Quantcast
Channel: Albert Grindle – The Medina County Gazette
Viewing all 164 articles
Browse latest View live

Moser leaves Hornets

$
0
0

Albert Grindle

The Gazette

GRANGER TWP. — Mike Moser saw another opportunity to go home and took it.

The 37-year-old Wadsworth native and resident resigned this week as Highland girls basketball coach, ending a two-year run at Medina County’s most unstable program to make a second stint as an assistant to Grizzlies boys coach Mike Schmeltzer Jr.

Moser compiled a 28-18 record, including an 18-6 mark this season despite two-time All-Ohio center Marlee Profitt missing 12 games with a knee injury.

“To be honest with you, I’ve been praying about this for months on what the right thing to do was,” Moser said Friday. “I’ve done that after every season, reflecting back and things like that. I honestly think going over to Wadsworth and helping program over there is where God wants me right now.”

Moser was Wadsworth’s eighth-grade boys coach before taking over the Highland girls in June 2014. His former Grizzlies players now make up the core of the varsity, as seven sophomores lettered during a 5-18 rebuilding season.

The former Arena Football League kicker’s familiarity with the Grizzlies — he is a gym teacher at Wadsworth Middle School — was a factor, as was the opportunity to spend more time with his childen, Ben, 10, Natalie, 7, Andy, 5, and Sam, 3, and wife Ali.

Moser was Schmeltzer’s junior varsity coach from 2008-12.

“This is the right move for me to make at this time,” Moser said. “Obviously being a Wadsworth grad, teaching there and being a former player there, I coached the kids who are sophomores there in eighth grade, so I have a good relationship with those kids as well.”

Moser took over a Hornets program that went 7-16 in 2012-13. Highland went 10-12 in his first season before flirting with the Suburban League American Division championship this winter. The 18 wins were the most by a Hornets team since 1992.

Along the way, Moser became close with his players, who embraced his positive approach.

“I have no regrets whatsoever,” Moser said. “I had a great experience and have nothing but positives to say about Highland. I was treated incredibly well, all the way from administration to the parents, and I have amazing relationships with the kids.

“That’s what makes it really, really hard. Those kids are an extension of my family, and I look at all of those kids as my daughters. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done as far as coaching goes.”

Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.



High school basketball: Wadsworth girls receive national honor

$
0
0

WADSWORTH — The season ended more than a week ago, but the honors keep coming for the Wadsworth girls basketball team.

The Division I state champion Grizzlies (28-1) were informed Tuesday they have been selected as one of 10 nationwide honorees for the MaxPreps Girls Basketball Tour of Champions, presented by the Army National Guard.

Andrew Booth

Andrew Booth

Wadsworth will be presented a National Guard National Ranking Trophy at a yet-to-be-scheduled pep rally in April or May.

“This is a fantastic honor for a group of girls who represent the same ideals as the National Guard: teamwork, hard work, loyalty and respect,” Grizzlies coach Andrew Booth said.

Wadsworth is ranked 20th nationally in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Writers’ Poll and 14th in the USA Today Super 25.

The Grizzlies cracked the MaxPreps version after upsetting then-No. 24 Mason in the state championship game and debuted at No. 20 in the USA Today rankings after beating Toledo Whitmer for the Norwalk Regional crown.

The national exposure is not unprecedented for Wadsworth, as the 1997 state championship team finished No. 5 in the USA Today poll.

The Grizzlies were fourth to begin the next season but finished unranked after losing in the state semis to No. 10 Pickerington, which also defeated Wadsworth in the 1999 state semis en route to the USA Today poll title.


Gazette MVPs: Football toughened Wadsworth’s Johnson on the way to stardom

$
0
0

Wadsworth youth quarterback Graham Blind lined up under center against Highland, poised to lead the offense down the Green Leaf Park field in Sharon Township. The Grizzlies were inside the 40-yard line and aiming for the end zone with a well-timed play call in mind.

Blind got the snap and quickly fired outside, where a receiver was gearing up for a screen. The pass was complete, and No. 87 weaved through the defense and sprinted full steam ahead for a touchdown.

Nearly everyone in the stands recognized the moment, highlighted by that player’s twin sibling going bonkers. The opposing players were dumbfounded and angry.

Wadsworth's Jodi Johnson is the 2015-16 Gazette girls basketball MVP. (PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY RON SCHWANE)

Wadsworth’s Jodi Johnson is the 2015-16 Gazette girls basketball MVP. (PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY RON SCHWANE)

Sure, Wadsworth scored. That wasn’t all that special, but the player hoisted into the air by coach Jim Blind on the sidelines was special.

With a ponytail tucked beneath shoulder pads, Jodi Johnson was just one of the boys and loving every second of gridiron glory.

“Obviously boys are boys, and they’re immature at that age,” she recalled Thursday. “They’re going to say stuff about me being a girl. I remember my first touchdown. The other team’s coach was like, ‘You just got beat by a girl!’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, you did!’ Some of it motivated me a lot, and I didn’t care what they had to say about me being a girl. I could play like anyone else out there.”

That little squirt with mad hops matured into one of the greatest players in Wadsworth girls basketball history. The accomplishments of the two-time first-team All-Ohioan and Gazette MVP were historic, especially when she took on legendary status while leading the Grizzlies to the Division I state title.

Gazette MVPs
Jodi Johnson (W) 2016
Jodi Johnson (W) 2015
Peyton Booth (W) 2014
Rachel Goddard (W) 2013
Rachel Goddard (W) 2012
Taylor Woods (W) 2011
Mikaela Lengal (Bru) 2010
Lindsay Tenyak (W) 2009
Chrissy Pavlik (W) 2008
Cassie Schrock (W) 2007
Cassie Schrock (W) 2006
Cassie Schrock (W) 2005
Ashley Veal (W) 2004
Amanda Fisher (W) 2003
Cara Busson (W) 2002
Cara Busson (W) 2001
Tanya Ross (Buc) 2000
Tanya Ross (Buc) 1999
Katelyn Vujas (W) 1998
Elisa Inman (W) 1997
Katelyn Vujas (W) 1996
Kelly O’Flanagan (C) 1995
Caroline McCombs (M) 1994
Jill Smith (H) 1993
Kelly Fergus (Bru) 1992
Kelly Fergus (Bru) 1991
Lisa Horwedel (C) 1990
Karen Phillips (M) 1989
Julie Ruhlin (W) 1988
Julie Ruhlin (W) 1987
Jeannie Reilly (W) 1986
Deb Berry (BR) 1985
Alyssa Spechalske (C) 1984
Tracy Haller (H) 1983
Shelly Miller (M) / Lisa Kungl (H) 1982
Toni Stabile (Bru) 1981
Lori Hein (Bru) / LuAnn Tsipis (H) 1980
Cheryl Althaus (W) 1979
Kim Alber (M) 1978

Johnson’s enduring character traits will always be mental and physical toughness, a belief with conviction that she’s never going to lose and, to the amazement of adults given her pedigree, zero hint of ego. Being a girl in a boy’s world showed her how to be a true champion because she would have been eaten alive if she had acted any differently.

One of the first Christmas presents Johnson remembered wasn’t a Barbie doll, a pink bicycle or a Disney movie. Santa Claus delivered a football, and it was on like Donkey Kong if anyone else dared mess with her prized possession. No one was going to stop her from playing catch with her father Rick.

Growing up a big fan of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and even seeing him play in the Hall of Fame Game at Canton’s Fawcett Stadium, the natural progression of suiting up entered Johnson’s young mind. Dad and twin sister/cheerleader Jenna were enthusiastic about the idea. Mom Carol needed convincing, but Jodi’s persistence won out.

“One day, I was kind of like, ‘I want to play football,’” she said. “Dad was like, ‘That’d be cool,’ and Mom was like, ‘I don’t think so,’ but my dad said, ‘Let her play because once she gets hit a few times, she won’t want to play anymore.’”

Johnson then grinned widely.

“But I ended up playing for a couple years,” she said.

Johnson played football in the fourth, fifth and sixth grades for the Wadsworth “White” and “Black” teams as a wide receiver, cornerback and safety. Teammates included future varsity athletes Graham Blind (basketball/golf), Noah Baughman (wrestling), Alec Booth (basketball), Darrin and Devon Gilkerson (wrestling) and Buzz Walker (Barberton basketball), and one of her coaches ironically was Grizzlies girls basketball coach Andrew Booth.

Johnson remembers getting hit wasn’t as painful as people hyped it to be. She remembers the camaraderie with her teammates — she’s still friends with a lot of them — and she remembers how much she loved the game before giving it up for what ended up being a stellar volleyball career.

She also remembers the pockets of resistance, those select opposing peers whose masculine pride couldn’t accept getting smoked by a girl. Their mean-spiritedness didn’t kill her. It made her stronger.

Taking charges, diving for loose balls, slamming into gymnasium walls, gettin’ buckets from awkward angles and icing a shoulder after every game against 16-, 17- and 18-year-old girls? That’s child’s play compared to tackling a running back whose only goal was to bulldoze her into next week.

“I got knocked around, but I survived,” Johnson said.

Flash forward to the 2015-16 girls basketball season and Johnson’s toughness never shined brighter because of those football values she embraced.

Johnson was the cool, confident and calculated Maya Moore to teammate Sophia Fortner’s intense, exuberant and always-talking Diana Taurasi. Johnson also was immune to pressure in the same way she still struggles to comprehend stardom and what all the fuss is about.

The high-flying 5-foot-11 shooting guard was all about efficiency, making the game look effortless while averaging 19.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 3.0 steals and 0.8 blocks. Every time Wadsworth needed a jolt in crunch time, Johnson instinctively took over with a win-at-all-costs outlook and late friend Zane Walker’s dying wish of a state championship in her mind.

Already guaranteed her second first-team All-Ohio award after becoming a Ms. Basketball finalist midway through the postseason, Johnson went from star to unworldly — at least in the eyes of autograph-seeking elementary school students — and powered the Grizzlies into the history books.

The Ashland recruit scored 25, 29, 24 and 28 points in the final wins over Magnificat, Toledo Whitmer, Reynoldsburg and Mason while shooting a combined .509 from the floor (28-for-55), .900 from the foul line (45-for-50) and .455 from 3-point range (5-for-11). She had 12 points in the first quarter against the Blue Streaks — the outcome wasn’t in doubt after that — then 11, 11 and 12 in fourth quarters against the Panthers, Raiders and Comets.

The storybook ending came in the state championship game, as Johnson had 28 points and made 10-of-11 free throws with the rowdy Wadsworth student section chanting “M-V-P, M-V-P.”

The Grizzlies upset Mason 60-51 and avenged their only loss. Their “business trip” earned them a state championship trophy they now jokingly call “Goldie.”

