Indians' 5-run 7th inning rally nips Crown Point 6-5

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

5-14-2008

Team (Record) / Inning	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
LAKE CENTRAL (17-7, 9-4 DAC)	0	0	1	0	0	2	5	6	7	0
CROWN POINT (19-3-2, 10-3 DAC)	0	0	2	2	0	0	1	5	6	3

Monday, 5-12-2008 - Duneland Athletic Conference game at CROWN POINT, IN

WP - Max Majchrzak (4-0) 1K, 2 walks (3.7 inn.)
(LC) Roger Sammon (SAVE #4) 0K, 1 walks
LP - Mike Kozlowski (4-2) 0K, 1 walk (2/3 inning),
(SP) Mike Hernandez (CP) 11K, 4 walks (6 innings)

LAKE CENTRAL (17-4, 9-4 DAC) starters
Kyle Kaluza (CF) 2-for-4
Anthony Olund (2B) 1-for-4, RBI
Ryan Boss (RF) 1-for-4, double
Eric Summers (DH) 2-for-4
Matt Skura (1B) 0-for-4, RBI
AJ Doyle (P) 0-for-1, 3 walks
Steve Traficante (LF) 0-for-2
Frank Pluskota (3B) HR, RBI
Roger Sammon (CF) 0-for-2, 2 walks

CROWN POINT (19-3-2)
Eric Clayton (SS) 0-for-4
Scott Donley (2B) 1-for-3, HBP, RBI
Nick Hladek (C) 1-for-2, 2 walks, RBI
Mike Kozlowski (3B) 0-for-3, walk, RBI
Jeff Limbaugh (DH) 1-for-3, double, walk, RBI
Jim Donley (RF) 0-for-3, walk
Josh Negele (CF) 0-for-2, 2 walks, RBI
Blake Mascarello (1B) 3-for-4, double, stolen base
Jordan Lindeman (LF) 0-for-1, 2 walks.

Click Here for 2008 CP Baseball Schedule

CROWN POINT, IN (5-12-2008) - I now know what I want from this high school baseball season. To see Lake Central and Crown Point play a record fifth time. I want to see the two teams that played the 'trilogy of darkness', the two back-to-back complete tie games followed by a 22-8 CP win in April, play again for a fifth time. What about the fourth game? You had to be there.

For six innings, it was a normal Duneland Athletic Conference game. But the final inning, which took almost 30 minutes, featured a stunning finish that no one on site had ever seen before. With LC leading 6-5 Tuesday in the bottom of the seventh and Crown Point senior Jim Donley at second base, Blake Mascarello sliced his third hit of the day, a long double off the left field wall off LC submarine style relief pitcher Roger Sammon. The throw was relayed to the plate, but was late and Donley scored, appearing to tie the game at 6-6.

But while CP was still celebrating the tying run scoring, Lake Central appealed the play at home and it was ruled that Donley had missed home plate... He was declared out... the 3rd out of the inning... the 21st out of the game and LC had won 6-5.

Suddenly, the entire LC bench was running on the field celebrating and CP was quiet and somewhat angry.

"Frank saw it," said Lake Central coach Keith Hauber of catcher Frank Ruvoli. "I don't tell him to watch things like that. He does it on his own. I don't really want to win a game that way but he saw it. He pays attention to detail. That's just the kind of player he is."

"You can't worry about something you can't control," said losing coach Steve Strayer, who debated the call briefly, but then largely calmed down his own players. "We can't control the call. We need to worry about three errors in the top of the inning when we should have closed out the game."

It's hard to believe that CP's Jim Donley did not, in truth, miss the plate because the call is so unusual that no umpire would guess at that. Almost no one but Ruvoli and home plate umpire Bob Schellinger actually saw what happened, because everyone else was looking at the fielding and throwing of the ball. But many thought the call should not have been. Shortstops and second basemen sometimes miss the bag of double play pivots. If the ball beats the runner and is not mishandled the runner is called out. But Strayer is correct. CP (19-2-3) should have won in 6-1/2 innings.

In the top of the seventh, the Bulldogs led 4-1 in a game that would have clinched a tie for the DAC title. LC's Frank Pluskota, who hit his first varsity home run in the third, smacked a ground ball to second base which CP second baseman Scott Donley fumbled for an error. When pitcher Mike Hernandez, who struck out 11, walked ninth place hitter Roger Sammon, Strayer replaced Hernandez with relief pitcher Mike Kozlowski, who had four saves in the first 21 team decisions.

LC leadoff man Kyle Kaluza blooped a single to left field to load the bases and junior Anthony Olund bounced an RBI single to left to cut the lead to 4-2 with nobody out. Ryan Boss then hit a grounder to deep third base. But Kozlowski is CP's regular third baseman and when he's pitching, junior Miles Atherton takes over. Atherton fumbled the first ball hit to him, allowing another run to score.

LC's Eric Summers hit a fly ball to center field, but senior Russell Chick, a defensive replacement, slipped and fell on the grass and the ball fell in for an RBI single tying the game 4-4. Then, with the bases still loaded, Matt Skura bounced a ground ball to Donley at second base. The CP sophomore didn't really have a play at home, but he threw home anyway and the ball bounced past CP catcher Nick Hladek. Two runs scored on the play, making it 6-4. Amazingly, after a walk to AJ Doyle, Kozlowski then pitched out of the inning without any more LC runs.

"I thought Mike Hernandez did a very good job," said Strayer. "And so did Koz (Mike Kozlowski). We just didn't make plays we have to make."

