Greencastle starting pitcher Kyle Nobles must have felt like Peanuts comic strip character Charlie Brown, who is continually getting undressed by line drives while on the pitching mound.
Leading off the bottom of the first inning for West Vigo, Jordan Pearson hit a sizzling line drive that literally spun Nobles around, the ball scooting into center field for a single. Pearson promptly stole second base.
The second batter, Cameron Fagg, hit a scorching line drive into left field for a single to plate Pearson. Fagg promptly stole second base.
The fourth batter, Jeremy Lucas, hit a screaming line drive a few feet over the shortstop’s head. But instead of landing in left field, the ball literally elevated again and dropped over the fence just shy of the football bleachers.
West Vigo would eventually score four runs in the first and go on to dispatch Greencastle 9-2 in a Class 3A West Vigo sectional baseball semifinal game on Saturday.
In similar fashion, South Vermillion lit up Sullivan with a six-spot in the top of the first inning of the nightcap. The Wildcats would proceeded to eliminate the Arrows 12-2 in a five-inning contest.
Class 3A No. 3-ranked West Vigo (24-1) will oppose South Vermillion (13-9) in the all-Western Indiana Conference sectional championship game at 6 p.m. on Monday.
“Good start,” stated West Vigo coach Steve DeGroote. “Kids came to play. The first two, three or four innings, if they’ll come to play like that all the time, we’ll be tough to beat. They just came to play and played with intensity. I thought we let up a little bit at the end, then they tightened down and did a good job.”
“When you don’t get a lot of hits and make a few mental mistakes against a team that’s fundamentally sound as West Vigo, you’re not going to get very far with them,” countered Greencastle coach Troy Remsburg.
The Vikes would score two runs in the second, then single runs in the next three innings. They only generated five hits after the first inning, but utilized eight stolen bases, four wild pitches and two errors by the Tiger Cubs to key their scoring punch.
The Vikings even flashed some leather, especially in the fourth inning.
Executing a pregame defensive drill to perfection, the Vikings quickly turned a 6-4-3 (Wampler-to-Pearson-to Aaron Welch) double play to erase a leadoff single. Brodey McCalister tracked down a long foul ball, reaching back over his head while running into the left field corner, to account for the third out.
“Our defense has always been there for us,” DeGroote said.
Winning pitcher Scotty West went the first six innings, scattering six hits and allowing two runs, both of those unearned. Lucas pitched a scoreless seventh inning to close out the victory.
Fagg was 3 for 4 with three RBI’s, including a long home run off his bat for West Vigo’s final run in the fifth inning.
In the nightcap, the Wildcats struck like lightning — which narrowly avoided the West Vigo ballpark, although a steady light shower dampened the second and third innings.
A Sullivan error — the Arrows would commit eight miscues — was followed by a walk to lead off the first inning. Cody Mumaw doubled in one run, Nick Alfke singled in the second run, a wild pitch scored a third run, Josh Vaughan singled in a fourth run, then eighth-place batter Trevor Monroney hit his first home run of the season to account for their fifth and sixth tallies.
With the sudden 6-0 lead, the Wildcats added two runs to the scoreboard in each of the second, third and fifth innings.
“I thought the kids came out ready to play … that’s been important both [sectional] games,” said SV coach Tim Terry. “We knew game one [Friday’s win over Owen Valley] was important because you’ve got to have it and game two gets you to the title game, which is where we want to be. And anything can happen in that game.
“We’ve worked to come together at this point,” Terry said of his team’s last season success. “We hope we have.”
Things were a bit glum for Sullivan as they managed just one hit, after defeating Edgewood 9-3 on Friday.
“Disappointed,” Sullivan coach Vance Edmondson said. “Feel bad for the seniors … and all of our guys. We just have to give credit to South Vermillion. They came out and did what they needed to do. I don’t think we ever recovered from that.
“For us to be successful, we have to get off to a good start. In the past four or five games we’ve played, we’ve done that. Tonight we just didn’t do that and it caught up to us.”
West Vigo 9, Greencastle 2
Greencastle ab r h bi WVigo ab r h bi
Grzesiek dh 3 0 0 0 Pearson 2b 3 2 1 0
Johnson c 0 0 0 0 Fagg 3b 4 2 3 3
Ford 2b-p 3 0 1 1 Wampler ss 3 0 2 0
Nobles p-1b 3 0 1 0 Lucas c-p 2 2 1 2
Shuee ss 3 0 1 0 Welch 1b 4 1 1 0
Rchrdsnn 1b-3b 2 0 0 0 McCalister lf-c 4 0 0 0
R.Battin ph 1 0 0 0 West p 1 1 0 0
Bartrum rf 3 1 1 0 Keith lf 0 0 0 0
Remsburg cf 2 0 0 0 Thornton rf 4 0 1 2
T.Battin lf 1 0 0 0 Knoepfel cf 0 0 0 0
Vrmiln 3b-2b 3 1 2 0 Aff cf 2 1 1 0
Wheat rf 0 0 0 0
Totals 24 2 6 1 Totals 27 9 10 7
Greencastle 000 020 0 — 2
West Vigo 421 110 x — 9
E — Nobles, Richardson, Fagg. DP — WV 1. LOB — G 5, WV 8. HR — Lucas (7), Fagg (5). SH — T.Battin. SB — Pearson 3, Fagg 2, Wampler, West, Aff. PO — Wampler.