“She had the ability and the mental fortitude to know when we needed to play, the talent to make the play and the toughness to make that play when everyone in the gym knew she needed to make a play,” Andrew Booth said. “There’s not many kids in general — boys basketball, girls basketball, football, whatever — that can make a play when everyone knows your best player needs to make a play. That’s what she did, and that’s when you know you’re watching something special.”

“On the biggest stage, she took it to the basket, made free throws, hit big step-back threes,” Mason coach Rob Matula added. “She did everything she was supposed to do as a player of the year and the leader of that team.”

Twenty days have passed since a crying Johnson threw two No. 1s into the air and was bear-hugged by friend and teammate Olivia Chaney when the final buzzer sounded at Value City Arena. The whole weekend remains a blur and hasn’t marinated in Johnson’s mind quiet yet.

But something else has.

Then in second grade, Johnson was in the stands cheering for her idols, Cassie Schrock and Jen Uhl, when Wadsworth lost to Solon in the 2006 D-I state semifinals on the same Value City Arena floor. Interestingly, Uhl has since developed a sisterly bond with Johnson as an assistant coach.

Among all the congratulations Johnson has received since 10:17 p.m. on March 12, the starry-eyed elementary school students that light up a room when Johnson and her teammates visit melt her heart. Life comes full circle because she sees her 8-year-old self sitting cross-legged on the floor.

The awards, statistics and publicity mean nothing to Johnson in those moments. Being fortunate enough to grow up in a tight-knit community like Wadsworth — the same one that supported her faithfully from pee wee football to the state girls basketball tournament — means everything instead.

“I remember traveling down there (to Columbus in 2006) and I thought it was just the biggest deal ever,” she said. “Them little kids now, especially how they react to us, it made me think about how we all looked up to the (2006 team).

“It’s crazy to think we’ll be a part of history.”


Coaching success has followed, but Wadsworth’s Booth remembers where he came from

$
0
0

A tall country boy from tiny Lucas, Ohio, has accomplished big things in a girls basketball coaching career at one of the most respected Division I programs in the state. He won’t be giving up the whistle soon, either.

Wadsworth's Andrew Booth is the Gazette Coach of the Year. RON SCWHANE/GAZETTE

Wadsworth’s Andrew Booth is the Gazette Winter Sports Coach of the Year. RON SCWHANE/GAZETTE

But even after 242 wins, 10 Suburban League titles, eight district crowns, two state tournament berths and a state championship in 11 seasons at Wadsworth, Andrew Booth, The Gazette’s Winter Coach of the Year, has never forgotten his roots.

Fifty miles southwest of Wadsworth lies Lucas, a town of 600 people that is less than a half-marathon’s run east of Mansfield. The community is working class at its core and perhaps best known for being a location for scenes in the 1994 movie “The Shawshank Redemption.”

The Booths didn’t live in the village proper, but on a 74-acre farm on the Lucas-Mansfield Madison High border. It was a place where Andrew, who goes by that name instead of “Andy” professionally solely because his mother prefers such, baled hay and tended to a couple dozen animals. He is the son of two special education teachers, so it’s easy to see why he holds the same position at Wadsworth.

Along with a strong work ethic and hallmark laid-back country personality, Booth takes the most pride in something else when he looks back at his childhood: The sense of community that Wadsworth is known for.

Coaches of the Year
Andrew Booth (W) 2016
Joe Mackey (Bru) 2015
Matt Saunders (Buc) 2014
Darcy Ranallo (M) 2013
Andrew Booth (W) 2012
Chad Gilmore (M) 2011
John Gramuglia (W) 2010
John Gramuglia (W) 2009
Mark Savoia (H) 2008
Paul Gerycz (Bru) 2007
Andrew Booth (W) 2006
Connie Rummell (Buc) 2005
Julie Solis (C) 2004
John Martin (W) 2003
Joe Mackey (Bru) 2002
Phil Gregor (Buc) 2001
Jody Peters (M) 2000
Steve Borgis (Buc) 1999
Keith Sooy (M) 1998
Todd Osborn (W) 1997
John Gramuglia (W) 1996
Fred Pollock (H) 1995

“Growing up, Lucas was kind of the Mansfield version of the unwanted stepbrother,” Booth said. “People made fun of Lucas — you’re a little podunk from Lucas — and we were the butt of a lot of jokes. After you get older, you start taking a little bit of pride in that’s where you came from.”

Unsurprisingly, sports were a huge part of Booth’s youth, especially basketball. He grew up inspired by the 1976 Miracle-of-Richfield Cavaliers, listening to the radio broadcasts and dreaming of not playing but instead replacing Joe Tait as play-by-play man.

Booth’s basketball coach at Lucas, Jim Stimmel, remembers a 6-foot-5 mullet-rocker who was much more of a slashing scorer (1,018 points in his career, including a 24.7 average as a senior) than back-to-the-basket center.

Stimmel didn’t agree with Booth’s assessment that he was a below-average defensive player — something totally ironic given how much Booth cares about defense now — and instead remembers his star player was so even-keeled and intelligent they became close right away.

“Anytime anybody asks me about Andy, he was the best player I’ve ever coached,” said Stimmel, who left Lucas in 1987 for Hilliard Davidson and coached the varsity there from 2000-02. “Not only because of his ability, but he was a coach on the floor for me.

“It doesn’t surprise me at all he’s had success. I love talking basketball with people, and even as a high school student, I talked to Andy as if he was an adult coach. I’m serious.”

Stimmel couldn’t have been happier when Booth and the Grizzlies won the state title. He attended the semifinal against Reynoldsburg and watched the final against Mason on television.

“I don’t know if you live through that, but you feel there’s a little connection because hopefully I was able to at least pour something into him,” he said. “You feel like that’s part of you there — not that I had anything to do with it because Andy was such a great player. It’s like it’s one of your own kids.”

After graduating in 1985 in a class of 47 — “I tell people I was in the top 20,” he joked — Booth went to Malone and played basketball for hall of fame coach Hal Smith. He graduated as the 10th all-time leading scorer (1,267 points) and sixth all-time leading rebounder (655) in school history.

It was there that Booth became inspired to coach. Smith made him a graduate assistant as a fifth-year senior, and Booth used that experience to get the junior varsity boys position at Mansfield St. Peter’s, then a small-school powerhouse coming off a D-IV state semifinal appearance.

In Booth’s two years and despite a head coaching change, St. Peter’s twice reached the regional finals at the Canton Memorial Fieldhouse. Booth quickly became hooked on coaching.

“It spoils you because Mansfield in the ’80s and ’90s was a really good place for high school basketball, and there was plenty of talent in all the schools,” Booth said. “Pete’s was well known all around Ohio. While it was a good place to be one step from state, it didn’t take long to figure out that wasn’t really reality.”

That set in when Booth couldn’t land a full-time job as a history teacher, so he took two years off to get certified in special education. He had a two-year stint as a boys assistant at Crestline and then was offered the varsity gig at his alma mater, but Lucas couldn’t guarantee a teaching job and Booth declined.

Instead, he looked into the open girls position at Mansfield Madison— his wife Rachel’s alma mater — but only for a friend. Booth became interested, applied on a whim, got that full-time teaching job he coveted and won close to 100 games before replacing Scott Callaghan at Wadsworth in 2005.

“I was crazy about sports and I knew I wanted to do something, but just didn’t know what,” he said. “When I went to college, it dawned on me this would be a pretty good career route and I wouldn’t have to give up what I loved.”

Flash forward almost 11 years and Booth’s impact shined when his players executed every step of the way en route to Wadsworth’s second state championship.

Booth’s sense of family — the one he loved in Lucas — was evident in the way the team had great chemistry on and off the court. His work ethic — the one helped by farm chores — was evident in the way the team paid attention to detail. His never-rattled demeanor — one that made him a standout high school and college player — was evident when the team played out its mind in the first half of a 60-51 state final win over Mason.

The bright lights of Value City Arena and potential distraction of winning a regional title after four straight failures didn’t faze the Grizzlies in the least.

“I didn’t have to do any selling in terms of focus,” Booth said. “They were ready, and like (Gazette MVP) Jodi (Johnson) said, ‘It’s strictly business.’ They all really felt like that. They weren’t happy to be down. They wanted to win a state title.”

Wadsworth had that ability because it perfected a philosophical switch that began in 2013-14. The gaggle of 3-point shooters had graduated, and the Grizzlies re-invented themselves to play old school.

No one in Ohio played a better mid-range game, something Booth honed by adjusting practices to open with three players going through shooting drills at each of the six baskets. Quite often the only 3-pointers hoisted at practices were when Johnson shot by herself during water breaks.

Sure, the traditional 2-2-1 and run-and-jump presses remained factors and having stars like Johnson and Sophia Fortner was a luxury, but the Grizzlies became so efficient offensively that packing in a 2-3 zone and forcing them to shoot threes didn’t work anymore.

That was evident in two games at the state tournament, as Wadsworth scored 118 points while shooting .447 (34-for-76) from the floor, .353 (6-for-17) from 3-point range and a ridiculous .863 (44-for-51) from the foul line. The Grizzlies also made 11-of-20 shots in the first half against Mason, including a layup five seconds in when Lexi Lance tapped the tip forward to Laurel Palitto, who fired to a streaking Johnson.

Wadsworth never slowed down while taking a 30-14 lead into the locker room.

“Our whole point of emphasis (against Mason) was, ‘Let’s be aggressive and let’s attack them because we have nothing to lose,”’ Booth said. “We really were hammering that home. That tip, we probably did that 17 out of 29 games. It wasn’t a set call. We just did it. That set the tone for everything we preached that day.

“You saw kids making plays that typically maybe wouldn’t have. But just to let it all loose? Holy smokes, they followed that to a ‘T.’”

Nearly four weeks have passed since seniors Palitto, Johnson and Jenna Johnson hoisted the D-I state championship trophy. Booth has been blown away by the attention that has followed. He continues to get congratulatory cards in the mail.

The notoriety has included radio, newspaper and television interviews and team visits to the Wadsworth elementary schools. The Grizzlies also will travel to the Ohio Statehouse on May 4.

Booth has had a lot more to juggle in the offseason than even he prepared for, but he wouldn’t trade anything.

Of course, he doesn’t care much about personal fame. His parents and the town of Lucas made him that way.

“The way I was raised, everything else is secondary until you build relationships and earn trust,” Booth said. “You have to care about them more as a person than as a basketball player.”

That’s how state championships are born in Booth’s world, and it’s hard to argue with the results.


Gazette MVP: Medina’s Teske cherished opportunity to be one of the guys

$
0
0

Boys basketball coach Chris Hassinger is minding his own business in a hallway at Medina High, engaging in a conversation or loudly making a quip.

Lurking in the background is Jon Teske, who at 7-foot-1, 245 pounds always sticks out in a crowd but has a way of staying incognito around “Hass.”

