LINTON —
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.
The host Miners (13-15) won a third straight Sectional 47 championship with a 8-2 victory in Monday night’s championship game.
North Central’s Connor Strain and Linton’s Tanner Butler, a pair of hard-throwing senior right-handers, had an epic pitching duel going in the middle innings.
Linton got the early lead, putting the pressure on the favored Thunderbirds, who finished another great season with a 20-6 record.
Linton made Strain pay for a few pitches left out over the plate. Abe Neff came up with two clutch hits to put his team ahead. The Miners’ junior second baseman had a two-run single in the third and a two-run double in the fifth to put his team up 4-0.
Linton got a good bounce on a slow roller down the third-base line, and then Aspen Taylor placed a beautiful bunt down the first-base line to set up two runners for Neff.
Strain got refocused and struck out the next six batters he faced, matching Butler who struck out the side in the fourth and fifth. Butler struck out 12 in six innings, giving way to Bryant Jackson in the seventh since Butler had tossed the entire 10 innings he was allowed Monday, winning a semifinal game earlier in the day.
Butler was able to go home and relax in the air conditioning and get his mind prepared for the title game. He said he relished the underdog role against the 20-6 Thunderbirds.
“We came down here as the underdog. It was tremendous winning this. I was all over it. I was at home thinking about the game all day. I was thinking if we win this game it was going to be crazy. It’s the first threepeat in Linton history,” Butler said.
Strain, heading to the University of Evansville next year to pitch, admired Butler’s effort Monday.
“Linton played a great game, their pitcher threw an outstanding game,” Strain said. “He got a little wild at the end, but other than that he was in the zone, mixing pitches up, keeping himself balanced. We were never really comfortable at the plate.”
The Thunderbirds left five runners on in the first four innings, but couldn’t string enough hits together as Butler seemed to get in a groove as the game moved along.
North Central had a rally going in the sixth after a single by Cole Johnson ended Butler’s run of six straight strikeouts. Nate Lyday walked, but Tyler Strain — Connor’s twin brother — thought he walked on a 3-1 pitch then struck out swinging. His complaint to the umpire got him ejected from the game.
The Thunderbirds continued to rally as Daniel Loveall walked to load the bases and Nolan Kinnett walked to force in a run. The Thunderbirds’ designated hitter, Jacob Hauger, flied out to deep center to end the inning.
But coach Craig Grow had to replace his left fielder. The replacement made an error after a Linton base-hit to lead off the sixth, causing a close play at second base that went in Linton’s favor. Connor Strain then was ejected by a base umpire for something he said.
With a new pitcher in the game for North Central, Linton took advantage, scoring four in the seventh to turn their 4-1 lead into an 8-1 lead.
The Thunderbirds had the top of their batting order coming up in the seventh inning, and Collin Harding led off the inning with a solo home run.
Grow was proud to coach a group of seven North Central seniors that includes Zach Lyday, Nate Lyday, Johnson, Connor and Tyler Strain, Loveall and Dillon Jewell. The Thunderbirds won more than 60 games over the past three seasons, and lost in a one-run game to Lafayette Central Catholic in the Class A state championship game last season.
“They’ve got to look back and look at the accomplishments they’ve and had and some day they can look back and get over this loss,” Grow said. “A lot of congratulations to those guys, we just didn’t hit the ball the way we have in the past. Up until that last inning, we were only down 4-1, and had some guys coming up. Just very, very tough loss.”
Linton 8, North Central 2
Linton ab r h bi N.Central ab r h bi
Taylor ss 3 3 2 0 Harding cf 3 1 1 1
Neff 2b 4 1 3 5 Z.Lyday ss-p 4 1 1 0
Butler p 3 1 1 0 C.Strain p 3 0 1 0
Bl.Eaton 1b 4 0 1 2 Boyll 2b 0 0 0 0
Helton cf 3 0 1 0 Johnson c 4 1 1 0
Vowell c 4 0 0 0 N.Lyday 2b-ss 1 0 0 0
Jackson 3b 3 0 0 0 T.Strain lf 1 0 0 0
Shelton pr 0 0 0 0 Copeland 1 0 0 0
Burgess dh 4 0 0 0 Loveall 3b 1 0 0 0
Be.Eaton lf 2 3 2 0 Kinnett 1b 2 0 0 1
Haugher dh 3 0 1 0
Lewis pr 0 0 0 0
Totals 33 8 11 7 Totals 23 2 5 2
Linton 002 020 4 — 8
North Central 000 001 1 — 2
Butler (W, 7-4) and Vowell; C. Strain (L) and Johnson.
