Bulldogs run-rule Panthers

CELINA - The Celina summer baseball team has been in some close games recently.

The Bulldogs won big on Tuesday.

Behind two huge innings at the plate and a strong effort by pitcher Caden Highley, Celina defeated Parkway 11-1 in six innings at Montgomery Field, improving to 2-2 on the summer.

It was Celina's second victory over Parkway in a week. The first one was decided by two runs.

"The biggest difference was we put the ball in play," Celina coach Andy Waesch said. "The last couple games we've been striking out a little bit too much. In high school baseball, you put the ball in play and make things happen."

The teams were locked in a scoreless tie after 2 1/2 innings, which changed in Celina's third at-bat.

R.J. Muhlenkamp led off a five-run inning with a single. An infield error by Parkway put Highley on base with him, and Quinn Andrew knocked in a pair of runs with a single. After starter Justan Felver walked Dylan Feister and Brandon Staugler, Zach Hirsch hit an RBI single. The Bulldogs held a 5-0 lead after a run-scoring error and a sac fly by Zach Stein.

Back-to-back singles by Highly and Andrew put runners on the corners in the fourth. Feister had a potential double robbed by Chaz Neuenschwander's diving catch in center, but Highley came home on the sacrifice fly. An error later allowed Andrew to score and make it 7-0. Zach Hirsch followed with his second single. Celina added three more runs thanks to Parkway's second error, an RBI single by Quade Gilmore and a wild pitch.

"Defensively, we had a ton of errors," Parkway coach Steve Samples said. "Last week when we played them, we worked ourselves out of some of the innings when they got walks early. Tonight, they put the ball in play and made us have to defend what they were putting into play and we didn't do a very good job at all. It's going to take a lot of work to get in that mindset where you can't allow them extra baserunners. We're not hitting the ball well enough to let teams score this many runs."

Highley threw five innings for the Bulldogs. Parkway's Breyden Bruns led off the first inning with a double, but was stranded at third. Highley cruised through the second and third innings and worked out of jam in the fourth. Bruns and Felver led off the fifth with back-to-back singles. Parkway scored its only run on an errant throw later in the inning.

The recently graduated Highley allowed just five hits in picking up a win.

"He played really well. He pitched really well," Waesch said. "He has so much stuff. He's got like five pitches. His knuckleball is the best I've ever been around. The best I've ever seen.

"Caden was our bat boy the first year me and (Andy) Mikesell coached," he added. "That was when he was in fifth grade, so we've known him since then. We've watched him grow and it's been awesome. I wanted him to play his senior year so bad. Who knows what he would have done? He could have had one of those Jimmy (Luebke) type years like Jimmy had when we won league. I really think he could have had that type of year."

Feister rocked a double over the right fielder's head in the sixth. A couple minutes later, Dalton Leiss hit a walk-off single.

Quinn Andrew went 3-for-3 and scored a pair of runs for Celina.

Bruns went 2-for- 3 with a double for Parkway, which fell to 0-2.

LINESCORE
Parkway  000  010  -  1  5  6
Celina  005  501  -  11  10  2

WP - Highley

LP - Felver

2B - PW: Bruns. C: Feister.

Records: Parkway 0-2, Celina 2-2.