Medina's Jon Teske is the 2015-16 Gazette MVP for boys basketball. (RON SCHWANE PHOTO ILLUSTRATION)

Medina’s Jon Teske is the 2015-16 Gazette MVP for boys basketball. (RON SCHWANE PHOTO ILLUSTRATION)

Teske keeps his cool and sneaks as close as he can behind Hassinger, who then turns around and gets scared half to death.

Hassinger, always one for a good joke, catches his breath and grins. In these moments, the second-year coach is reminded why he believes in Teske the person even more than Teske the two-time Gazette MVP basketball player.

What fans saw on a nightly basis was an even-keeled, quiet star when Teske was wearing the Medina No. 33 jersey. Around his teammates and coaches, however, he is just one of the guys on one of the closest-knit Bees teams in recent memory.

“He’s a caring kid, and a lot of kids in his position become a little arrogant and a little hard around the edges,” Hassinger said. “Jon is still that kid that loves to be around his friends. If you told him, ‘Jon, you can stay here and play with your high school buddies the rest of your life,’ I think he’d be OK with that. He just loves our culture, he loves the guys, he loves being around his family. That’s what makes him special.

“You see the straight-faced Jon Teske on the court and even off the court after games, but he’s a real big goofball around his friends and people that he’s comfortable around.”

The Bees dedicated a Copley Division I District semifinal win over Stow to seniors Teske, Matthew McNaughton and Jimmy Clark. When Medina’s season ended with a loss to rival Brunswick in the championship game, multiple teammates took to Twitter.

The posts were about Teske, whom the average teenager wouldn’t guess has a full scholarship to Michigan — besides the fact he’s 7-1 — because of his low-key personality.

All-Gazette small forward Luke Schaefer: “Medina will never have another athlete like @JonTeske in any sport. Ever”

All-Gazette shooting guard Jackson Sartain: “Thankful for a teammate like @JonTeske Not everybody gets a chance to play with a person so special. Gonna miss ya next year”

Gazette MVPs
Jon Teske (M) 2016
Jon Teske (M) 2015
Ryan Badowski (Bru) 2014
Billy Geschke (M) 2013
Josh Kipfer (W) 2012
Pat Forsythe (Bru) 2011
Tyler Peters (M) 2010
Tyler Ferrell (Bru) 2009
Parker Hewit (C) 2008
Sean Kelly (Bru) 2007
Travis Larrick (Bru) 2006
Dontaie Anthony (M) 2005
Ben Falkenberg (W) 2004
Ben Falkenberg (W) 2003
Doug Bell (W) 2002
Dave Riter (Bru) 2001
Tony Stockman (M) 2000
Travis Schwab (M) 1999
Brad Reusch (H) 1998
Chris Pap (M) 1997
Ryan McMaster (W) 1996
Adrian Stockman (M) 1995
Aaron Link (W) 1994
Rob Wininger (H) 1993
Ryan Sooy (M) 1992
Pat Pearson (W) 1991
Jeff Howard (W) 1990
John Ledbetter (Bru) 1989
P.J. Bertemes (C) 1988
Jeff Kissinger (W) 1987
Gary Boyes (W) 1986
Scott DeMarco (Buc) 1985
Jim Ploucha (C) 1984
Jay Peters (M) 1983
Pat Ploucha (C) 1982
Garth Wurstle (Buc) 1981
Art Mankin (Bru) 1980
Jody Peters (M) 1979
Craig McDuffee (H) 1978

“We have a really close relationship,” Teske said. “We only had a couple seniors this season and a lot of juniors and sophomores, but we hung out with the guys every day. They were a lot of fun to be around, and we grew together as a team a lot.

“It’s the relationships we make with each other. Coach Hass is always telling us, ‘Life’s about relationships.’ That shows on the court and in the community as well.”

Medina also had a memorable season, winning 19 games for the second time in three years, placing second to Brunswick in the Greater Cleveland Conference and becoming the first county team to reach three straight district title games.

Teske was the focal point, averaging 16.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.6 blocks, but the four-year letterwinner’s impact went far beyond statistics. His reputation earned through a scintillating second half of the 2014-15 season drastically changed opposing game plans.

Teske’s ability to block/alter shots without fouling — he very rarely had to sit because of foul trouble — took away any direct attack of the basket within 15 feet, forcing a lot of teams outside their comfort zones.

Teske’s inside scoring forced teams to double team constantly, but his mid-range jumpers and 3-pointers a la Zydrunas Ilgauskas also kept them from packing the paint.

Maybe above all, though, was that Teske’s vision may have been the best in the country — yes, country — among players taller than 6-10. Attempting full-court pressure on Medina proved futile, as guards would lob to Teske at center court and he’d find the open man every time.

Doubling in the half court often proved fatal, too, as Teske, who scored 1,130 points in a county-record 97 games, was masterful recognizing the double team and finding Sartain for open 3-pointers or a cutting Schaefer for layups.

“You think about it, and he’s 7-foot-1 and sometimes played point guard for us, pushing the ball up the floor,” Hassinger said. “He would beat pressure, drive and kick for a kid to hit a three. He dominated the game defensively, changed kids’ shots and changed how people had to play offensively.”

Teske was a Mr. Basketball finalist — the honor went to future Michigan teammate Xavier Simpson of Lima — first-team All-Ohioan and the Greater Cleveland Conference Player of the Year. Teske also joined soon-to-be Medina County Sports Hall of Famer Ben Falkenberg of Wadsworth (2003-04) as the only two-time Gazette MVPs and scored four points and blocked five shots in the prestigious Ohio-Kentucky All-Star Game over the weekend.

Teske will take his intelligent, versatile game to Ann Arbor, where he will play for his childhood favorite team. The Wolverines envision Teske as a face-up post similar to former Michigan standout Mitch McGary (6-10) and West Virginia cult hero Kevin Pittsnogle (6-11).

Though Teske won’t be playfully scaring Hassinger in the hallways come June, Hassinger will always remember how much impact Teske left on the community.

Star players come and go, but being a good role model comes first.

“He’s a program-changer from multiple angles because ultimately we want to win games, but we want our kids to represent our school well,” Hassinger said. “He’s the pinnacle of that. He’s a great kid, he’s a Christian kid, he doesn’t have a foul mouth, he leads by example, he’s an example to little kids, he takes time to shake hands with people when people come in to see the ‘celebrity’ Jon Teske and looks him in the eye and introduces himself like they’ve never heard of him before.

“We’ve had a lot of really nice kids in our program throughout the years all the way back to (coaches) Keith Sooy and Al Darner, but to get a kid who affects your community as much as he has, that’s going to be tough to replace.”


High school baseball: Pluta has big day on mound, at plate as Black River beats Brookside

$
0
0

SULLIVAN TWP. — For being relatively new to pitching, Seth Pluta is doing all right.

Seth Pluta

Seth Pluta

The ace was unhittable for long stretches, got out of a couple jams and, for good measure, belted a two-run home run Wednesday as the Black River baseball team pulled off a thrilling 4-3 win over Brookside.

While Travis Sexton scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch with two outs in the sixth inning of the Patriot Athletic Conference Stars Division game, everyone was talking about Pluta (1-0, 2.10 ERA).

“Pitching, it’s not my main thing. It’s a good addition for me,” said Pluta, who first took to the mound only 4-5 years ago. “It came late in my baseball career to me, so it’s different — definitely different.

“I’m not as experienced as the other guys. I’m just starting to get into striking out people multiple times, but it’s been a great experience.”

Pluta went the distance, allowing five hits and two walks while striking out 12 on 109 pitches. The junior, who has 16 punchouts in 10 innings on the young season, was perfect through three innings with a fastball-curveball-changeup combination and left the go-ahead run on second base in the critical sixth.

Pluta also unloaded on a 3-2 fastball from Cardinals southpaw Dudley Taw (0-1, 4.94 ERA) that put the Pirates (2-0, 1-0) ahead 3-0 in the bottom of the third.

“What more can you say about Seth Pluta?” first-year coach Jake Wright said. “He goes the distance for us, he hits a huge home run for us. I mean, there’s not a whole lot more you can say about that kid.”

Though Pluta had a big two-way performance, Brookside (1-2, 1-2), which upset two-time defending PAC Stars Division champion Keystone 24 hours earlier, fought back. A Taw RBI double and an RBI single by Travis Fortney (2-for-3, 2 RBIs) made the score 3-2, while another Fortney RBI single tied the game in the sixth.

Pluta didn’t immediately escape the latter trouble, walking Stephen Williams on four pitches, but he induced a grounder to shortstop Brandon Wine to keep the score knotted.

That set the stage for the bottom half of the inning, as Sexton and Jacob Campbell walked and pinch-hitter Jonathon Workman was hit by a pitch. The Cardinals then brought in hard-throwing reliever Tim Ackerman, who bounced an 0-2 pitch in the dirt.

The ball went to the screen and scrambling catcher Devin Houdeshell fired to Ackerman at home plate, but Sexton slid beneath a slap tag on a play that would have gone to instant replay in an MLB game.

“I saw the passed ball, I saw it hit the fence and didn’t think twice and went,” Sexton said. “I just made sure I was down, slid and got under the ball.”

Pluta went 1-2-3 in the seventh to finish a well-earned and well-played victory by Black River, which did not commit an error.

“I’ve been saying it,” Wright said. “We fought until the last out.”

Black River 4, Brookside 3
BROOKSIDE 000 201 0 — 3 5 0
BLACK RIVER 012 001 x — 4 3 0
WP — Seth Pluta (1-0) 7 innings, 3 earned runs, 2 walks, hit by pitch, 12 strikeouts. LP — Dudley Taw (0-1) 5⅔innings, 4 earned runs, 6 walks, 2 hit by pitches, 8 strikeouts. Brookside (1-2, 1-2) — Taw double, 2 runs; Travis Fortner 2 singles, 2 RBIs. Black River (2-0, 1-0) — Pluta home run, 2 RBIs.


High school baseball: Wadsworth makes statement, manhandled state-ranked Twinsburg

$
0
0

WADSWORTH — The runaway freight train known as the Wadsworth baseball team continued to rumble down the tracks.

Taking most by surprise — except themselves, of course — the Grizzlies demolished state-ranked Twinsburg 13-3 Thursday in a key early-season Suburban League National Division game that only took five innings.

Wadsworth catcher Craig Palidar tags out Twinsburg's Brandon Vinas at home plate in the fourth inning. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Wadsworth catcher Craig Palidar tags out Twinsburg’s Brandon Vinas at home plate in the fourth inning. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Wadsworth (7-0-1, 5-0) extended its SL winning streak to 26 games. It also stretched unbeaten streaks for regular-season (44) and home games (36) after unloading for 13 hits against the Tigers (6-1, 3-1), who are 16th in the Prep Baseball Report Division I state poll.

“This gives us more motivation to keep winning,” All-Gazette catcher Craig Palidar said. “This was two state-ranked teams going at it (Wadsworth is 12th). It felt really good to get a big win like that.”

