Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
BOURBON - Whatever the outcome is -Êa win or a loss -ÊTriton's varsity baseball team will make history Saturday.
The Trojans (19-9) will play 16-14 Tri-County at 11 a.m. Saturday in the South Central Regional. Triton has never played in the regional round of the state tournament in school history.
"The last few years we've had a chance, but this year I thought was our strongest, pitching-wise," Triton coach Jim Shively said.
Branden Clauss will take the mound Saturday when Triton tangles with the Cavaliers, but listening to Shively speak, one can see he's just as confident in his backups as well.
"Branden Clauss is a senior who last year was 7-1," Shively said. "This year he's 6-3 with a 2.03 ERA. He's a lefty who is hard to hit. His ball has good movement, and he's got a good chance to win. Our No. 2 pitcher is Tyler Hensley, a hard-throwing right-hander with four quality pitches. He's as good as most teams' No. 1 pitcher."
And if Hensley gets in trouble, there's senior Nate Setser, a leftfielder who owns a 4-0 record on the mound.
Despite its mediocre record, Tri-County is no stranger to postseason success.
"They won the state title two years ago," Shively said. "The coach's son (Michael Stitz) is their best pitcher. He's a pretty good player. He's hitting .450, and there's two others at .400, but after that they're not that strong. If we put some runs on them, we should be OK. I'm sure we should be able to hold them down."
Hamilton (14-13) will play 23-8 Washington Township in the second game, with the championship game slated to start at 8 p.m.
Given the fact two teams come into the South Central Regional with near .500 records and another is making its first regional appearance in school history, Shively was asked who he would consider the favorite.
"Washington Township has been rated high all year," Shively said. "They're 23-8, but their best pitcher is 10-5. He has thrown most of the tough games for them, and they don't really have a No. 2 pitcher. If we get by the first game, I think we'll be favored."
Through 25 games, Triton was hitting .328 as a team with 15 home runs, 159 RBIs, 44 doubles and four triples.
Triton topped Culver Community 10-1 in the first round of the South Central Sectional last Saturday before topping the host team 11-2.
Shively said his Trojans should be in good shape if they put runs on their opponents early - in two sectional games, Triton scored a combined 12 runs in the first inning.
2000 SOUTH CENTRAL BASEBALL REGIONAL
June 17
11 a.m. - Triton (19-9) vs. Tri-County (16-14)
1 p.m. - Washington Township (23-8) vs. Hamilton (14-13)
8 p.m. - championship
