The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Amherst July Classic makes grand debut
South clobbers Keystone with help of big fifth inning
The inaugural Amherst Baseball July Classic is officially underway.
The five-day event began as Keystone hosted Willoughby South, while Amherst entertained Canal Fulton Northwest as part of a pair of opening night matchups on July 26.
After a competitive first four innings, things took a turn for the worse for the Wildcats (01) as the Rebels (1-0) tacked on seven runs in the fifth inning, giving them all the cushion they would need en route to a 12-3 victory.
“We had a couple of walks and some good at-bats and mixed in some hits and that’s what you’ve got to do, take it a base at a time and it worked out for us,” Rebels coach Jeff Winrod said.
His Rebels batted around as they took advantage of a decision to take out starting pitcher Matt Lednik, who had contained South to two runs off five hits when he was pulled.
The decision was predetermined as acting Keystone coach Ken Stiner told the players that they would be getting some chances to play during the game.
“I thought the first four innings was a nice ball game at 3-2, and we brought a new pitcher in that hasn’t thrown all summer and it kind of showed. Defensively, we got a little lazy as the balls didn’t find the strike zone,” Stiner said.
It was a rough and short outing for Junior Colin Brodnik, who was called upon in the fifth inning, allowing seven runs off five hits, while walking two.
Before things got out of hand for the Wildcats, senior Matt Kelling delivered a promising start with a two-run single in the first inning, giving Keystone the early 2-0 lead.
Kelling had two of the Wildcats’ six hits on the evening, enjoying the opportunity to play with his teammates in the summertime.
“Yeah, it was pretty exciting to get that first run,” Kelling said.
Rebels junior Tommy Kelly responded with a two-run single of his own, evening the score, 2-2, in the second.
“Yeah, obviously it started a good roll for us. It felt great to start everything off,” Kelly said.
Keystone took back the lead in the bottom of the third as Cameron Emerick sought to steal third, drawing a wild throw from South’s Zach Houghtaling, which easily allowed Emerick to score.
The fifth inning lasted nearly 30 minutes, as Dom Prevesh got the momentum going with an RBI single. After Brodnik walked in a run, John Susnik added a sacrifice fly. Brandon Huff and Dom Cairns capped off the inning with an RBI double and two-run single, respectively.
Winrod felt his team took a little bit to get going, but once they did, they looked very comfortable.
“It took us a while to get going, but once we did, we were good to go,” Winrod said.
The Rebels starting pitching combination of Mitch Ruple and Cairns held the Wildcats’ bats at bay all game long. Ruple went two innings, allowing three hits and three runs with a walk and three strikeouts. But it was Cairns who got the victory in his four innings, allowing one run, three hits and a walk.
The Rebels added a few more runs in the later innings
as Prevesh came away with a sacrifice fly in the sixth. An inning later, Will Alywald knocked a two-run single.
The 12-3 score is nothing to overlook, but Stiner hopes the players continue to get the best out of themselves during this short summer opportunity as they look to reload and chase another PAC Stars title next spring.
“Well, I think obviously we lost an All-County player in (Drew) Compton, but I think the tradition of Keystone baseball is to compete at the conference level, as we have done every year. We have a lot of young talent that we are very excited about. So, if we can get guys meshed and playing like we are used to at Keystone basebal, then I think it looks to be a good year for us,” Stiner said.
Blowout victories like these came few and far between for South last season, something Winrod looks to change.
“We were young last year, a couple games over .500. We lost about five seniors so we’re a young team, but we have some young players who actually played pretty well and we are expecting a good season,” Winrod said.
Both teams will turn their attention to Medina, as the Wildcats host the Bees on July 27, while the Rebels face the Bees July 28 at Keystone.