The Grizzlies never trailed after an RBI groundout by Josh Hagans plated starting pitcher Chris Byers (2-0) for a 2-1 lead in the first. Wadsworth exploded for six runs in the fourth to take a 9-2 advantage and ended the game early with four runs with two outs in the fifth.

The veterans led the way, as top-of-the-lineup hitters Cameron Deemer (2-for-3, 2 RBIs, 2 runs), A.J. Robinson (1-for-3, 2 runs), Palidar (3-for-3, 4 RBIs, 3 runs) and Byers (2-for-3, 3 RBIs) combined to go 8-for-12 with 10 RBIs, seven runs and two stolen bases.

They were hardly the only standouts, as No. 7 hitter Luke Clinton was 3-for-3 with two runs, Ross Thompson added a sacrifice bunt, single, run and a highlight-reel diving grab at second base and No. 9 hitters Steven Ahern and Nick Landolph each scored.

Despite losing six starters from the 2015 lineup — Byers was a part-time slugger last year — the Grizzlies have scored 70 runs in eight games. They also have scored a run in 65 consecutive games.

Wadsworth's Chris Byers hits an RBI single off Twinsburg's Robert Lipnos during the first inning. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Wadsworth’s Chris Byers hits an RBI single off Twinsburg’s Robert Lipnos during the first inning. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

“I’m proud we came out and hit the baseball,” coach Greg Pickard said. “We made some nice plays in the field, got the bunts down when we needed to and (Byers) battled like he always does. That was good. That was a good win for us.”

Byers had a very Byers-like performance. The 6-foot-1, 237-pound right-hander pounded the lower-outside part of the strike zone, allowing two earned runs, walking none and striking out seven.

Byers, who threw 48 strikes on 66 pitches, had issues with Twinsburg standout shortstop Christian Tejada (3-for-3, 3 runs) and also allowed doubles to Ryan Christy, DeVonte Washington and Brandon Vinas, but he made big pitches in big situations.

With Wadsworth leading 3-2 in the fourth, Vinas led off with his double and moved to third on a wild pitch. A groundout kept Vinas at third and Byers then induced Chad Szydlowski into a deep grounder to shortstop Deemer, who fired home to Palidar for a bang-bang call that went the Grizzlies’ way.

Wadsworth then had its breakout inning and the outcome was never in doubt.

“We came out with a lot of energy today,” Byers said. “We knew it was a big game. We knew Twinsburg coming into the game was undefeated in the league, too, and we needed to play our best ball to beat them.”

Wadsworth 13, Twinsburg 3 (5 inn.)
TWINSBURG 101 01 — 3 6 3
WADSWORTH 210 64 — 13 13 1
Two outs when mercy run scored. WP — Chris Byers (2-0) 5 innings, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, 7 strikeouts. LP — Robert Lipnos (1-1) 4 innings, 9 runs, 6 earned, 10 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts. Twinsburg (6-1, 3-1) — Christian Tejada 2 singles, triple, 3 runs; Ryan Christy double; DeVonte Washington double; Brandon Vinas double. Wadsworth (7-0-1, 5-0) — Cameron Deemer 2 singles, 2 RBIs, 2 runs; A.J. Robinson single, 2 runs; Craig Palidar 2 singles, double, 4 RBIs, 3 runs, Byers 2 singles, 2 RBIs; Luke Clinton 3 singles, 2 runs.


Bees waste great effort by Curtis

$
0
0

Albert Grindle

The Gazette

STRONGSVILLE — The margin of error continues to be slim in the Greater Cleveland Conference.

Ian Hennessey was masterful in throwing a 96-pitch two-hitter Friday as the Strongsville baseball team edged Medina 1-0 on an unearned run, making Bees ace John Curtis (1-2) a hard-luck loser despite allowing only four hits in a complete game.

There is no rest for the weary, either, as Medina (7-4, 3-1) hosts traditional Northeast Ohio powers Willoughby South and St. Edward in a home non-league doubleheader today.

“We better gear up for (today). We’ve got two more,” Bees coach Nick Kaplack said. “Every game we play is top heavyweight fighters.”

Medina fell out of first place in the GCC and a half-game behind Solon (6-0, 3-0) with the loss to the Mustangs (4-3, 2-2). The Bees’ only hits against Hennessey (3-0) were an infield single by Jordan Fultz and a shot up the middle by Trace Peterson.

Hennessey had a lot to do with the offensive struggles. The right-hander didn’t throw smoke but pounded the outside corner and was particularly effective using a two-seam fastball that tailed back over the black.

While Medina only struck out three times, Hennessey kept batters off-balance, induced 12 ground ball outs and faced the minimum after allowing the leadoff single to Peterson in the third inning.

The Bees also left runners in scoring position in the second and third and had a runner thrown out at second base with no outs in the seventh.

“We’ve got to hit better,” said Kaplack, whose team was shut out for the second time in three games. “We have to work on our pitch selection. We’re going to do that (today), and we’ve got two games to force it. That’s what we’re going to do. You’ve got to work the counts a little better.”

The right-handed Curtis did all he could to keep Medina in the game.

The 6-foot-4, 200-pound junior’s approach contrasted Hennessey, as he consistently challenged batters inside. Curtis also made huge pitches in huge spots, getting a double-play ball with runners on first and second in the second inning and stranding a runner on second base in the third.

The only run came in the fourth, as first baseman Ryan Robertson (2-for-2) smacked a two-out double to left. Catcher Noah Trizzino swung at the next pitch, but the routine fly ball to right field was dropped and Robertson scored.

Curtis then was perfect over the next 2⅓ innings, moving the Bees’ team ERA below 1.00 for the season.

“He’s just tough,” Kaplack said of Curtis. “John has a winner’s mentality. You’ll see when he’s in tough situations, he’ll take a walk, he’ll clear his head and throw magnificent pitches.

“By the way, it should be 0-0 right now and this game could have gone 15 innings.”

Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.

Strongsville 1, Medina 0

MEDINA                                  000 000 0 —  0  2  2

STRONGSVILLE                   000 100 x —  1  4  1

WP — Ian Hennessey (3-0) 7 innings, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts. LP — John Curtis (1-2) 6 innings, 0 earned runs, walk, 3 strikeouts. Medina (7-4, 3-1). Strongsville (4-3, 2-2) — Ryan Robertson single, double.



High school baseball: Drubbing by Strongsville shows Brunswick has much to work on

$
0
0

BRUNSWICK — The soul-searching is under way.

The Brunswick baseball team has played some of Ohio’s best already this season, but the results have shown there is plenty of catching up to do.

Brunswick catcher Justin MacLellan is unable to tag out Strongsvilles Jon Campo as he scores on a passed ball during the inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Brunswick catcher Justin MacLellan is unable to tag out Strongsville’s Jon Campo as he scores on a passed ball during the inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

That held true again Monday, as Strongsville rolled to a 15-1 five-inning victory in a Greater Cleveland Conference rivalry game that traditionally is a war.

“I said nothing (to the players afterward),” Brunswick coach Tim Spatz said. “I mean, it’s 15-1. It should be rivalry game, you’ve got college coaches in the crowd and that’s what happens.”

Much to Spatz’s disappointment, the Blue Devils (3-5, 2-2) have been predictable. They have outscored Valley Forge, Elyria and Shaker Heights 29-4 in three victories but have been dominated 62-7 in losses.

All five defeats have ended via the mercy rule, though it must be noted the Prep Baseball Report Division I state poll lists Westerville Central (No. 1, doubleheader), Mason (No. 6), Solon (No. 15) and Strongsville (No. 17) high in its rankings.

Brunswick has lost its last three games 15-4, 10-0 and 15-1, marking the first time it has allowed 10 or more runs in three straight since 2011.

“That’s been the tale all year,” Spatz said. “Every time we play a good team, that’s happened.”

Brunswick's Jake Williams is unable to come with with a throw as Strongsville's Sami Mehmed steals second base safely in the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Brunswick’s Jake Williams is unable to come with with a throw as Strongsville’s Sami Mehmed steals second base safely in the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Though the Mustangs (6-4, 3-2) clearly were the better team Monday, the game could have been drastically different if Brunswick didn’t struggle defensively early on.

Baldwin Wallace recruit Josh Herron (1-3, 4.88 ERA) got the start and was plagued by two errors, a wild pitch and passed ball that allowed two unearned runs to score. Down 3-0 in the second, the Blue Devils committed a leadoff error that led to two more unearned runs and a 6-0 hole.

Herron exited after three innings trailing 7-0, but only two runs were earned. Strongsville kept slugging, with Sami Mehmed (3-for-3, 2 RBIs, 3 runs) and Nico Ramicone (2-for-4, 4 RBIs) doing the most damage.

The only highlight for the Blue Devils was a beautiful diving catch by Cameron Sasala in the fourth inning. The center fielder threw to second for an inning-ending double play to keep the deficit at 12-1.

Shortstop Jake Williams led the offense with two singles off sophomore starter Mitch Midea, but the rest of the team was 1-for-17. The lone run came via Dominic Rivellino, who reached on an error in the third and came around on two more errors.

“Right now, they’re 14 runs better than we are,” said Spatz, whose team will travel to Strongsville today. “In the next 24 hours, we’ve got to figure out how to close that gap.”

Strongsville 15, Brunswick 1 (5 inn.)
STRONGSVILLE 331 53 — 15 11 4
BRUNSWICK 001 00 — 1 3 4
WP — Mitch Midea 5 innings, 0 earned runs, walk, 7 strikeouts. LP — Josh Herron (1-3) 3 innings, 7 runs, 2 earned, 6 hits, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts. Strongsville (6-4, 3-2) — Sami Mehmed 3 singles, 2 RBIs, 3 runs; Kyler Damm single, 2 runs; Nico Ramicone single, double, 4 RBIs; Jon Campo single, 2 RBIs, 2 runs; Alex Gray single, 2 runs. Brunswick (3-5, 2-2) — Jake Williams 2 single


High school baseball: Brunswick beats Medina to spoil Bees’ GCC title hopes

$
0
0

MEDINA — Playing spoiler can be pretty sweet.

Brunswick's Jake Williams looks to the umpire after tagging out Medina's Collin Winters attempting to steal second base during the fourth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Brunswick’s Jake Williams looks to the umpire after tagging out Medina’s Collin Winters attempting to steal second base during the fourth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

The Brunswick baseball team delivered a crushing blow to Medina’s Greater Cleveland Conference championship hopes Monday, scoring two unearned runs in the top of the seventh inning and holding on for dear life to win 8-7.

The Blue Devils (6-7, 4-4) ended the wild game that lasted 2 hours, 27 minutes on a textbook 6-4-3 double play with the tying run on third base.

“It’s always a good game against Medina,” shortstop Jake Williams said. “We love playing against them, we love competing with them and we like to beat them, too.”

