The Van Wert County Courthouse

Friday, Mar. 29, 2024

Minster stuns C’view to win district title

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

COLDWATER — To say the seventh inning of Saturday’s Division IV district baseball championship game at Coldwater High School was wild is an understatement.

Crestview trailed Minster 7-4 entering the top of the final inning, but the Knights plated nine runs and led 13-7 going into the bottom half of the frame. Unfazed, the defending state champions scored seven runs, all with no outs, for a stunning 14-13 walk-off win and a district title.

Crestview’s Brant Richardson slides into home safely during Saturday’s district title game against Minster. Photo courtesy of Wyatt Richardson

“Although extremely disappointed with the outcome of the game that will take a while to process, we couldn’t more proud of our guys’ resolve and toughness to respond with nine runs in the top of the seventh,” Crestview head coach Jim Wharton said. “Our guys continued to compete and believe in one another until the end.”

Crestview’s first two runs in the top of the seventh came without a hit. Caden Hurless and Dylan Hicks were hit by pitches, Griffin Painter walked, then Riley Saylor was hit by pitch, forcing in Hurless. A bases loaded walk by Derek Stout scored Hicks and trimmed Minster’s lead to 7-6.

After a strikeout by Korbin Hartman, an RBI single by Charles Stefanek scored Painter and tied the game 7-7. Success walks by Brant Richardson and Brett Schumm scored Saylor and Kaden Short, who replaced Stout as a pinch runner.

An error allowed Hurless to reach second, and at the same time plated Stefanek and Richardson. Crestview’s final two runs of the inning came on a fielder’s choice that scored Schumm, and an RBI single by Hurless that allowed Hurless to cross home plate.

Trailing 13-7, Minster quickly loaded the bases with a double, a single and a walk, then scored on an error. A hit batsman and a walk accounted for the next two runs, then after a pitching change, an RBI single pulled the Wildcats to within one, 13-12. After another hit batsman, a walk-off, two-RBI single by Minster’s Jack Heitbrink ended the game.

“The bottom line is unfortunately we didn’t make the plays we needed to in the bottom of the seventh to hold on against a quality Minster team,” Wharton said.

The Knights led 1-0 after two innings, with the run coming on Stout’s sacrifice fly that scored Painter. Minster tied the score with a bases loaded walk in the third, then the Wildcats took a 3-1 lead with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth, both with two outs. Heitbrink scored on a pop fly by August Boehlein, then an error plated Jack Olberding.

Crestview’s Charles Stefanek applies a tag against a Minster runner. Wyatt Richardson photo

The Wildcats tallied two more runs in the fifth, one on an error, the other on a sacrifice bunt that scored Heitbrink, and held a 5-1 lead.

Crestview scored three times in the sixth to pull to within one, 5-4. Hurless was hit by a pitch, Hicks and Painter walked, then an RBI single by Saylor scored Hurless. A single by Stout, who finished with a pair of hits and four RBI, scored pinch runner Logan Gerardot and Painter to end the scoring in the top half of the inning.

Minster scored twice in the bottom of the sixth to lead 7-4, and to set up seventh inning fireworks.

When the dust settled. Kole Small pitched 3.2 innings and was charged with the loss. He allowed four runs on four hits, with three strikeouts and five walks. Griffin Painter pitched 2.1 innings and allowed 10 runs on five hits, while striking out one and walking three.

As a team, the Knights committed five errors, compared to one by the Wildcats.

Minster used five pitchers in the game, and the group combined to allow five hits, 12 walks and six strikeouts.

The Wildcats improved to 22-7, while Crestview’s season ended at 15-6.

“Having defeated two state ranked teams to win a sectional championship and coming within a eyelash of defeating the defending state champs in the cistrict finals, as well NWC co-champions shows how far this team has developed over the course of the season,” Wharton said. “We had a tremendous group of seniors in Caden Hurless, Brett Schumm, Dylan Hicks, Derek Stout, and Charles Stefanek that have invested so much into Crestview baseball and we will truly miss their leadership.”

POSTED: 05/20/18 at 9:32 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports