Bulldogs and Slicers commit 10 errors in playing to a 1-1 tie in 10 innings

Team (Record) / Inning	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	R	H	E
CROWN POINT (12-3-1)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	7
LaPorte (13-4-1)	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	4	3

5-8-2003 - at LaPorte, overcast, 70 degrees

CP - Chad Pruzin (3-1) 13K, 1 walk (9 innings)
CP - Adam Vetter (5-0) 2K, 1 walk (1 inning)
LP - Andy Weeks (5-0) 7K, 5 walks, CG No. 4

LaPorte (3 singles, double, stolen base)
Jared Mrozinske (L) 2 singles
Jon Hannon (L) Double, RBI
Joel Chrobak (L) Single, stolen base

CROWN POINT (Single, stolen base)
Jake Pierce (CP) Double
Dave Clayton (CP) Walk, sac bunt
Chad Pierce (CP) 2 walks, Bunt sac.

LaPORTE (5-8-2003) - It may not be considered one of the top games of the season and it certainly wasn't one of the best games. There were more errors than base hits. But few who were there will forget anytime soon about Crown Point's 1-1 tie in LaPorte County Thursday.

On the well-manicured diamond of the eight-time state champions, Crown Point made a season-high seven errors, collected only one hit and left seven on base. But in the long run, they'll benefit from having been in a close game on the road and not losing it. LaPorte, a very promising team with no seniors, cannot help but gain in stature by battling Class 4A No. 7 Crown Point for 10 innings and not getting beaten at the end.

Not that everybody saw it that way.

"I'm not very happy," said CP coach Steve Strayer. "Because in the first two innings, their pitcher was not sharp and we should have taken advantage. He got hot and started hitting spots and we couldn't do anything."

LaPorte coach Steve Upp said "Both teams had opportunities and we both couldn't come through. Give credit to both teams defensively. You're happy with your defense for holding them but you're upset with your offense for not scoring."

"We couldn't put the ball in play when we had to and neither could they. Give credit to the pitchers. It was just a strange game."

This was a wild game filled with bunts and strikeouts and arguments over ball and strike calls. Friends of the program yelling over every other play. By the time, the game was called off about 7:45 p.m., almost everybody was ready to go home.

"No way," said LaPorte first baseman Jon Hannon. "It got lighter in the last inning. We could've played."

LaPorte scored in the fourth inning when Joel Chrobak hit a slop hopper to CP third baseman Eric Gulbrandsen, who threw wildly at first base, allowing the Slicers a runner at second base with nobody out. Hannon then reached down for a Chad Pruzin curveball and drove a line drive RBI double over the head of CP center fielder Jake Pierce.

LaPorte might have scored more but Gulbrandsen made a diving catch of Kyle Clougher's one out squeeze bunt to close off the inning.

CP rallied in the sixth inning when Matt Cowan walked and advanced to second when shortstop Joel Matheney dropped pitcher Andy Weeks throw after Gulbrandsen had bounced a 2-2 pitch to the mound.

After the Bulldogs' Kevin Vandas bunted both runners along, Craig Horvat's 3-2 ground ball to second base scored what would be CP's only run.

Regulation time was an entertaining matchup between CP senior Chad Pruzin, who struck out 13 in nine innings and LaPorte's Weeks, a curve-balling left-hander who pitched three innings of relief three days earlier in a 10-8 victory over Hobart.

CP hit 14 ground balls against Weeks and the only hit was Jake Pierce's slicing double down the left field line with nobody out in the second inning.

With runners at second and third, Weeks got CP's Dave Guenther to pop up, Dave Clayton to hit a bouncing ball back to the pitcher and Pruzin to ground out to second base.

"He threw the ball very well," said Upp. "Both pitchers did. We struck out way too much. They got the strikeouts and we had to make plays. It wasn't a difficult decision to start Andy. We got the extra day. He's been throwing the best of our pitchers. We still have a chance in the conference. We felt we had to go with our best."

LaPorte's coach had a running battle with the home plate umpire who made some key strike calls against the home team. With one out in the sixth and Joel Chrobak at second base, the plate umpire made a very late call of strike three on a 3-2 pitch. Upp, who was in the third base coaches box, charged the home ump and expressed his opinion with some arm waving. In the seventh inning, with runners at first and second and one out, a 3-0 pitch to Jared Mrozinske drew a late strike call. On the next pitch, Mrozinske bounced the ball back to the pitcher and Pruzin started a double play.

Upp (in an animated manner) and assistant coach Bob Schellinger (in a much more quiet way) both walked to the plate and questioned the call.

"I didn't think the home plate ump was that bad," said CP catcher Craig Horvat.