Momentum swings were frequent, as Brunswick led 1-0, 2-1, 5-4 and 8-6 and the Bees (13-7, 6-3) 4-2 and 6-5. Given new life following a two-out error in the seventh, the Blue Devils went ahead for good when Williams (double, 2 runs) scored on a wild pitch, but Jordan Sadler’s following RBI single was vital.

That was because Medina made a spirited rally against closer Jake Hovanec, using a Williams error and Austin Provost double to put runners on second and third with no outs. Following a strikeout, Trace Peterson (home run, 2 runs) slid under a tag at home on a fielder’s choice to make the score 8-7.

Undeterred, Hovanec induced a sharp grounder to short, where Williams fielded cleanly and initiated the game-ending double play.

A rowdy celebration near first followed.

Brunswick's Justin MacLellan gets back to first base as the ball goes over the head of Medina first baseman Spencer Aukerman during the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Brunswick’s Justin MacLellan gets back to first base as the ball goes over the head of Medina first baseman Spencer Aukerman during the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

“I made an error late in the game, so I really needed to pick myself up there,” Williams said. “I’m glad I got a ground ball to redeem myself, and I’m excited we won the ballgame.”

Potential game-changing sequences were answered throughout, as Brunswick went up 2-1 in the second inning but Collin Winters cranked a two-run home run and Chris Fryer added a sacrifice fly to put Medina ahead 4-2.

The Blue Devils responded in the fourth, scoring three runs on a passed ball, wild pitch and error. The 5-4 lead didn’t last long, as Medina got an RBI double from Fryer and an RBI bloop single from Spencer Aukerman in the bottom half.

Following its theme of multiple heroes, however, Brunswick tied the game at 6 in the sixth on a towering solo home run by pinch-hitter Frank Ciacchi, who had 16 career at-bats coming in.

“It was a fun game,” Ciacchi said. “I thought we played well. It’s just good to beat a rival, you know?

“(After the) first two pitches, it was 2-0, and (Fryer) gave me a little fastball and I just hit it.”

After committing five errors, having two runners caught stealing and stranding seven, Medina must win today at Brunswick before the inaugural conference tournament. The Bees trail Solon (8-1 in GCC) and Strongsville (7-2) but would be back in business with a win and Solon loss to Mentor (5-4).

“It just sucks,” Winters said. “I wish we could have played better, but we didn’t. We’ve just got to make plays. We didn’t make plays, and that cost us.”

Brunswick 8, Medina 7
BRUNSWICK 011 031 2 — 8 6 2
MEDINA 013 020 1 — 7 9 5
WP — Jake Presage (2-2) 1⅓innings, 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts. LP — Chris Fryer (1-1) 2⅓innings, 3 runs, 1 earned, 2 hits, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts. Save — Jake Hovanec (1) 1 inning, 1 run, 0 earned, hit, 0 walks, strikeout. Brunswick (6-7, 4-4) — Cameron Sasala double; Jake Williams double, 2 runs; Frank Ciacchi solo home run. Medina (13-7, 6-3) — Cade Pipoly 3 singles; Collin Winters two-run home run; Trace Peterson solo home run; Austin Provost double; Chris Fryer double, 2 RBIs.


High school baseball: Munoz’s mighty swing helps Medina over Brunswick

$
0
0

BRUNSWICK — Dillon Munoz was supposed to ride the pine. Then he was supposed to bunt.

Neither happened.

Munoz instead unleashed the swing of his life Tuesday, crushing a two-run, opposite-field home run in the top of the seventh inning to help Medina’s baseball team stun rival Brunswick 3-1.

The senior outfielder began the Greater Cleveland Conference game on the bench. He ended it on the shoulders of teammates Alex Whittaker and Robbie Hansen after his holy-cow moment gave Spencer Aukerman (5-1, 1.32 ERA) his Medina County-leading fifth win of the season.

“I can’t even wrap my head around it right now,” Munoz said. “I’m still a little shocked.”

With the Bees (14-7, 7-3) trailing the Blue Devils (6-8, 4-5), No. 9 hitter John Curtis walked to lead off the seventh. Bryce Fink pinch-ran and advanced to second on an error.

Munoz got multiple sacrifice bunt calls from coach Nick Kaplack — Medina announces a combination of colors and numbers instead of using traditional signs — but fouled off his lone stab and looked at four other offerings from left-hander Dominic Rivellino (2-2, 1.94 ERA), whose pitch count had surpassed 100.

Rivellino then delivered a 3-2 fastball, and Munoz used every muscle in his 5-foot-9, 170-pound body to power a fly ball to right-center field. The shot bounced off the scoreboard — ironically two feet below where Medina’s run total read “0” — and sent his teammates into hysteria.

Chris Fryer added an RBI single off reliever Jake Hovanec, but Munoz got the hero treatment afterward.

“I just wanted to go up there and swing away and hope for the best,” Munoz said. “I knew it was a hard shot, and at first I didn’t think it was over (the fence) because I rounded first and saw the ball still in play.”

Adding to the crazy story was that Munoz trotted out to play left field after a half-inning. The situation was unique, as Kaplack attempted to wave a runner home on a single to right by Trace Peterson (2-for-4), but that player ignored Kaplack and was subsequently benched.

All Munoz did was single, walk and, of course, blast the game-winning home run.

“Opportunities, you have to jump on those,” Munoz said. “I’m just thankful.”

Munoz salvaged an otherwise forgettable game of situational hitting for Medina, which left the bases loaded twice and grounded into two 4-6-3 double plays over the first four innings. The Bees then had a runner picked off and stranded two in the fifth.

Aukerman was the reason why they were still in the game.

The right-hander with a sweeping curveball was on point throughout the nippy 50-degree afternoon, allowing six hits and striking out a career-high 12. The Baldwin Wallace recruit went down 1-0 on an RBI single by Jake Williams but stranded two runners in the fifth and got back-to-back strikeouts with a runner in scoring position in the sixth.

Aukerman struck out the final two batters to finish the emotional game in style.

“I just tried to focus and keep the team in the game,” he said. “I knew we would come back.”

Medina kept alive its slim GCC title hopes heading into the conference tournament, which opens Saturday in Euclid. The Bees must win the event and hope Solon (12-2, 9-1), at minimum, loses the third-place game.

Making the tourney more interesting, the teams will meet in the semis Wednesday if Medina beats Shaker Heights (4-12, 3-9) and the Comets eliminate last-place Euclid in the opening round.

This scenario was made possible by Munoz, an unlikely hero if there ever was one.

“Awesome,” Aukerman said. “When Dillon hit that, we all went crazy.”

Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.

Medina 3, Brunswick 1
MEDINA 000 000 3 — 3 11 1
BRUNSWICK 001 000 0 — 1 6 2
WP — Spencer Aukerman (5-1) 7 innings, earned run, walk, hit by pitch, 12 strikeouts. LP — Dominic Rivellino (2-2) 6-plus innings, 3 runs, 3 earned, 9 hits, 3 walks, strikeout. Medina (14-7, 7-3) — Cade Pipoly double; Dillon Munoz single, home run, 2 RBIs; Trace Peterson 2 singles; Justin Alfano 2 singles. Brunswick (6-8, 4-5) — Mike Williams double.


High school baseball: Wadsworth protects ‘the Swamp’ with Suburban League win over Hudson

$
0
0

WADSWORTH — Protect “The Swamp,” baby.

Wadsworth's Cameron Deemer pitches during the sixth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Wadsworth’s Cameron Deemer pitches during the sixth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

The timing couldn’t have been better for the Wadsworth baseball team, which believed it was facing a virtual must-win situation Wednesday against Hudson. There was no way the Grizzlies were going to lose on the 3-year-old home field they call “The Swamp” — a nickname that stuck early on because of the facility’s reputation for draining poorly.

Cameron Deemer tossed a three-hitter and Chris Byers demolished a back-breaking grand slam in the fourth inning, leading Wadsworth to a nearly flawless 7-0 victory.

“The Swamp” remains unconquered.

The Grizzlies (14-4-1, 10-2) moved into sole possession of first place in the Suburban League National Division with the win over the Explorers (11-6, 7-5) coupled with Twinsburg (14-4, 8-3) losing to Nordonia (10-7, 7-4) for the second straight day.

Wadsworth also extended its all-time record at its home field to 37-0-1 — the mark does not include the Grizzlies beating North Royalton at A.C. Field on April 12 — and scored a run for the 76th straight game overall.

The postgame huddle was broken with “1, 2, 3 … P-T-S,” which stands for “Protect The Swamp.”

“Just like in past years, we come out and we played fired up,” Deemer said. “We have a record to defend, and we come out here and play hard.”

Coach Greg Pickard’s team entered play with a two-game losing streak, but the Grizzlies led 1-0 when A.J. Robinson (2-for-4,
2 runs) came home on an outfield error in the first inning. The score remained unchanged until the fourth.

That’s when Wadsworth exploded, as Luke Clinton smacked a line-drive solo home run, Jacob Kries doubled and Deemer and Robinson singled to chase starter Doug Erb (1-3). Side-arming reliever Sam Winston then walked Craig Palidar to load the bases and bring up Byers.

Byers wasted little time crushing the hit of his life, depositing a 1-0 fastball high into the stratosphere for a no-doubt grand slam that gave Wadsworth a 7-0 lead.

Wadsworth's Chris Byers celebrates after hitting a grand slam off Hudson relief pitcher Sam Winston during the fifth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Wadsworth’s Chris Byers celebrates after hitting a grand slam off Hudson relief pitcher Sam Winston during the fifth inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

“I went up and there was a submariner coming in, so I wasn’t sure what to think,” Byers said. “I knew I needed to keep back my weight and wait for a pitch to drive. It was a fastball right down the middle. Immediately (after swinging), I thought, ‘That felt good.”’

With the way Deemer (4-1, 1.87 ERA) was pitching, the game was all but over.

The Heidelberg recruit was making his first start since getting knocked around by Twinsburg on April 18. Deemer zeroed in after walking the first two batters, facing the minimum over a 13-batter stretch with help from two would-be base stealers getting gunned down at second by catcher Palidar.

Deemer also struck out the side in the fourth and helped his cause with an RBI single. The right-hander featuring a changeup and hard-biting curveball walked two, hit two batters and struck out nine to improve to 12-3 with a 2.15 ERA in his three-year career.

“My fastball was working really well,” he said. “I felt electric today.”

The Grizzlies now have a margin for error in the SL National race, as they only need one win to clinch a share of their third straight league championship. A home-and-home against Nordonia is all that separates Wadsworth from history.

If that history is any indicator, the Knights better get the Grizzlies on Tuesday, because Wednesday the teams will play at “The Swamp.”

“Honestly, it was a team effort,” Deemer said. “Everyone was chipping in a little bit.”

Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.