IP H R ER BB SO
Greencastle
Nobles (L) 1 5 6 5 4 0
Ford 5 5 3 2 2 3
West Vigo
West (W, 5-0) 6 6 2 0 2 3
Lucas 1 0 0 0 1 2
Nobles pitched to two batters in the second inning.
WP — Nobles, Ford 3. HBP — by Ford (Lucas 2). PB — Lucas. T -- 1:51.
South Vermillion 12, Sullivan 2
5 innings
SVerm ab r h bi Sullivan ab r h bi
Johansen cf 4 3 1 0 Shorter rf 2 1 0 0
Reyher ss 2 3 1 0 Dugan cf 3 0 0 0
Mumaw 3b-lf 4 2 2 2 Clements 2b-ss 3 0 1 1
Alfke p-3b 4 1 2 3 Lisman pr 0 0 0 0
Naylor 2b 4 0 0 0 Nash p-1b 1 0 0 0
Vaughan dh 2 1 1 1 Ka.Wilson pr 0 0 0 0
Turchi 1b 0 0 0 0 J.Smith ss-p 1 0 0 0
A.Smith c 2 1 1 0 Jones 1b-2b 3 0 0 0
Monroney rf 3 1 1 2 Hammrbchr c 3 0 0 0
Frazier lf 2 0 0 0 Plummer 3b 1 0 0 0
Kemp p 1 0 0 0 A.Smith lf 1 1 0 0
Totals 28 12 9 8 Totals 18 2 1 1
South Vermillion 622 02 — 12
Sullivan 002 00 — 2
E — Reyher, Turchi, Shorter, Clements 2, J.Smith 2, Plummer 3. LOB — SV 5, Sul 8. 2B — Mumaw 2. HR — Monroney (1). PO — Johansen.
IP H R ER BB SO
South Vermillion
Alfke (W) 2 2-3 0 2 1 4 2
Kemp 2 1-3 1 0 0 3 2
Sullivan
Nash (L) 3 8 10 5 2 3
J.Smith 2 1 2 0 2 2
WP — Alfke, Nash 2, J.Smith. PB — Hammerbacher. T — 1:31.
Next — West Vigo (24-1) opposes South Vermillion (13-9) in the Class 3A West Vigo sectional championship game at 6 p.m. on Monday. Greencastle (8-17) and Sullivan (8-15) concluded their seasons.
High School
3A Baseball Sectional: West Vigo hits then steals its way past Greencastle; South Vermillion takes care of Sullivan 12-2
- High School
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Shining Knights: Northview tops both TH teams for title
A high school baseball game that had been tense all the way through reached angina-producing heights at the end Monday night, as Northview ended Terre Haute South’s sectional championship run by a single run and a fraction of an inch.
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Miners beat 2A newcomer for 3rd straight title
Linton and North Central were both defending high school baseball sectional champions, but the Thunderbirds’ move up to Class 2A did not go as they expected.
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South hangs on after scary moment in sectional semis
Terre Haute South’s bid for a sixth consecutive high school baseball sectional championship took a scary turn Monday afternoon.
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PREP/METRO ROUNDUP: Turkey Run rolls to title
Turkey Run routed North Vermillion 15-2 to capture the Class A Rockville Sectional championship for high school baseball Monday night.
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Eaton’s pair of long balls put Linton in title game
Linton blasted its way into the championship game of its hometown Class 2A high school baseball sectional as No. 9 hitter Beau Eaton cranked a pair of home runs to left field, and starting pitcher Tanner Butler capped Linton's scoring with a grand slam.
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It’s a rivalry-filled Memorial Day for sectional contenders
Longtime rivalries figure to determine high school baseball sectional champions throughout the Wabash Valley today, with semifinal and final games scheduled at four sites and a stand-alone championship game at a fifth.
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South tops Oldenburg to win tennis semistate
There was no evidence of rally caps, rally towels and certainly no rally squirrels, but Terre Haute South’s No. 1 singles player Maddie Kesler needed a rally in the worst way.
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New route leads to same place for South girls tennis
For so many years, the road to the IHSAA girls tennis state finals for local teams ran through Vincennes (regional) and Jasper (semistate). In other words, south and more south.
