Shelby baseball edges out Marion Harding ahead of busy stretch
Shelby Whippet baseball hung on for another nail biting victory, this time squeaking past Marion Harding, 6-4, Friday evening in Marion.
The Whippets, playing their third league game in four days, again found a way to win, but not without late game theatrics.
With Shelby leading 6-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh, Travis Slone, in relief of Nic Eyster, found himself in a jam in the bottom of the seventh.
Slone was facing a bases-loaded no out situation after giving up a single and two walks. But the sophomore, lefty was able to escape the seventh and grab the save by getting a sacrifice fly and then fanning the final two batters to preserve the win.
Nic Eyster, picking up his third victory of the week, battled his way through six innings on the mound. Eyster allowed three runs, scattered nine hits and struck out six without issuing a walk.
Shelby coach Jon
Amicone spoke about Eyster.
“Nic Eyster showed everyone why he is our ace,” Amicone said. “For him to come in and throw Monday, Tuesday and Friday and earn wins, all those games showed a lot of determination and grit.”
“Three league games in four days is a tough ask for any baseball team, the fact that our guys went out there and competed and worked their tails off to get wins, speaks volume to the type of character that this team has,” Amicone added about his team’s rugged schedule.
The Whippets took an early 1-0 lead after Eyster led off the game with a double and scored on an Issiah Beck ground out.
But Nathan Cunningham quickly tied the game in the bottom of first, belting a home run over the short right field fence, making it 1–1.
Marion then took the lead in the bottom of the third after Cunningham smacked his second home run of the game, this time over the left field fence, giving the Presidents a 2-1 lead.
After a scoreless fourth, the Whippets took the lead for good in the fifth inning. Shelby loaded the bases with one out after Tanner Hartz singled, Slone walked and Eyster singled.
Eli Schwemley then stroked a two-run base hit to give the Whippets a 3-2 lead. Karsen Homan was hit by a pitch to again load the bases.
Quinton Albert then lined a base hit to center field that scored Eyster and pinch runner Brady Bowman to give Shelby a 5-2 lead.
The Whippets added an insurance run in the seventh inning. Homan lined a single to center field. Beck walked with one out and Canden Dorsey then lined a two-out single to knock in pinch runner Issaiah Ramsey.
Eyster and Hartz led the Whippets with two hits apiece, one of Eyster’s hits was a double. Schwemley, Albert, Homan, Dorsey and Slone all had base hits. Albert and Schwemley each knocked in two runs. Homan and Dorsey both
had a RBI.
The Whippets, who raise their record to 8-2, 4-1, have a busy week, as they play five games in six days.
Shelby was hosting Clyde on Monday (5 p.m.). The Whippets then have two huge Mid-ohio Athletic Conference games, hosting Clear Fork on Tuesday and traveling to the Valley on Wednesday. Both games start at 5:15 p.m.
After a day off, Shelby travels to Madison on Friday (5 p.m.) and wraps up the week with a Saturday home game (noon) against Huron.