Wadsworth 7, Hudson 0
HUDSON 000 000 0 — 0 3 1
WADSWORTH 100 600 x — 7 9 0
WP — Cameron Deemer (4-1) 7 innings, 2 walks, 2 hit by pitches, 9 strikeouts. LP — Doug Erb (1-3) 3⅓innings, 5 runs, 4 earned, 8 hits, walk, strikeout. Hudson (11-6, 7-5). Wadsworth (14-4-1, 10-2) — A.J. Robinson 2 singles, 2 runs; Chris Byers grad slam; Luke Clinton solo home run; Ross Thompson double.


High school baseball: Loss eliminates Medina from GCC contention; focus shifts to postseason

$
0
0

EUCLID — District championship or bust is the new focus for the Medina baseball team.

After maintaining a mathematical chance to win the overall Greater Cleveland Conference title over the prior five days, the Bees’ spirited run came to an end Thursday in a 5-1 loss to Mentor in the GCC Tournament final.

The loss by Medina (16-9) clinched the outright crown for Solon (15-3) before the Comets stepped onto Stanic Field later that evening to play the third-place game against Strongsville.

“Obviously, we’re really upset since this was a team we totally could have beaten,” Bees third baseman/pitcher Chris Fryer said. “We just didn’t come out to play, I guess. That’s what bites us in the butt.”

Not that it mattered after 7 p.m., but the inaugural GCC title formula caused a lot of confusion among the Bees because the league did not put anything in writing.

The first proposal had the GCC Tournament winner taking the trophy, no questions asked. Then the regular season and tournament were supposed to be weighted equally, but that was scratched in favor of each victory — regular season or tournament — counting as two points.

Ultimately, a mixture was used. Each regular-season win was worth two points, and a 10-8-7-6-5-4-3-1 point system accompanied the tournament placements.

As a result, Solon led Medina 20-16 entering Thursday due to a two-win lead in the regular season. The Bees needed to win the tournament for 10 points, while the Comets needed to lose to Strongsville in the third-place game for six points, which would have resulted in a co-title.

Mentor’s Nick Smith made that mess irrelevant by throwing a four-hitter against Medina.

The Bees trailed 3-0 before stepping into the batter’s box, as starter John Curtis walked in a run prior to recording an out. Reliever John Kalucis allowed two inherited runners to score, while Matt Eiswerth’s RBI triple made the score 4-0 in the second.

“(The first inning) definitely put us back and put us down and in doubts, but that’s just the problem,” Fryer said. “We need to come back and know we can come back and win this game.”

Medina left runners in scoring position in the first two innings before finally getting on the board when Fryer’s up-the-middle single scored Collin Winters, but the Cardinals (10-7) added an unearned run and the Bees never seriously threatened again.

Winters and Fryer combined for all four hits. The rest of the team was 0-for-19, though Trace Peterson walked and was hit by a pitch.

Kalucis and Fryer were solid in relief to give Medina a puncher’s chance. Kalucis was charged with one run over three innings, while Fryer went the final four innings and gave up an unearned run.

Mentor 5, Medina 1
MENTOR 310 100 0 — 5 9 1
MEDINA 001 000 0 — 1 4 2
WP — Nick Smith 7 innings, earned run, 4 walks, hit by pitch, 6 strikeouts. LP — John Curtis (1-4) 0 innings, 3 runs, 3 earned, hit, 2 walks, hit by pitch, 0 strikeouts. Mentor (10-7) — Ricky Valeri 2 singles, 2 runs; Matt Eiswerth single, triple, 2 RBIs; Matt Detering 2 singles. Medina (16-9) — Collin Winters 2 singles; Chris Fryer single, double.


High school basketball: Buckeye assistant Banks named new Cloverleaf boys coach

$
0
0

WESTFIELD TWP. — Cloverleaf athletic director Craig Walkup got his man.

Buckeye assistant, Wadsworth resident and Highland graduate Jack Banks has been approved as the new boys basketball coach at Cloverleaf, emerging from a field of approximately 15 candidates.

The 50-year-old replaces Marty Ryan, who resigned after compiling a 14-78 record over four seasons.

“I wasn’t planning on leaving Buckeye at all,” Banks said. “I could have been very happy and stayed there the next 10 years. I think they can win 15-16 games under Tom (Harrington) for the next 10 years. They can be that good.

“(Walkup) called me up and said, ‘Hey, let’s talk Cloverleaf basketball.’ He told me basically what’s wrong with them, and I’ve coached against them over the course of the last five years. Once Walkup got me there, he asked, ‘What would it take for you to stay?”’

That involved bringing along longtime coaching buddies Tim Flath and Dale Tittle as assistants. Former Highland boys coach Michael Murphy also will volunteer.

Banks is a relative newcomer to the coaching scene but is versatile, having coached at essentially every grade level in the Wadsworth girls youth system. Including his daughters, McKenna and Peyton, Banks has coached six players who went on to be members of state championship teams in high school.

Winning has followed Banks wherever his coaching travels have taken him. He latched on as Murphy’s lead assistant for the Highland boys from 2012-15 and joined Harrington at Buckeye last season. Banks’ record as a boys varsity assistant is 64-31.

“I’ve always wanted to be a head coach,” said Banks, who averaged a team-leading 15.3 points while leading Highland to its first winning season in 12 years as a senior in 1984-85. “To be a coach, you have to always have aspirations, and you always want to see how you can do it yourself.”

Banks, who works as a construction manager in Medina, already has re-worked his schedule so he only has to miss two Wadsworth girls games in the upcoming season. He and Murphy also pulled this off when they were at Highland.

“My daughters probably play better without me always being around,” he joked.

The challenge facing Banks at Cloverleaf is well-documented.

The Colts have had 28 straight losing seasons, burning through 11 coaches and sporting a 119-478 record (.199). Last winter, they were 2-21 and allowed 72.2 points per game — the second-highest total in school history (78.3, 1995-96).

Starters Tyler Kapeluck (8.2 ppg), Travis Hissom (4.0) and Ryan Gutschow (3.5) are slated to return, while the eighth-grade class had a winning record last season.

“I love the game and I love the environment,” said Banks, who added he will be heavily involved with the youth program and will have a defense-first philosophy. “Coaching for me doesn’t matter if it’s a high school level or a lower level because I have a lot of passion in my belly.

“This job is going to take time. You know it and I know it, but based on what I’ve seen at the youth level and junior high level, that’s one of the reasons I took the job.”

Another reason was the Colts’ move to the Portage Trail Conference Metro Division this school year, making a potential building process more sustainable than if they had remained in the Suburban League, where they had a 42-210 record.

“The way we sit in the league, there’s some winnable games, but the biggest thing now is it‘s not about wins and losses,” Banks said. “It’s about changing the culture, changing the climate, addressing the youth (level). In my meeting with parents (Monday), I said, ‘It’s all on me. I’m going to be very, very hands on.’

“The other thing is how many coaching jobs are there in the state of Ohio? I got one of them.”


High school baseball: Padua shoots gaps in win over Buckeye

$
0
0

PARMA — The Padua baseball team went shopping at The Gap.

With five of their eight hits going for extra bases Monday, the Bruins’ investment in power paid off with a comfortable 5-1 victory over Buckeye in a Cuyahoga Community College Division II Sectional final.

Buckeye right fielder Pat Caniglia cant make a diving catch off a hit by Padua's David Miller during the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Buckeye right fielder Pat Caniglia cant make a diving catch off a hit by Padua’s David Miller during the second inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Ranked 10th in the Prep Baseball Report D-II state poll, top-seeded Padua (19-5) advanced to face fourth-seeded Firelands on Thursday. Though the ninth-seeded Bucks (12-12-1) were eliminated from the postseason, they can clinch a share of the Patriot Athletic Conference Stars Division title with a win at Brooklyn (6-16, 2-12) on Wednesday.

That will have to be the consolation prize after the Bruins scored five unanswered runs and got a combined one-hitter from Marc Ochoa, Kyle Wisniewski and Matt Jackman.

“They’re a good hitting team,” Buckeye coach Steve Wright said. “No doubt.”

Wright started curveball specialist Evan Walker (2-3) over Mount Union recruit Liam Murray, who was four days removed from no-hitting Cloverleaf. Walker was solid the first time through the lineup, but Padua came alive after Buckeye took a 1-0 lead on two second-inning errors.

The Bruins tied the score in the third with a walk, sacrifice bunt, wild pitch and sacrifice fly, ending Buckeye’s streak without allowing a run at 48⅓ innings.

The game then unraveled for the Bucks in the fourth, as a double, single and double resulted in a 3-1 Bruins lead. Kevin Houdek then ended Walker’s afternoon with an RBI double down the left-field line.

Relievers Garett Priestley and Pat Caniglia kept the deficit manageable by allowing one run over the next 2⅓ innings — following the game-long theme, that run came on a triple — but comebacks against Padua, which swept area superpower Walsh Jesuit in North Coast League Blue Division play, have been rare this season.

“Not being able to hit the ball, a couple mistakes we made and couple hits they got were just enough for them to get us,” Wright said. “The good teams will take advantage of mistakes, and that’s basically what they did.”

Buckeye struggled offensively despite Ochoa’s struggles with the strike zone.

Bluffton commit Nathanael Hendrix and Murray led off the second inning with walks. Two batters later, a botched force play at second base had the bags juiced.

A short flyout wasn’t enough to potentially score Hendrix, but Buckeye got on the board soon thereafter when a grounder scooted by the third baseman. Murray tried to catch the defense napping after Hendrix scored but was gunned down at the plate to end the inning.

The Bucks didn’t get a runner past first base the rest of the game and were in danger of being no-hit with the long-armed Wisniewski (4 innings, 0 runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts), who entered in the third, on his game. Hiram recruit Andrew Maxwell finally broke up the no-no when center fielder Alex Ludwick narrowly missed a diving catch to begin the fifth inning.

“I told the guys this is a very, very good team,” Wright said. “We held them to a 5-1 game and very well could have been a lot closer than that had we not made the mistakes. I was proud of them, for sure.”



High school softball: Cloverleaf beats Holy Name in barnburner to advance to district finals

$
0
0

LAGRANGE — Coach John Carmigiano was so fidgety during his postgame interview one may have deduced he drank three Red Bulls.

Cloverleaf second baseman Maddie Huff makes a sliding grab to take a hit away from Holy Name's Andrea Spinelli in the seventh inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Cloverleaf second baseman Maddie Huff makes a sliding grab to take a hit away from Holy Name’s Andrea Spinelli in the seventh inning. AARON JOSEFCZYK/GAZETTE

Bubbly shortstop Alli Gray was talking 100 mph because, well, that’s what she does.

Pitcher Torie Craig was giggling so much she stopped her train of thought and proclaimed, “I’m so awkward at this. I’m sorry.”

Yeah, reaching a district championship game means something to the Cloverleaf softball team.