"He made a couple of late calls and a couple of pitches were low but he called them strikes all day. I thought he was consistent."

Horvat thought Pruzin was more than consistent. "That's the best he's thrown with me catching him. They couldn't touch him all day. His off speed pitches were just perfect tonight. I couldn't ask any more."

CP relief pitcher Adam Vetter also came to the front in the bottom of the 10th inning. With darkness descending, Vetter gave up a single and walk and a sacrifice bunt to the first three hitters.

Vetter then struck out Chrobak and Hannon, both on 1-2 pitches, both on off-speed pitches. LaPorte probably expected Vetter's above average fastball.

"Yeah, I know," said Horvat. "We have a nice rapport between us where we both know what we wanted to do there."

Crown Point didn't adjust well to the pitching of Weeks, who came in with a 5-0 record and a 1.27 ERA. It was the second time a left-hander had stopped them (Munster's Brian Bokowy was the other) but this was different.

Strayer was the in-game CP batting instructor during the contest trying to get his batters to cut down their swing against Weeks' sharp breaking pitches, which were probably in the 70-75 mile an hour range.

"If we have somebody out there who's throwing us fastballs and hard curves, we're fine," said Strayer. "I guess that's the same way with everybody."

Crown Point's main strength is their four senior starting pitchers but Strayer didn't feel good about using two of them in a game that had to be replayed.

"I didn't want to use Vetter," he said, "but I didn't want to lose either."

DOG NOTES: By Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) rules, a tie league game must be replayed in its' entirety on the next available week day. Since both LaPorte and CP had DAC games on Friday, the Bulldogs expected to replay the game Monday (May 12) at 4:45 p.m. LaPorte, a team that started four sophomore, four juniors and a freshman, was 5-0 in one run games after 18 starts. In the first meeting on April 17, CP beat LaPorte 10-1. That was only the fourth win for CP in 20 tries against LaPorte.

LaPorte records are not kept before 1960 but during that time, no school that has played the Slicers more than 10 times, has a won-loss edge on them. LaPorte is 23-4 against Lowell, 11-5 against Andrean, 27-6 against Penn and 60-13 against Valparaiso.

Crown Point (12-3-1, 6-1-1 DAC)

Head Coach Steve Strayer - 2002: 13-12-1 - DAC Games in CAPS

4-7: (Snow) Hammond (0-16)
4-8: (Cold) at Gavit (5-12)
4-10: 19-1 (5 innings) at Highland (14-3)
4-11: 8-0 Morton (4-9)
4-15: 13-2 (6 innings) MERRILLVILLE (6-10)
4-16: 8-1 Hebron (8-7)
4-17: 10-1 LaPORTE (13-4-1)
4-19: 3-2 Griffith (10-8)
4-21: 5-7 at MICHIGAN CITY (8-5)
4-23: 16-3 at PORTAGE (8-9)
4-25: 11-0 (6 innings) at HOBART (6-11)

Munster Invitational
4-26: 2-4 at Munster (12-5)
4-26: 13-0 (5 innings) Merrillville (6-9) 3rd place

4-29:   2-1 VALPARAISO (15-3)
5-1:    2-1 CHESTERTON (7-7)
5-2:    2-4 at Lake Central (11-3)
5-5:    18-2 (5 innings) at MERRILLVILLE (6-9)
5-7: 1-1 (10 innings-tie) at LaPORTE (13-4-1)

5-9 (F) MICHIGAN CITY (9-5) 4:45 p.m.
5-12 (M) at LaPorte (13-4)
5-13 (Tu) PORTAGE (8-9) 4:30 p.m.
5-15 (Th) HOBART (6-11) 4:30 p.m.
5-17 (S) Munster (12-5) 11 a.m.
5-20 (Tu) at VALPARAISO (15-3) 4:30 p.m.
5-21 (W) Lake Central (11-3) 4:30 p.m.
5-22 (Th) at CHESTERTON (7-7) 4:30 p.m.
5-27 (Ut) Lowell (13-4) 4:30 p.m.
5-29 (Th) Clark (10-4) 4:30 p.m.

MERRILLVILLE (4A) SECTIONAL
6-2 (M) quarterfinals - 5 p.m.
6-3 (Tu) quarterfinals - 5 p.m.
6-6 (F) semifinals - 5 p.m.
6-7 (S) championship (TBA)

South Bend (4A) REGIONAL (at Covaleski Stadium - South Bend)
6-14 (S) semifinals - 10 a.m.
6-14 (S) championship - 7 p.m.

2003 STATE Baseball FINALS (at Victory Field - Indianapolis)
6-20 (F) 4A semifinals - TBA
6-21 (S) 4A championship - TBA