MOUNT VERNON — A bases-loaded walk to right fielder Luke Wilson in the bottom of the seventh inning gave the Mount Vernon High School baseball team a 5-4 win over visiting Dublin Jerome in Ohio Capital Conference Cardinal Division baseball action on Wednesday. Yellow Jacket shortstop Aaron Beeman scored from third on the play.
“It was a big win for us in the OCC,” Mount Vernon coach Doug Savage said. “All of the league wins are going to be a little bit bigger than the nonleague wins.”
Beeman led off the seventh inning and greeted Celtics’ lefty reliever Drew Whitson by driving one to the deepest part of center field and legging out a triple. That chased Whitson and the Celtics brought in Jared King from first base, but he fared no better. After walking catcher Zack Melton and second baseman Kolton Wilson to load the bases, King fanned third baseman Eric Benedetti.
“I was waiting on his fastball,” said Beeman. “I was ready for it. All I wanted to do was get on base because I knew we needed a run to win the ballgame. I had a feeling, when I got to third base that the game was in the bag.”
The Celtics, who had shifted their defense around to play five infielders and only two outfielders, would need to do none of that as King issued Luke Wilson a walk for the game-winning score.
In a game that was loaded with good pitching and defensive gems, none was bigger than Kolton Wilson’s in the seventh inning. He made a diving stab to his glove side, taking away an almost-certain hit away from Jerome first baseman Tyler Kiste. He made a great throw to first to get the out.
“Kolton Wilson made some huge plays at second base,” said Savage. “He made two diving plays, but that last one was unbelievable and that kept the tie at 4 right there. They don’t get any bigger than that.”
Kolton Wilson was just trying to keep the ball from getting out of the infield.
“I just dove trying to stop it,” said Kolton. “I just turned and threw it to first and (Drew) Cheek was there to catch it. Dublin Jerome has a great team, and we just kept battling back and battling back. This is a very big win. I mean, we lost our last three games and this gets us right on our feet.”
It was a very important out, because King had just tied up the game at 4 with a two-run single and stole second to get himself into scoring position with the go-ahead run. Kolton Wilson’s spectacular play and the ensuing fly ball by Dublin third baseman Alex Schillig to Jackets’ left fielder Kyle Shackle held the Celtics and preserved the tie.
Tom Calland was superb in center field for the Jackets, making a nice running catch in the fourth. It was in the first, however, that Calland made an eye-popping grab of a slicing blast by the left-handed swinging Schillig with a pair of runners on base. Calland, who had to turn his back to home plate and change directions too as the ball curved away from him, saved two runs.
“Tommy Calland’s defensive play in center field was second to none,” said Savage. “It looked like he was burned. It looked like that ball was over his head for sure. He turned one way and then, he had to literally turn his back to the ball. Then, he turned around and caught it running toward the fence. I have seen him make so many good catches in center field that it doesn’t surprise me when he does that.”
Both runners scored anyway when Jerome left fielder Ben Sward drove a double to a place in left-center that even Calland couldn’t get to. Calland’s catch, however, helped to limit the Celtics to only two runs and it also helped Mount Vernon starting pitcher Robert Kane to settle down and pitch five scoreless innings.
“Robert pitched his heart out,” said Savage. “He has good poise for a sophomore. He reminds me a bit of Levi Curry as a sophomore in the fact that he doesn’t seem like a sophomore. He seems more like a junior or senior with the poise he has shown.”
The Jackets tied it up in the third, when Beeman socked an RBI double and Melton followed with a single that plated Beeman. It may have proven to be a bigger inning, but for a controversial runner’s interference call on Cheek at second.
Calland hit a grounder to Celtic shortstop Robert Phillips, who tossed it to second baseman Tyler Rosenbaum. Cheek slid into Rosenbaum, upsetting him to break up a 6-4-3 double play. Cheek was clearly out on the force at second, but he was also called for interference. That caused Calland, who safely made it to at first base, to be automatically out, much to the consternation of the home fans.
Mount Vernon continued to shut down the Celtics. In the sixth, Jerome pinch runner Brett Mosher reached third on a stolen base, and a throwing error. With nobody out, the Jackets brought in the infield, got three ground-ball outs, and stranded Mosher at third, holding Jerome scoreless.
The Jackets took the lead in the sixth on an RBI single by Kane and a run-scoring sacrifice by Shackle to score Benedetti and Luke Wilson.
Mount Vernon returns to action on Saturday with a doubleheader at Lexington. The first game is set for 10 a.m.