 2. Puckett (W), 3. Wilkinson (W)

Shot put - 1. McFadden (TV) 26-3, 2. Gettinger (W), 3. Shewman (TV)

Discus - 1. Stutzman (TV) 84-3, 2. Moore (TV), 3. McFadden (TV)

High jump - 1. Sunday (NM), 2. Parker (TV), 3. Anderson (TV)

Long jump - 1. Wiley (TV) 15-3 1/4, 2. Brown (NM), 3. Withers (NM) [[In-content Ad]]