Squires Fall To No. 6 Norse In Sectional Final WABASH — A projected pitcher's duel turned into just that Tuesday at Chris Rood Field at Wabash High School. With the Class 2A Sectional 39 championship on the line, two extra innings were needed between Manchester and sixth-ranked Northfield, but when it was over the Northfield Norsemen stood with the 5-1 nine-inning victory. "It's tough someone had to lose," Northfield coach Tony Uggen said. "I know it's cliché, but it is. (Manchester senior pitcher Scott Baker's) an outstanding kid and just fought to the end. Fortunately, we got a big hit when we needed it." Playing in his last high school game before suiting up for the Ball State Cardinals next season, Baker went all nine innings, striking out 13, but in the final frame, the Norsemen got to him. "It's hard for a high school kid to go nine innings," Uggen said. "Especially on a day like this when it's warm and it's been cool all spring. I think he just kind of ran out of gas. He kind of got away from his breaking ball late. He went to more fastballs." Through eight innings, Baker had given up just two hits and seen the ball leave the infield only three times. In the ninth, Baker got junior Tanner Chamberlain to fly out to deep left field, before senior Peyton Ross hit a double to right. The Ross hit was followed by a single off the bat of sophomore Andy Roser, which scored the go-ahead run, but Northfield wasn't finished. With Ross still sitting at first, Northfield got its second bunt-single of the day, which was followed by a sacrifice bunt to move the baserunners to second and third. With the table set, junior Austin Keen drilled a double to center field, scoring two. Keen was then driven home on an RBI-single by junior Hunter Wells, which gave sophomore pitcher Ryan Keaffaber a 5-1 lead. "A one-run lead with Ryan on the mound, whose (earned run average) is (under one), you kind of feel like you have control," Uggen said. On the season, all Keaffaber has done is compile a 10-0 record with 113 strikeouts, 11 of which came against the Squires in the championship game. Going into the title game, the young left-hander also had a 0.78 ERA. "I got to give their pitcher credit," Manchester coach Jack Rupley said. "We had our opportunities, but he did a good enough job that he held us at bay. We just could not seem to get that run when we really needed it." Manchester's best shot at a big inning came in the bottom of the fourth, when junior Connor McLaughlin, Baker and senior Anthony Saunders hit consecutive singles, with Saunders' scoring McLaughlin, tying the game at 1-1. Following a sacrifice-bunt by junior Caleb Thomas, Baker and Saunders stood and third and second base, respectively, with two outs. Uggen then opted to intentionally walk senior Austin Flack, which turned out to be Keaffaber's only walk of the night. The strategy paid off, as Keaffaber struck out senior Braxton Gore, ending the threat. Instead of scoring additional runs, the Squires kept the pressure on Baker, who could only hold up for so long against a Northfield team that has averaged eight runs a game this season. "Before the ninth, I asked him, 'Are you OK?' and he said, 'I want to finish this.'," Rupley said. "That showed guts and determination on his part." Baker is a four-year letterwinner for the Squires, earning second team All-Three Rivers Conference accolades as a sophomore and first team All-TRC last season. As a sophomore, the 6-foot-4 right-hander carried a 2.15 ERA and a 1.38 ERA as a junior. This year, Baker's ERA stood at 1.14 going into the postseason, but that didn't correlate into many wins. "Since his sophomore year, he's been our ace," Rupley said. "He's had a good career. Just this year, as far as his wins and losses go — he's 4-5 — but we've had games like this where we couldn't give him any help. His ERA is way down, at just over a one. We just had games where we couldn't give him any help." Northfield did give their ace some help, which is why the Norsemen will be playing Adams Central at 1 p.m. Saturday at Wabash High School for the regional. With a win, Northfield will take on the winner of second-ranked Taylor and Delphi at 7 p.m.
NORTHFIELD 5, MANCHESTER 1 (Sectional 39 Championship)
N 000 100 004 — 5 7 1 M 000 100 000 — 1 6 2 Ryan Keaffaber (W, 9IP, 1R, 1ER, 6H, 11K, 1BB) and Peyton Ross; Scott Baker (L, 9IP, 5R, 4ER, 7H, 13K, 1BB) and Devan Knecht 2B — Ross (N), Austin Keen (N) Records — Northfield 24-5, Manchester 13-14