This year, their trip was re-routed through Greencastle (regional) and Center Grove (semistate). So it cnahged to east and more east. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Robinson tops Greenville in sectional semifinal
Robinson jumped to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, then cruised to a convincing 12-3 victory over Greenville in a IHSA Class 2A Vandalia sectional semifinal game on Thursday.
Ashlyn Sullivan was 2 for 3 with a double, home run and three RBIs to lead the winning Maroons. -
West Vigo baseball falls in sectional to Owen Valley
West Vigo overcame the odds to win 20 high school baseball games this season with a lineup that often included four freshmen and few seniors.
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South Vermillion softball's late-season surge comes to end
A late-season surge by South Vermillion wasn’t quite enough to halt a high school softball sectional winning streak by the host team Thursday night, as Edgewood got on top early and held on for a 5-2 win in the championship game of the Class 3A Edgewood Sectional.
The loss was just the second in the last 12 games for the Wildcats. The Mustangs, however, haven’t lost a sectional softball game for eight years in a row. -
South takes second, North third at boys track regional
Terre Haute South finished second and Terre Haute North third on Thursday night at the boys track and field regional at Evansville Central, with 11 individuals and three relay teams qualifying for the state finals June 2.
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PREP ROUNDUP: White River Valley baseball holds off Eminence
Three Eminence errors in the top of the sixth inning finally enabled White River Valley to score in high school baseball Thursday night, and the Wolverines went on to a 5-0 win in Class A Shakamak Sectional action.
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Feeling cursed: South bitten in sectional final again
Terre Haute South softball is not even close to being as cursed as a certain northside baseball team in Chicago, but it might just seem like it.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Mundy, Porter, Knight individual regional winners
Chanli Mundy and Keirra Porter of Terre Haute North were among the individual winners in the IHSAA Evansville Central girls track and field regional that ended late Tuesday night.
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Thornton puts away South Vermillion
Cody Thornton’s three-run blast over the left-field fence was the finishing touch to West Vigo’s 10-3 victory over South Vermillion in the opening game of the Class 3A Greencastle Sectional on Wednesday.
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Lakers triumph, go home for regional
Shakamak took Class A Clay City Sectional honors in high school softball for the first time since 2009 Wednesday, defeating White River Valley 9-5 in the title tilt.
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North Vermillion avenges losses
North Vermillion avenged two high school softball losses during the regular season to win the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional championship Wednesday with a 3-2 triumph over the host Panthers.
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Pats, Knights will meet in sectional
Adler Ingalsbe pooh-poohed his lack of velocity Wednesday night, yet the Terre Haute North pitcher was throwing BBs in the first game compared to Mooresville’s Brandon Topie in the nightcap.
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South outbattles Northview to reach sectional final
Even the best of high school softball pitchers can’t keep all the batters in the middle of Terre Haute South’s lineup down.
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Panthers get 20th win in sectional
Riverton Parke will face North Vermillion in the Class A softball sectional championship at Riverton Parke today, with action commencing at 6 p.m.
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Plainfield Sectional all about parity
Considering Terre Haute South has won five consecutive Class 4A sectional titles in high school baseball, naming the Braves as favorites to capture the 2012 Class 4A Plainfield Sectional would not seem far-fetched.
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PREP ROUNDUP: North Vermillion in title game
Casey West had a triple and three runs scored to help North Vermillion softball advance to the championship game of the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional on Tuesday.
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North takes second in track regional
Terre Haute North finished second with 74 points, six behind team champion Evansville Reitz, during the Evansville Central girls track and field regional that ended late Tuesday night.
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Wildcats advance to sectional softball final; West Vigo falls
Patience, patience.
South Vermillion exhibited great patience, being very selective at the plate and it paid off royally in the fourth inning. -
South, Crawfordsville win in regional tennis semis
Terre Haute South outlasted Fountain Central 4-1 in the first round of the girls high school tennis regional Tuesday, advancing the Braves into today’s championship match against Crawfordsville.
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Braves, Knights open with wins
It was an excellent night for starting softball pitchers to help their own cause Monday night in the Class 4A Northview Sectional.
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Lough dreamt about McMillan
A two-time state finalist in wrestling and a two-time all-Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference football player and wrestler, Tsali Lough of Terre Haute South was named the male recipient of the 2012 McMillan Award on Monday night at South’s Senior Awards Night.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Panthers cruise in sectional opener
Sarah Burnham pitched a two-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts in high school softball Monday evening as host Riverton Parke defeated defending champion Rockville 10-0 in opening-round action at the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional.
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Notable tradition bodes well for Riverton Parke
Located practically in the shadow of a high school that sets one state standard in track and field, Riverton Parke has a tendency to be overlooked in that sport.
- More High School Headlines
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