KV ends Wildcats baseball season 5-4 in Sectional Semifinals
	A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith 5-27-2012

 

Team (Record) / Inning	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
KANKAKEE VALLEY (17-13)	0	0	0	0	3	0	2	5	7	3
HANOVER CENTRAL (19-11)	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	5	3

Saturday, 5-26-2012  -  Class 3A Sectional 18 at Kankakee Valley HS in Wheatfield, IN

WP - Jack Miles (5-3) CG, 2K, 4 walks
LP - Danny Balich (0-1) 6K, 0 walks (2.7 inn.)
starter - Tyler Trepton (HC) 1K, 3 walks (4.3 inn.)

KANKAKEE VALLEY (17-13)
Zach DeFries (SS) 2-for-4, double, 2 RBIs
Josh Monk (2B) 0-for-4
Jake Wright (C) 1-for-4
David Cooper (1B) 0-for-4
Kevin Cooper (DH) 1-for-3, walk
Jack Miles (P) 1-for-2, walk
Matt Myers (3B) 0-for-3
Chris Rusk (RF) 1-for-3
Tim Hiller (LF) 1-for-1, sac bunt, walk

HANOVER CENTRAL (19-11)
Zac Maciejewski (C) 0-for-2, 2 walks
Tyler Trepton (P) 1-for-3, walk
Jesse Wilkening (LF) 2-for-3, Sac. Fly, RBI
Danny Stum (3B) 0-for-4, RBI
Nick Bollenbacher (SS) 0-for-4
Riley Welch (RF) 1-for-3, double, 2 RBIs
Danny Nowak (1B) 1-for-3
Danny Balich (2B) 0-for-2, walk
Nick Myszkowski (CF) 0-for-3

WHEATFIELD (5-26-2012) Odds are, Hanover Central was not going to defeat Class 3A No. 2 Andrean in the Class 3A Sectional 18 championship game Saturday night. Just being honest. But it was a major disappointment HC didn't get the chance. Hanover, which defeated Kankakee Valley 11-6 ten days earlier, lost a 4-0 lead and lost 5-4 in Saturday's Sectional 18 semifinals, ending the 2012 season on a sour note.

An error on third baseman Aaron Furman on a one out ground ball by KV star Jake Wright allowed the tying and go-ahead runs to score in the top of the seventh-inning against HC relief pitcher Danny Balich.

Wright, who came into the game batting .566 (56 of 99), hit a hard ground ball right at Furman and it got through him, allowing Tim Hillers to score from third and Zach DeFries to score from second. KV right-hander Jack Miles (5-3) retired the Wildcats (19-11) in order in the bottom of the seventh-inning, sending HC home four hours before the championship match up they had anticipated all season.

Hanover led 4-0 after four innings and they simply couldn't get the one more run or one key defensive play that would have taken KV out of contention.

"It's kinda like making free throws at the end of a basketball game," said HC coach Doug Nelson. "There's no pressure in the first and second inning. Their pitcher did a good job of shutting us down and we did a poor job of execution. Hit and runs and bunts and things like that."

It was a big win for Kankakee Valley, which struggled to stay above .500 during the regular season. Hanover started three freshmen in the semifinal game and KV proved to be the more experienced team when the game was decided. And two boys: pitcher Jack Miles and shortstop Zach DeFries stood out.

"Jack is a battler," said KV coach Doug Greenlee. "He pitched 10-innings at Lowell and we lost 2-1. He pitched seven innings Wednesday (in the quarterfinal against Knox). And our shortstop. That was his first game there. Ever."

"We made that change today. We had seven guys at shortstop this year. He played third last year but he played 29 games this year in center field."

"It paid off. He made the plays you had to make and give credit to David Cooper at first for making the scoops. Tim Hillers leading off the seventh with a two-strike single was huge."

"We got it rolling. It's a win against a quality team They won 19 games for a reason."

KV won Saturday, in some respects, because they had eight seniors on the playoff roster. Hanover had only Tyler Trepton, Nick Bollenbacher and Danny Nowak.

Hanover also was a big loser on a controversial call. After a leadoff walk, Matt Miles hit a grounder to third baseman Danny Stum. Stum's throw was wild, but it was up the baseline and Nowak, HC's first baseman, appeared to make the catch and tag the runner. The first base umpire didn't see the tag, which many others saw. Myers was ruled safe, starting a three-run rally.

Hanover also hit the ball in a distinct pattern. The Wildcats hit nine ground balls to shortstop Zach DeFries and were retired on seven of them. HC also hit seven fly balls or line drives to right center field. The first one cleared the head of KV's Chris Rusk for a first inning two-run double by freshman Riley Welch. The last six were caught by Rusk, including two in the seventh-inning.

"If I had a choice between ground balls to short and shots to right field," said Nelson, "I'll take those. It was a baseball game. Win some. Lose some."

Our program is going the direction I want it to go. We won the Porter County Conference (PCC) round robin. We've got a lot of young people coming back. We just have to make plays when it matters."

Nelson thought that his boys need to be stronger physically, which would help them in close games.

"I think it does," he said. "We have to get in the weight room and build some toughness. That's what we need."

SECTIONAL NOTES: Andrean (27-4) dominated Kankakee Valley 7-0 in the Class 3A Sectional championship game late Saturday, the 59ers 22nd sectional title.

Zac Ryan struck out 13 and pitched a one-hit shutout.

Andrean and Griffith, which won the 3A Sectional 17 title with wins 23-0 over Gavit and 4-0 over Clark, both got all of Sunday and Monday as a head start for regional preparation over the champs of Sectional 19 and 20 which do not finish until Monday night.

Andrean will face Griffith in the Plymouth Regional semifinals.

Zac Maciejewski will join the Senior Babe Ruth Hammond Chiefs this summer.

"We've got to find a way to get more quality at bats for our players," said coach Doug Nelson. "Danny (Stum) plays for a team called Apex in St. John. I think Danny Balich was asked by (CP coach Steve) Strayer to play with their American Legion team. They play some good competition."

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