Highlights — For Linton, Abe Neff had a double, 5 RBI and was 3-for-4;
Jewell, Johnson. LOB — L 4, NC 7. HR — Harding (1). 2B — Neff. SH — T.Strain. CS — N.Lyday.
Linton IP H R ER BB K
Butler (W, 7-4) 6 5 1 1 7 12
Jackson 1 1 1 1 2 1
North Central IP H R ER BB K
Strain (L) 6 6 4 4 1 9
Z.Lyday 1 4 4 4 0 2
PB — Johnson 2.
Next — North Central finished its season 20-6. Linton (13-15) plays the winner of the Class 2A Southridge Sectional on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Class 2A Southridge Regional.
High School
Miners beat 2A newcomer for 3rd straight title
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Freshman Hambrock, THS seek semistate tennis title
Having already claimed Terre Haute North Sectional and Greencastle Regional championships in girls high school tennis, Terre Haute South will try to add a semistate title to its 2013 list of accomplishments today as the Braves battle No. 25-ranked Greenwood.
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Prep roundup: South Vermillion reaches baseball sectional final
South Vermillion built an early 7-0 lead late Thursday night, then held off Owen Valley by a 10-4 score to advance to the championship game of the Class 3A West Vigo Sectional for high school baseball.
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West Vigo advances to sectional championship with walk-off win in ninth
High school baseball sectional games between West Vigo and Edgewood have had a tendency to be unpredictable over the years, but the Vikings and Mustangs outdid themselves in that area Thursday evening — and Thursday night.
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BOYS TRACK REGIONAL: North gets three winners, South two at Evansville
Terre Haute North had three winners, Terre Haute South two, and the Patriots and Braves finished second and third respectively at the Evansville Regional for boys track on Thursday at Evansville Central.
Hurdlers Cam Stewart and Cole Seward and discus thrower Lee Davis were the winners for North, enabling the Patriots to finish with 60 points to 59 for the Braves. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Martinsville adavances in Class 4A THS Sectional
Martinsville slipped past Mooresville 4-2 in the only game played Thursday in the Class 4A Terre Haute South Sectional for high school baseball.
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South Vermillion pitches team to sectional title, wins for her dad
South Vermillion snapped one streak and extended another Thursday night to win Class 3A Sectional 28 8-5 over Brown County at Edgewood High School.
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Green's grand slam helps Shakamak to sectional win
Patrick Green pitched the first four innings for his seventh win of the year and made things easier for himself with a second-inning grand slam as Shakamak opened the Class A Shakamak Sectional with a 9-1 win over Clay City on Thursday.
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Rockville, Attica winners in Class A sectional baseball action
Host Rockville defeated North Vermillion and Attica came from behind to overhaul defending champion Turkey Run on Thursday in the first round of the Class A Rockville Sectional for high school baseball.
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North baseball pulls away from South in sectional opener
In high school baseball little things mean a lot, and the crack in the door doesn’t have to be open very wide.
Terre Haute North burst through that crack in the bottom of the second inning Wednesday evening at Terre Haute South, scoring seven two-out runs and going on to a surprisingly easy 12-2 victory over the host Braves. -
Blank, Mundy named McMillan Award winners
Posing side-by-side for photos following Terre Haute North High School’s Senior Awards ceremony, seniors Calvin Blank and Chanli Mundy couldn’t look more different.
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West Vigo baseball advances with 10-0 win behind Stewart's two-hitter
West Vigo got off to a good start in Class 3A high school sectional baseball action Wednesday evening at Dick Ballinger Field.
The Vikings scored four runs in the first inning of the first sectional game and went on to defeat Brown County 10-0 in five innings with Kevin Stewart hurling a two-hitter. -
Terre Haute South tennis claims regional crown
It was a lot tougher than some thought it would be, but the Terre Haute South girls tennis team won the Greencastle regional for the second year in a row Wednesday evening at DePauw University Tennis and Track Center.
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Big group of Wabash Valley boys head to Evansville looking for state berths
The top four finishers in each event from last week’s Terre Haute North, Evansville Central, Jasper and Princeton boys high school track and field sectionals will converge on Evansville Central today for regional competition.
