EVANSVILLE — The margin of error at this stage of the state tournament can be a single play.
How truthful was that on Saturday, June 13? The victor from the Class 4A semi-state championship at Braun Stadium didn’t register a base hit. A statistical anomaly many could consider baffling. Yet, a single play earned one team a spot at Victory Field and the other dejected tears.
Thus is playoff baseball.
No. 10 Bloomington defeated No. 3 North 1-0 at the University of Evansville by the thinnest of margins. The Panthers scored via a throwing error in the fourth inning. The Huskies stranded 11 runners on base. Therein lied the difference.
“It felt like one hit would have opened the game up for us,” North coach Jeremy Jones said. “We just couldn’t get it in this game.”
How close was North (28-5) to a return trip to Indianapolis? One swing.
The Huskies stranded two runners in the second, third and fourth innings. They had two in scoring position with one out in the sixth and bases loaded in the seventh. After finding the crucial hit all season, particularly once the tournament arrived, it evaded them in the state semifinal. One tough sequence to stomach came when Jaxon Edmond was thrown out at home following a Kelby Sollman single.
North had four hits, five walks and reached on two errors. Not a single one crossed the plate.
“Too many runners left on,” Jones said. “The play at the plate — we had two really good swings after the rain delay. It would have been nice to get one there and let our guys relax a bit.”
Bloomington South (25-6) capitalized on the only mistake. Connor Couch drew a two-out walk in the fourth, which was followed by a ground ball to third by Drew Palileo. The throw evaded first base, allowing Couch to round the bases.
Paired with an impressive outing by Xavier Hemingway on the mound — the senior gave up only three hits in 6 1/3 innings and struck out seven — it was enough to book a matchup against Lake Central (27-8) in next weekend’s state final.
This is technically the program’s first trip to the state finals. Bloomington High School reached the championship game twice, winning in 1972, but split into two schools months later. The Panthers did so by reversing a loss to the Huskies from May 20.
“Pitching and defense wins championships,” Bloomington South coach Phil Kluesner said. “You have a senior pitching like that on the mound, it kind of diluted the errors. Age and experience does that for you. It’s tough, especially as good as (North). They lived up to it. We were able to scratch a mistake across. They didn’t. That was kind of the difference.”
North had the pitching to book another spot in the 4A title game. Ty Pohl and AJ Baggett combined to throw a seven-hit shutout in a 2-0 semifinal victory over No. 1 Center Grove. The latter went four innings with no earned runs and seven strikeouts against Bloomington. Carson Frome pitched the final two innings and punched out three. Not a single hit allowed in nightcap.
All three pitchers return next season.
“Pitching was great all day,” Jones said. “AJ was a monster out there. To throw the way that he did today was impressive. Another sophomore coming in with Carson Frome. These are special arms.”
The future remains insanely bright on the North Side. Six starters from the championship game return, notably that talent on the mound. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Huskies in a similar position next season. The only downside for the coaches is doing so without this senior class.
North loses seven to graduation. A group which played vital roles, whether big or small, in pushing the program to bigger heights. The Huskies won 100 games, three conference titles, two regionals and one semi-state over the last four years. The last two is unquestionably the best two-year period in school history.
The standard has been set. It’s up to the next group to match it.
“They’re just hard workers,” Jones said. “They’re gamers. They’re baseball kids. I love every one of them. When you pour your heart and soul into something like our program, it’s tough when it’s over. We love them.”
Who else advanced to the IHSAA baseball state finals?
It is going to be another busy weekend in Indianapolis with two Evansville-area teams earning spots.
Class 2A at Lawrence Central: No. 1 Mater Dei proved yet again why it was labeled a state championship contender.
The Wildcats defeated Sullivan 5-2 in nine innings to earn a return trip to Victory Field. Sullivan (24-4) had multiple opportunities to eliminate Mater Dei — bases loaded in the seventh and eighth with one out — but couldn’t deal the final blow.
Nolan Schickel provided the go-ahead single for Mater Dei with two outs. Max Miller padded the lead two batters later with a two-run single.
Darret Branson pitched three innings in relief with five strikeouts to earn the win. Mater Dei (30-3) faces Bluffton (19-10) in the Class 2A title game this Saturday, June 20 at 3:30 p.m. CT in Indianapolis. The Wildcats are making their seventh appearance in the championship game and second time going in back-to-back years.
Mater Dei defeated University 6-2 in the semifinal. The Trailblazers scored both runs in the first, before Dylan Murphy hit a three-run home run in response. Cole Breeden struck out seven in five innings.
Class 1A at Mitchell: No. 4 Northeast Dubois is making its first trip to Indianapolis after beating No. 11 Hauser 4-0.
Eli Schroering pitched a gem with only one hit allowed in a complete-game shutout. The junior struck out nine and issued only a single walk on 87 pitches. The Jeeps (23-5) scored all four runs in the fifth. Jake Kluesner delivered an RBI triple and scored on a Brycen Mroz sacrifice fly. Schroering later brought two home with a one-out single.
Northeast Dubois faces No. 1 Kouts (31-1) in the Class 1A title game. The Jeeps advanced to the semi-state final with a 5-2 win over Greenwood Christian. The Jeeps scored all five runs in the fifth with Carson Beck and Schroering swatting back-to-back two-run hits.
Hauser defeated North Daviess 7-2 in the first semifinal. The Jets scored five runs in the seventh to earn the victory. Zane Sample had two of the Cougars’ five hits. North Daviess (15-15) competed in the semi-state for the first time since 2005.
Class 3A at Jasper: No. 4 Gibson Southern had its season end in the semi-state final with a 4-2 loss to No. 2 Guerin Catholic. The Golden Eagles (27-3-1) scored three in the fourth, highlighted by a Ben Canada home run, and one in the sixth. The Titans scratched across runs in the fourth and sixth.
The Titans defeated No. 8 Cathedral 6-4 in the semifinal. Jake Mazzier didn’t allow any hits in 5 1/3 scoreless innings, while Crewe Hasenour added three hits including a double. Gunner Alexander also plated a pair. Braden Mann hit a grand slam in the seventh inning for the Fighting Irish.
Gibson Southern finished 27-7 with its first regional title since 2014.
Kyle Sokeland is a sports reporter for the Courier & Press. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @kylesokeland or email at kyle.sokeland@courierpress.com.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Mater Dei, Northeast Dubois win IHSAA baseball semi-state titles
