Indians punch ticket for another state trip

HAMLER - In their team's previous three tournament games, Fort Recovery fans had to sweat out some close wins.

The only reason for sweating on Friday in the Division IV regional baseball was due to the heat.

The Indians scored seven times in a big third inning and kept adding runs to advance to the state final four for a second straight year with an 11-1 win over Kalida at Garrold Parratt Field at Patrick Henry High School.

The Indians (22-9) will get a rematch with the team that ended their tournament run a year ago in defending state champion Newark Catholic at 4 p.m. next Friday at Huntington Park in Columbus. The Green Wave needed 10 innings to beat top-ranked Toronto 4-1 in the Lancaster regional final. The second semifinal has Cuyahoga Heights taking on Triad at 7 p.m. The winners return June 4 at 7 p.m. for the championship game.

"The goal at the beginning of the year as was go back to Columbus and ultimately win the whole thing" senior pitcher/infielder Jackson Hobbs said. "We're excited to be (going back). The five seniors (Hobbs, Kyle Schroer, Chase Bruns, Ross Homan and Jacob Homan) are excited to be (going) back there."    Fort Recovery had a chance to score in the first when Jacob Homan singled with Hobbs at second. Hobbs came home, but Putnam County League Player of the Year Austin Swift fired a perfect shot to catcher Jeff Knueve for the out to end the inning.

However, in the third, there was no holding back the Indians. Ross Homan led off with a walk and scored on a double by Will Homan. Homan ended up at third on a wild throw to the plate. Kalida pitcher Owen Recker got Nick Thwaits to pop up for the first out. Cade Wendel executed the perfect squeeze bunt, allowing Will Homan to score to make it 2-0. Hobbs walked to bring up Jacob Homan, who lofted what he later admitted he thought was a routine fly ball to right center. What appeared to many to be a routine fly was caught in the jet stream and dropped over the fence for a two-run home run to make it 4-0.

Recker was pulled after 2 2/3 innings for Trent Siebeneck, but the Indians kept chugging. Hunter Boughman doubled, with his pinch-runner Davis Will scoring when Kyle Schroer reached on an error. Chase Bruns and Ross Homan both walked to load the bases for Will Homan, who only saw one strike in five pitches to bring home another run. Kalida coach Joe Recker pulled Siebeneck after five batters for Grant Laudick, who walked Thwaits on five pitches to bring home another run. Wendel popped up to end the 13-batter parade.

"We have been taking good at-bats and good approaches at the plate and not being able to scratch many runs through," Indians coach Jerry Kaup said. "Today, especially in the third inning with two outs, we were able to string some things together. The hit-and-run worked (and) the squeeze worked."

The Indians scored two more runs in the fourth as the Wildcats made three errors in the the inning. Fort Recovery added a run in the sixth and one more in the seventh to close out the scoring.

Thwaits, who pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief over two stints in Thursday's win over Ayersville, was sharp in getting the start against the Wildcats. Kalida didn't get a hit until the third inning when Austin Klausing singled with one out. The lone Kalida run came in the fifth when Noah Lambert singled and later scored on Siebeneck's groundout. Thwaits struck out four and walked two in five innings of two-hit baseball.

"I talked to the coaches and we had a plan going into (the game)," Thwaits said. "(The plan) worked today. I was going as long as I could. I went five innings, but was hoping to go seven."

Cade Wendel, who also pitched Thursday, closed the door for the last two innings. After getting two flyouts, which included a great diving catch by Schroer for the first out, Austin Klausing reached on an error. Wendel did not prolong Kalida's wish to continue the season. He forced Trent Gerding into the game-ending groundout.

"I think (Kalida) had only one loss on the season (before Friday)," Kaup said of Kalida, which finished 23-2. "They're used to winning. They're going down swinging."

Jacob Homan was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Boughman was 2-for-5 and Will Homan was 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

"It's a nice feeling," Kaup said. "I think the boys came out today and felt confident with Nick on the mound. Obviously, we know how fragile baseball games are and how the little things make such big differences."