Craig fired a four-hitter, Gray unloaded an opposite-field RBI double and the defense made college-quality plays all over the field Tuesday, giving the third-seeded Colts a nail-biting 1-0 win over second-seeded Holy Name in the LaGrange Division II District semifinals.

Cloverleaf (19-9), which lost to the Green Wave (22-5) 10-0 at this level last season, advances to battle Northeast Ohio superpower and top seed Keystone (24-4) for the championship at 4:30 this afternoon.

“This group is just so special, and it starts with the seniors who respect all the underclassmen,” said Carmigiano, who played four seniors, six sophomores and two freshmen. “They all genuinely care for each other, so when excitement starts to happen, it’s contagious.

“I don’t know. They just wanted to do it more and more as the game went on.”

With Holy Name sophomore ace Nikki Camarati (19-5) bringing the heat, the Colts recognized opportunities would be scarce. Camarati threw a no-hitter against Cloverleaf last year, after all.

Taking advantage was going to be critical, and that moment came in the third inning. Craig began with a walk and Grace Turner, who was a game-time decision with a wrist injury, was hit by a pitch, setting the stage for Cam Werner and Madison Huff to pinch run.

Though Camarati (12 strikeouts) got an ensuing strikeout, she still had to deal with.542 hitter Gray.

Gray, who struck out for just the second time this season to open the game, promptly connected on a first-pitch fastball. The looping fly ball sliced narrowly out of the reach of right fielder Avery Ravay, scoring Werner without a throw.

Though the inning ended with runners stranded on second and third, scoring first gave already-jacked-up Cloverleaf a boost.

“I was pretty upset (about the first-inning strikeout),” Gray said. “I knew if I let that get in my head I’m just going to keep striking out. I knew I had to get up there and crush one. It’s going to make up for it.”

Heady pitching by Craig (12-5, 3.14 ERA) and stout defense made the run stand up.

Working all four corners of the strike zone, Craig walked two, hit one and struck out two. The right-hander, who tossed just three swinging strikes all game, got out of a two-on, one-out situation in the first inning — highlighted by fanning All-Ohioan Nikki Ferraro — and a two-on, two-out jam in the fifth.

Take out three singles by leadoff hitter Cassie Biley and the Green Wave was 1-for-20.

“My mindset was to just pitch strikes and get them out,” said Craig, who threw 60 strikes among 99 pitches.

The senior also had brilliant defensive support. Right fielder Addison Gray made a juggling catch, catcher KD Smith gunned down a runner, center fielder Hailey Eckelberry and second baseman Huff made a sliding stops and Alli Gray flashed range by having a hand in four of the final six outs.

“It’s hard to do something like that,” Alli Gray said. “It’s really exciting that you love to play. The whole time you’re like, ‘OK, we have to hold them. We can do this.’ We just pick each other up the whole time because we have to.”

The Colts will need that emotional support today against the Wildcats, who hit north of .420, have 35 home runs and boast D-I college recruits Lauren Shaw (Iowa; 19-2, 0.67 ERA), Summer Constable (Purdue; 597, 8 HRs, 46 R, 16 SBs), Sammie Stefan (Maryland; .564, 12 HRs, 49 RBIs), Destiny Weber (Penn State; .422), Madi Cendrosky (Cleveland State; .394) and Paige Hartley (Cleveland State; .379).

What Cloverleaf won’t be short on is confidence.

“That was amazing,” Craig said. “I’m very excited to play (Keystone), and I think we will do really well and I think we have a good chance of beating them.”

Craig then giggled.

“I’m a little hyped right now,” she said.


High school baseball: Highland hangs tough, gets win over Wadsworth

$
0
0

BARBERTON — Odds are favorable that no one on the Highland baseball team will be remembered among the school’s all-time greats.

These Hornets instead are made up of hard-nosed 16-, 17- and 18-year-olds who don’t give in.

Highland's Nate Rickbrodt scores an a passed ball as Wadsworth pitcher Cameron Deemer covers home plate during the seventh inning of the District semi-final game. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Highland’s Nate Rickbrodt scores an a passed ball as Wadsworth pitcher Cameron Deemer covers home plate during the seventh inning of the District semi-final game. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Two outs from its season ending in the Barberton Division I District semifinals Wednesday, fourth-seeded Highland scored twice to force extra innings and tacked on three runs in the top of the eighth to absolutely stun No. 2 Wadsworth 5-2.

Winners of 11 of their last 14 games, the Hornets (17-9) advanced to battle fifth-seeded Hoban (16-12) at 4:30 this afternoon. The Knights defeated No. 1 seed Copley 3-0.

“No matter what, we always have a positive attitude,” said Highland designated hitter Zach Filips, who drove in the go-ahead run. “We never got down. Our bench was loud the entire game. Everyone was picking each other up.

“It was never really over, and it just all came together in the end. We pulled it off.”

A different player delivered each time Highland needed a big play in a game that had all the makings of another low-scoring win for the Grizzlies (21-7-1) — that is until Hunter Rinard dug in against Wadsworth starter Ross Thompson with Highland trailing 2-0 in the seventh.

Rinard began the rally with a single to right. Filips struck out, but pinch runner Nate Rickbrodt moved to third on wild pitches and No. 8 hitter Jonah Marsh walked, leading to Thompson, who still was working on a four-hitter, getting the hook.

Coach Greg Pickard called on three-year starter Cameron Deemer to pick up career save No. 10, but the senior’s third pitch was a passed ball that scored Rickbrodt and his sixth pitch was a belt-high fastball that .235 hitter Adam Nagy crushed down the left-field line for an RBI double.

Tie ballgame.

“It was a 3-2 count on that one, and when I got my pitch, I was just trying to get it out there to advance the runner,” Nagy said. “Luckily, it went right in where no one was able to get it and we scored a run there.”

Wadsworth catcher Craig Palidar tags out Highland's Jonah Marsh at home plate during the fifth inning of the District semi-final game. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Wadsworth catcher Craig Palidar tags out Highland’s Jonah Marsh at home plate during the fifth inning of the District semi-final game. (RON SCHWANE / GAZETTE)

Wadsworth then left runners on second and third against sophomore reliever Bryce Budzinski (3-1, 1.68 ERA) — Chris Byers barely missed a walk-off home run — allowing Highland to take control.

Consecutive singles by Greg Loeding and Michael Oriti to begin the eighth led to Andrew Klafczynski laying down a sacrifice bunt. Rinard was intentionally walked to load the bases.

That brought up Filips, who struck out swinging in each of his last two at-bats. This time the senior delivered, uncorking a short fly ball to left field that brought in Loeding.

Marsh added the dagger with a two-run single, giving Budzinski enough cushion to finish the game and pick up his second victory against Wadsworth this season.

“I just had a short memory and tried to learn from my at-bats before,” Filips said. “I always stay positive and know I’m going to get another opportunity. I stayed aggressive, and it worked out for me.”

For 6⅓ innings, Thompson-led Wadsworth clung to a lead that Highland ace Thomas Ruth (1.44 ERA) somehow kept from getting out of hand.

The Grizzlies went up 1-0 in the second, when left fielder Zach Looser walked, stole second and scored on Thompson’s single. The score remained that way in large part to Looser throwing out Marsh at the plate in the fifth, and a two-out error pushed Wadsworth ahead 2-0 in the sixth.

What turned out to be huge, however, was clutch pitching by Ruth, as the left-hander allowed four hits, walked eight and struck out three but stranded seven in a 124-pitch effort. Budzinski followed Ruth’s lead, stranding four in only 2⅓ innings.

Catcher Loeding also threw out two would-be base stealers, highlighted by a strike-’em-out, throw-’em-out double play in the first inning.

“Unfortunately, that’s the way baseball goes,” Pickard said. “We left way too many chances out there early in the game to give (Highland) an opportunity at the end.”

The Hornets seized on that with flair. They now have an opportunity to win the first D-I district championship in school history after reaching the D-II regional finals in 2007 and ’08.

The only thing in their way is battle-tested Hoban, which knocked off a Copley team that beat Highland 8-7 and 2-0 in Suburban League American Division play.

“I just know they beat Copley 3-0, and it’s going to be a good game,” Nagy said. “We have to be ready for it.”


High school baseball: Loeding’s big season helps Highland reach new heights

$
0
0

Greg Loeding attacks. Period. End of story.

The Highland baseball team’s senior catcher is a little bit of a throwback. He is chivalrous around adults. He increases the family laundry bill by blocking balls in the dirt. He has a hard-nosed personality teammates love.

RON SCHWANE/GAZETTE Senior catcher Greg Loeding has been a two-way threat for the Highland baseball team.

RON SCHWANE/GAZETTE
Senior catcher Greg Loeding has been a two-way threat for the Highland baseball team.

Just don’t give him the take sign on a 3-0 pitch.

“I don’t like to walk,” he said matter-of-factly. “I don’t like free bases. I swing on 3-0 pitches because, frankly, I’d rather earn my base than let the umpire point me down there.

“There was even a situation when the umpire told me to go down there because I got hit. I said, ‘I didn’t get hit’ — coaches always get mad when you do that — but I came up and whacked a double after that, so that was pretty cool.”

When informed of the philosophy, fourth-year coach Jay Grissom sighed, grinned and mumbled.

“Yeahhhhhhhhh,” Grissom said after collecting his thoughts, “that is not a philosophy we’re selling.”

What Loeding and the Hornets (18-9) are selling is a team-first philosophy — well, except the whole 3-0 count thing — that has gotten them to the Division I regional semifinals. They will play St. Ignatius (20-10) at Cuyahoga Community College West’s Ron Mottl Field at 3 p.m. Thursday.

Loeding has been in the middle of everything. The two-year starter calls pitches for a staff with a 2.81 ERA, he has thrown out 10 runners while being behind the dish for all but seven innings and he is batting north of .400 out of the critical No. 3 hole.

As importantly, he blends in on a team full of easygoing teenagers who aren’t wrapped up in the magnitude of their biggest accomplishment to date — the third district title in school history (2007, ’08) and first as a D-I school.

“I just wanted to enjoy it and go out and have fun,” Loeding said. “Things have worked out.”

That’s an understatement.

Growing up, Loeding didn’t need to leave the household to learn how to perfect the art of catching. His older brother, Grant, manned the position as a sophomore when Highland won the Suburban League title in 2012, started the following two seasons and had a reputation for stout defense.

Greg inherited Grant’s position last season and has taken the family legacy to the next level.

“I would have to give him a lot of credit for the talent I have on the baseball field,” Greg Loeding said. “He taught me a lot of skills that I have as a catcher.

“I think it’s going to be funny next year when the Loedings are officially gone from five years of being behind the plate.”

Highland will have to worry about that later. There is more work to do because, like his teammates, Loeding is peaking at the right time.