In the bottom of the seventh, there was a feeling CP would rally. When the teams met three times in one week in April, CP trailed in all three games before tying and suspending the first two contests and winning the third one. LC brought in Sammon, who has an exaggerated underhand delivery. But the right-handed batting Kozlowski hit a long high drive to left center. Kaluza, the LC center fielder, raced to the fence, which is about eight feet tall, and leaped up over the top to grab the ball, stealing what would have been Kozlowski's eighth home run of the year.

But it wasn't over. CP soph Jeff Limbaugh doubled to left center and Jim Donley walked on five pitches. Left-handed hitting Josh Negele slapped a hard potential double play ground ball to short. Doyle, the original starting pitcher, fumbled it, but recovered in time to throw out Negele at first base. Then, Mascarello, the Purdue University pitching recruit, slammed a long drive to left field that appeared initially to be a game winning home run. But the 20 mile-an-hour southwest wind had shifted with a storm approaching and the ball hit the fence on the fly. Donley, running with two out, 'scored' easily from second base.

Then the unusual ruling and Lake Central went home winners.

"I hope we're not going to concern ourselves with how this game ended," said Strayer, who did not see the 'play' at the plate. "We can't change it. We haven't been playing well lately and we have to correct that or it's not going to be a good end to this season. We can't be worrying about a call. We don't control that. We've got to worry about the things we can control."

Hauber, who has 12 juniors on his team, was very happy that his team scored a come-from-behind win after allowing other teams to do that to them in all but one of their losses.

"Max Majcharz did a great job for us," he began. "He was on the JV at the start of the year. We've had some problems pitching and he has come through for us. He's 4-0 now. Pluscota is just up from the JV. He's worked very hard and he can hit the ball. This is a very big win for us."

So, they've played four times. Both teams are tied 1-1 with two tie games. In recent years, no teams have ever met five times.

"I'm all for it," Hauber said of a potential fifth matchup between CP and LC in what would be a one-game regional at Lake Central on June 3. "That would mean that we meet in the regional and I'm all for that."

DOG NOTES: Lake Central and Crown Point have met seven times in the last two seasons. CP beat LC three times in 2007, including a 10-run win in the 2007 regional championship game at Crown Point. LC and CP have now played 28 innings this season, the two tie games: 5-5 in eight innings on April 22 and 10-10 in seven innings of April 23, do not obviously count as wins or losses, but by IHSAA rules, the statistics do count for both teams.

Lake Central plays Kokomo at 5:00 p.m. at Riverside Park in Hammond in part of a high school showcase that may include Hanover Central facing Lansing, Illinois power Illiana Christian (26-4).

Crown Point (19-3-2, 10-3 DAC) hosts Portage in the final league game Thursday at 4:30 p.m., and they'll face Kankakee Valley at 10:00 a.m. Saturday (5-17-2008) in the semifinals of the Crown Point Classic. CP hosts Griffith on Wednesday, May 21 at 7:00 p.m. in a game just added to the schedule.

2008 (4A) Crown Point Bulldogs (19-3-2, 10-3 DAC)
Coach Steve Strayer - (112-45-1, 5 years) 29-3 in 2007
DAC games in CAPS - weekday games - 4:30 -unless otherwise indicated

Northwest Indiana Challenge
4-3 (W) 10-0 at Highland (13-10)
4-4 (W) 9-2 Munster (12-8)
4-5 (W) 10-4 at Griffith (14-8)

4-7 (W) 5-0 Hanover Central (13-5)
4-8 (W) 9-0 MERRILLVILLE (3-12)
4-12 (S) at (SB) Clay - rain -canceled
4-12 (S) at (SB) Washington - rain -canceled
4-14 (W) 12-2 Michigan City (10-11) in Gary
4-15 (W) 5-4 (8 innings) LaPORTE (18-6)
4-16 (W) 19-3 VALPARAISO (9-11)
4-18 (W) 8-6 CHESTERTON (14-6)
4-19 (W) 6-1 Huntington North (15-4)
4-22 (T) 5-5 (8 innings) at LAKE CENTRAL (17-4-2)
4-23 (T) 10-10 at LAKE CENTRAL (17-4-2)
4-24 (W) 5-3 PORTAGE (9-12)
4-26 (W) 14-7 Morton (12-9)
4-28 (W) 9-0 MERRILLVILLE (3-12)
4-30 (L) 2-3 (8 innings) LaPORTE (18-6)

Plymouth Tournament
5-3 (W) 13-0 at Plymouth (9-13) semifinals
5-3 (W) 8-6 (Allen Co.) Carroll (15-4) title

5-2 (L) 5-7 MICHIGAN CITY (9-10)
5-5 (Mon) (Lansing, Illinois) Illiana Christian (26-4) postponed
5-6 (W) 12-1 at VALPARAISO (7-11)
5-8 (W) 4-3 at CHESTERTON (14-5)
5-9 (W) 5-3 Boone Grove (16-3)

5-13 (L) 5-6 LAKE CENTRAL (17-4-2)
5-15 (Th) PORTAGE (9-12)

Crown Point Classic Tournament
with Northridge, Kankakee Valley and St. Joseph's
5-17 (S) Kankakee Valley (10:00 a.m.)
5-17 (S) Northridge or St. Joseph's (6:00 p.m.)

5-20 (Tu) at Lowell (12-13)
5-21 (W) Griffith (14-9) 7:00 p.m.
5-23 (F) Elkhart Memorial (18-5) 6:30 p.m.

4A Sectional 2 (at LaPorte)
with LaPorte, Michigan City, Hobart, Portage, Chesterton, Valparaiso and Merrillville
5-29 (Tu) quarterfinals (TBA)
5-31 (Th) semifinals (TBA)
6-2 (S) championship (TBA)