Whitko Rallies, Beats Busco Baseball Team
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
The Whitko Wildcats (1-1) jumped out quickly on the Churubusco Eagles (0-2), scoring two first-inning runs, but the home team just kept hanging around the entire way.
"Early on, I kind of felt like it was going to be a back-and-forth game," Whitko coach Erik Hisner said. "Even though we were putting runs up, they were answering the bell."
Scoring one run in each of the first three innings, Churubusco was within 4-3 until the fifth inning, when Whitko tacked on two more runs to extend its lead to 6-3.
However, the Eagles responded in the bottom of the frame with three runs of their own, knotting the score at 6-6.
Whitko came back with another run in the top of the sixth, but like it had done all game, Churubusco struck back, scoring two in the sixth to take an 8-7 lead into the final inning.
Eagles sophomore relief pitcher Corey Sarrazin got things started by inducing a flyout off the bat of Whitko sophomore Ethan Nicodemus, but he then walked junior Ryan Weigold.
Standing at first, Weigold ended up at third following a wild pitch and a passed ball while senior Wes Gensch was drawing a walk at the plate.
With two on and one out, senior Austin Mort drew another walk to load the bases and really put the pressure on the Eagles' battery, which worked well.
As Weigold stood at third, he scored the tying run on another passed ball, which also allowed Gensch to move to third, where he then scored on an RBI-flyout from freshman Zach Snep to take the lead.
Whitko added an insurance run when Mort also scored on a passed ball, the third of the inning and seventh of the game.
"We are very inexperienced on the mound and behind the plate," Churubusco coach Mark Grove said. "In the last two games, we've just struggled in situations where we need to execute. If you don't execute, bad things happen."
And bad things did happen, as Gensch posted the save in the bottom of the seventh, getting a one-two-three inning.
"We're extremely happy to get the win," Hisner said. "I was telling the guys, 'Being 1-1 is a lot better than being 0-2.' We're very happy to get to .500."
On top of getting the save, Gensch also did at the dish, going 2 for 3 with three RBIs and scoring two runs.
Weigold also had a good game, finishing 3 for 4, driving in a run and scoring two himself.
"The middle of the order was pretty good," Hisner said. "Pretty much, 1 through 5 was solid. After the game, I kind of challenged 6 through 9 to get a little bit better. But give some of those guys credit. (Senior Riley) Cokl gets a single there in the sixth, then steals a base. (Junior Josh) Kessie comes off the bench, in his first at-bat of the year, and drives him in."
And in just the second game of the season, Hisner is already dealing with injuries.
"We have a couple guys banged up," he said. "Our starting center fielder (senior Dominic Arrowood), probably has an ACL tear and (junior Alex) Stoddard went down Monday. So, we had some guys moving around."
Whitko is back in action Friday, travelling to Lakeland.
WHITKO 10, CHURUBUSCO 8
W 202 021 3 – 10 11 5
C 111 032 0 – 8 9 1
Ethan Nicodemus (ND, 5IP, 6R, 2ER, 7H, 7K, 3BB), Wyatt Wolf (6, W, 1IP, 2R, 2ER, 2H, 1BB), Wes Gensch (7, S, 1IP) and Riley Cokl
Hayden Kilgore (ND, 4IP, 6R, 6ER, 8H, 5K, 2BB, 1HB), Corey Sarrazin (5, L, 3IP, 4R, 4ER, 3H, 2K, 2BB) and Chandler Brown
2B – Austin Mort (W), Austin Goepfrich (C), Brent Simmons (C)
3B – Simmons (C), Cody Schaefer (C)
Records: Whitko 1-1, Churubusco 0-2[[In-content Ad]]
The Whitko Wildcats (1-1) jumped out quickly on the Churubusco Eagles (0-2), scoring two first-inning runs, but the home team just kept hanging around the entire way.
"Early on, I kind of felt like it was going to be a back-and-forth game," Whitko coach Erik Hisner said. "Even though we were putting runs up, they were answering the bell."
Scoring one run in each of the first three innings, Churubusco was within 4-3 until the fifth inning, when Whitko tacked on two more runs to extend its lead to 6-3.
However, the Eagles responded in the bottom of the frame with three runs of their own, knotting the score at 6-6.
Whitko came back with another run in the top of the sixth, but like it had done all game, Churubusco struck back, scoring two in the sixth to take an 8-7 lead into the final inning.
Eagles sophomore relief pitcher Corey Sarrazin got things started by inducing a flyout off the bat of Whitko sophomore Ethan Nicodemus, but he then walked junior Ryan Weigold.
Standing at first, Weigold ended up at third following a wild pitch and a passed ball while senior Wes Gensch was drawing a walk at the plate.
With two on and one out, senior Austin Mort drew another walk to load the bases and really put the pressure on the Eagles' battery, which worked well.
As Weigold stood at third, he scored the tying run on another passed ball, which also allowed Gensch to move to third, where he then scored on an RBI-flyout from freshman Zach Snep to take the lead.
Whitko added an insurance run when Mort also scored on a passed ball, the third of the inning and seventh of the game.
"We are very inexperienced on the mound and behind the plate," Churubusco coach Mark Grove said. "In the last two games, we've just struggled in situations where we need to execute. If you don't execute, bad things happen."
And bad things did happen, as Gensch posted the save in the bottom of the seventh, getting a one-two-three inning.
"We're extremely happy to get the win," Hisner said. "I was telling the guys, 'Being 1-1 is a lot better than being 0-2.' We're very happy to get to .500."
On top of getting the save, Gensch also did at the dish, going 2 for 3 with three RBIs and scoring two runs.
Weigold also had a good game, finishing 3 for 4, driving in a run and scoring two himself.
"The middle of the order was pretty good," Hisner said. "Pretty much, 1 through 5 was solid. After the game, I kind of challenged 6 through 9 to get a little bit better. But give some of those guys credit. (Senior Riley) Cokl gets a single there in the sixth, then steals a base. (Junior Josh) Kessie comes off the bench, in his first at-bat of the year, and drives him in."
And in just the second game of the season, Hisner is already dealing with injuries.
"We have a couple guys banged up," he said. "Our starting center fielder (senior Dominic Arrowood), probably has an ACL tear and (junior Alex) Stoddard went down Monday. So, we had some guys moving around."
Whitko is back in action Friday, travelling to Lakeland.
WHITKO 10, CHURUBUSCO 8
W 202 021 3 – 10 11 5
C 111 032 0 – 8 9 1
Ethan Nicodemus (ND, 5IP, 6R, 2ER, 7H, 7K, 3BB), Wyatt Wolf (6, W, 1IP, 2R, 2ER, 2H, 1BB), Wes Gensch (7, S, 1IP) and Riley Cokl
Hayden Kilgore (ND, 4IP, 6R, 6ER, 8H, 5K, 2BB, 1HB), Corey Sarrazin (5, L, 3IP, 4R, 4ER, 3H, 2K, 2BB) and Chandler Brown
2B – Austin Mort (W), Austin Goepfrich (C), Brent Simmons (C)
3B – Simmons (C), Cody Schaefer (C)
Records: Whitko 1-1, Churubusco 0-2[[In-content Ad]]
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