The right-handed hitter leads the team with a .402 batting average, 18 RBIs, 27 runs, eight doubles, three triples and five stolen bases. Again rehashing the go-up-and-hack attitude, Loeding is second-to-last with 3.05 pitches per plate appearance.

Athletes are often measured by how well they perform in high-pressure situations, so check this out: Loeding batted .447 in Suburban League American Division play and is 24-for-49 (.490) over the last 14 games, including 6-for-10 in the postseason.

Grissom is more impressed by something else.

“I think his best attribute is he’s every bit as good defensively as he is offensively,” Grissom said.

Loeding’s main role off the field is to DJ beatbox rap battles on bus rides — “It’s really stupid, but it’s another way for our team to get energized and pumped up before a game,” he quipped — because enjoying the ride and not worrying about the destination is what memories are made of.

“This is something none of us have ever felt before, so it’s pretty cool,” he said, “This is the best possible way for us to finish our senior year.”


High school baseball: Highland unafraid of matchup with St. Ignatius

$
0
0

PARMA — The St. Ignatius baseball team is a defending Division I state semifinalist and features big-time pitching recruits Connor Adams (Louisville) and Murphy O’Brien (St. Bonaventure).

Highland’s response: That’s cool, but we can play, too.

The Hornets (18-9) and Wildcats (20-10) will battle at 3 o’clock this afternoon at Ron Mottl Field on the Cuyahoga Community College Western campus in a D-I regional semifinal. The winner gets Amherst (22-8) or Whitehouse Anthony Wayne (23-6) at Bowling Green State University on Friday.

Highland respects St. Ignatius but isn’t awestruck. Coach Jay Grissom’s team is confident after beating Brecksville, archrival Wadsworth and Archbishop Hoban to win the balanced Barberton District.

“We feel like we belong,” outfielder Andrew Klafczynski said. “We’ve seen in the (state polls) that we’re kind of the underdog, but we feel like we’re right with the best teams in the state.

“We need to not look at Iggy on the front of their jerseys and feel like we’re the underdog and play outside our game. Just because they may have been recruited and that they’re a private-school team doesn’t mean they can beat a team that has been playing together for as long as I can remember.”

St. Ignatius began the season 1-6 and has since lost twice to Brecksville, but both games had asterisks. The first was at Progressive Field and featured both teams changing pitchers every inning, while the second was the regular-season finale and after the Hornets eliminated the Bees in the sectional finals.

The Wildcats may not have the most intimidating roster longtime coach Brad Ganor has fielded, but they’re battle-tested and riding a wave of momentum after beating rival St. Edward 3-1 in the Strongsville District championship game, giving them a 19-4 record since losing to Massillon on April 13.

The top talent is there, too, with left-hander and expected starter Adams (5-3, 0.74 ERA, 62 strikeouts in 47⅓ innings), O’Brien (4-2; 1 hit and 9 strikeouts over 4⅔ innings vs. St. Edward), Ashland outfield recruit Michael Rogers and All-Ohio quarterback Dennis Grosel at third base.

“I told (the players) at the very beginning of this week, ‘Hey guys, we are not concerned with the name on the front of the (St. Ignatius) jersey. Let’s be concerned about ourselves,”’ Grissom said. “This time of year, everybody wants to start using scouting reports, this, that and the other thing. That stuff is important and we take it as coaches, study it and want to know what’s going on, but I don’t necessarily want to talk about that with these guys. Let’s worry about what we do and how we do it.”

Like St. Edward but against a weaker schedule, Highland is on fire with a 13-3 record while outscoring opponents 100-49 since a 5-6 start. Unlike the Wildcats, the Hornets do not have a player committed to play collegiately.

Highland has reached this stage with balance, strong defense (.943 fielding percentage) and continuous improvement. The laid-back leadership of nine seniors has been vital as well.

Catcher Greg Loeding (.402, 18 RBIs, 27 runs) and third baseman Michael Oriti (.364, 15, 14) have been the biggest run producers overall, while center fielder Ethan Suran (.333, 19 runs), left fielder Klafczynski (.323, 15) and first baseman Hunter Rinard (.333, 12 RBIs) have emerged during the second half.

Not to be outdone, the double-play combination of Adam Nagy and Victor Zamlen has been steady and right fielder Jonah Marsh is 5-for-9 with eight RBIs in the postseason.

The pitching staff also is deep, led by senior left-hander and slated starter Thomas Ruth (4-0, 1.62 ERA, 69 strikeouts in 39 innings) and heady sophomores Billy Keller (4-1, 1.46) and Bryce Budzinski (3-1, 1.68).

“Honestly, I think we do a good job feeding off each other’s success,” Grissom said. “This is the first year in a couple years I’ve consistently seen our guys as a whole being excited for each other.”

Highland is carefree and ready to roll. The Hornets feel like they’re gambling with house money and have nothing to lose.

They also have looked to history as proof that high school baseball is unpredictable. The 2007 Hornets defeated future Triple-A pitcher Tyler Burgoon of Defiance in the regional semis, while the ’08 team reached the regional finals after going 10-12 in the regular season.

“We’re all excited to see what happens,” Loeding said.


Gazette MVP: Medina’s Aukerman never backed down

$
0
0

Among Spencer Aukerman’s most cherished baseball memories date to when he played for the 11-and-under Medina Stars. Aukerman was the go-to reliever, often twisting batters into the dirt with a sick curveball he was permitted to unleash competitively for the first time.

Ask anyone who faced the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder this spring and they’ll confirm that little has changed.

RON SCHWANE PHOTO ILLUSTRATION Medina senior Spencer Aukerman is the 2016 Gazette MVP for baseball.

RON SCHWANE PHOTO ILLUSTRATION
Medina senior Spencer Aukerman is the 2016 Gazette MVP for baseball.

Using lessons learned along the way to tirelessly hone his skills, Aukerman’s reward was a senior season most competitors would crave: Being the ace for a league-title-contending team.

Considering how the level-headed Aukerman performed, he absolutely deserved to be Gazette MVP.

“He was like a pay-per-view type of fighter every time he went out on the mound,” Bees coach Nick Kaplack said. “Most pitchers are ‘Tuesday Night Fights’ on USA Network. Spencer was on pay-per-view — and he won.

“Spencer fought the real opponents. He’s not a paper champ.”

Other than a sub-1.00 WHIP, Aukerman’s statistics don’t jump off the page. He entered this season 4-3 with a 2.68 ERA in 44⅓ career innings as a No. 3/Saturday starter or reliever.

Those numbers improved, as the right-hander was 6-1 with a 1.88 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 481⁄3 innings. Very good, to be sure, but nothing that will be listed in the state record book.

However, context proves why baseball stats are often the most misleading in all of high school sports.

Gazette MVPs
Spencer Aukerman (M) 2016
Nick Bebout (W) /
Riley Campbell (W) 2015
Nick Bebout (W) 2014
Luke Raley (H) 2013
Brandon Kutrubs (Bru) 2012
Scott Sency (M) 2011
Logan Goehler (M) 2010
Josh West (Buc) 2009
Kyle VonDuyke (M) 2008
Ben Klafczynski (H) 2007
Kevin Henry (Bru) 2006
Tyler Nagel (M) 2005
Pete Rippee (M) 2004
Brian Ensign (BR) 2003
Drew Saylor (W) 2002
Drew Saylor (W) 2001
Josh Gaub (Bru) 2000
Mark Herman (Bru) 1999
Adam Moos (M) 1998
Mark Ritz (M) 1997
Darian Miskewycz (Bru) 1996
Tony Johnson (Bru) 1995
Rob Gillingham (Bru) 1994
Dave Ritz (M) 1993
Matt Miller (W) 1992
Jon Schuck (BR) 1991
Brian Bauman (W) 1990
Guy DeMutis (Bru) 1989
Jim MacLellan (Bru) 1988
Deron Hofstetter (W) 1987
Alex Hiller (M) 1986
Cary McConnell (Bru) 1985
Joe Tenhunfeld (Bru) 1984
Bill Gearhart (W) 1983
Randy Bishop (C) 1982
Marc Hoffman (W) 1981
Joe Dickinson (W) 1980
Steve Detwiler (C) 1979
Mike Houska (H) 1978

Aukerman didn’t inflate them against cupcakes. He carried his team against state-ranked opponents.

He beat Division I state semifinalist and Greater Cleveland Conference champion Solon (24-5) — twice.

He beat 24-4 Olentangy Liberty with a complete game (The Patriots were sixth in the final Prep Baseball Report D-I state poll).

He beat Elyria with six innings of shutout relief and three days later beat Solon 2-1.

He beat archrival Brunswick in a must-win GCC game with 12 strikeouts.

His only loss was to regional qualifier Massillon Jackson, PBR’s top-ranked D-I team.

Oh, and let’s not forget he threw a five-inning no-hitter against Wheeling (Ill.) in the season opener.

How’s that for clutch?

“I like the big-pressure situations with the game on the line and whether you make the right pitch or not,” Aukerman said.

The Bees were fortunate Aukerman refused to let them die in the GCC race.

All three of his regular-season GCC wins came with Medina trailing Solon by at least one game in the standings. Better yet, all three came after a Bees GCC loss.

Aukerman’s heroics set up the put-up-or-shut-up moment: A GCC Tournament semifinal against the Comets. The starters were Aukerman and Alabama recruit Nate Altstadt. A loss meant Medina was officially eliminated.

Staked to an early 3-0 lead, Aukerman buckled down, using his sweeping curveball to get ahead in counts and strand runners in scoring position in each of the first five innings. He ran out of gas in the seventh, but Cade Pipoly got the save and Medina won 5-4.

The Bees lost the tournament title game to Mentor — they would have tied Solon for the overall championship with a win — but through no fault of Aukerman.

“Obviously (Solon) made it to the final four. They’re a great team,” Aukerman said. “I knew my team had my back. I didn’t worry about (Solon). I just tried to pitch my game.

“Going against a great pitcher like (Altstadt), I was more excited because he’s going to Alabama. I tried to stay within myself and pitch the game I was pitching all year.”

That Solon game was the last hurrah for Aukerman and the Bees, who were upset by Hoban in the Barberton Division I Sectional finals. Aukerman was pulled after five innings and with a one-run lead.

Aukerman will now play for Baldwin Wallace, which two years ago reached the 2014 D-III College World Series. He will major in biology while continuing to improve his fastball, curveball, slider and changeup.

What Aukerman can no longer develop is Kaplack’s admiration. It’s maxed out.

“Apples to apples, he deserves this honor 10-fold,” Kaplack said. “It makes everything worthwhile to have a kid that plays like that, has this kind of success and yet not have the arrogance. He still has that in-it-for-the-team mentality.

“It’s refreshing.”

And inspiring, too.


Viewing all 164 articles
Browse latest View live


<script src="https://jsc.adskeeper.com/r/s/rssing.com.1596347.js" async> </script>