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West Vigo comes up short against 19-9 Brown County softball
West Vigo got off to a good start but Brown County finished better in Class 3A high school softball sectional semifinal action Tuesday night at Edgewood.
The Eagles bested the Vikings 7-5 and will meet South Vermillion, a 12-7 winner over Owen Valley, for the sectional championship on Thursday starting at 6 p.m.
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Valley baseball teams have been keeping busy heading into sectionals
When high school baseball sectionals begin around the Wabash Valley today, one complaint that’s not expected to be heard from any coach is that his team has had too much time off.
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Northview powers way past Terre Haute South in sectional semifinal
Northview unleashed power rarely seen in high school girls softball Tuesday night to eliminate Terre Haute South 8-1 in the Class 4A Sectional at Martinsville High School.
The Knights hit three home runs in an eight-run third inning to reach the championship game. -
Terre Haute North dominates field at regional
Keirra Porter took first place in two individual events and helped Terre Haute North win one of its relays as the Patriots captured the Evansville Central Regional team championship in girls high school track and field Tuesday night.
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PREP ROUNDUP: South tennis cruises into regional final
Terre Haute South didn’t lose a game en route to blanking Seeger 5-0 in girls high school tennis Tuesday to advance to today’s championship match against Crawfordsville in the Greencastle Regional.
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Terry enjoys strong year with Wildcats, and still enjoying suiting up to play
South Vermillion’s Tim Terry is the longest tenured coach in Wabash Valley high school baseball as his Wildcats are set to begin sectional play Thursday against Owen Valley.
But on the Yankees, a 35-and-over team in the Terre Haute Men’s Senior Baseball League, Terry is “just a youngster” if you ask Larry Roesch, his 68-year-old teammate on the Volkers Group Yankees. -
West Vigo softball holds off nemesis Edgewood in softball sectional
Ice cream was enough of a reward Monday night after the West Vigo Vikings beat eight-time defending champion Edgewood 6-2 in extra innings in the opening game of the Class 3A softball sectional at Edgewood High School. But that’s not what Vikings want.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Shakamak's Green hits two homers in win over West Vigo
Shakamak improved to 22-3 on the season behind a complete-game effort from Brett Yeryar, and Patrick Green hit two solo home runs in a high school baseball game Monday.
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Terre Haute North offense unable to get going in loss to Mooresville
Jack Kirchner chose to give credit Monday night to Mooresville pitcher Taylor Chitwood, not to the Greg Maddux-size strike zone she seemed to enjoy.
But if there were no excuses forthcoming from Kirchner and his Terre Haute North High School softball team, it wouldn’t have been hard to find a spectator or two to come up with extenuating circumstances about the Patriots’ 4-1 loss at the Class 4A Martinsville Sectional. -
Terre Haute North looking strong going into girls track regional
Terre Haute North might need an off night for anyone to catch them in the girls track regional at Evansville Central.
The Patriots are as well-rounded as they’ve ever been, and two relay teams are state contenders with times ranking No. 2 in Indiana among times recorded all spring.
Terre Haute South, Northview and Sullivan have athletes among the contenders in multiple events as well. -
South tennis ready for potential challenge in regional
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
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Softball sectionals up for grabs
All three Vigo County high schools and Northview appear to have a realistic chance of winning sectional championships in softball this week.
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Terre Haute South, Northview vie for tennis regional title
Terre Haute South and Northview take respective records of 10-5 and 11-5 into the Greencastle Regional today.
Coach Bill Blankenbaker’s Braves will play Seeger at 4:30 p.m., while coach Emily Goff’s Knights will take on Crawfordsville about 6 p.m. -
Vikings win in extra innings at Rockville
West Vigo scored six runs in its first two innings Saturday, then needed a ninth-inning single by Lucas Fagg to escape with a 7-6 extra-inning win in nonconference high school baseball at Rockville.
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TH South beats Northview in Big Four makeup baseball game
Terre Haute South wrapped up a share of the MIC baseball title and finished up the Big Four Classic with an 8-1 victory over Northview in less than 24 hours on Saturday morning.
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Olds pitches South to share of MIC baseball title
Friday night, winning the second game 5-0 and earning a share of the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title.
Damon Olds was dominant on the mound for the Braves, striking out 14 and walking just one while pitching a three-hit shutout. -
South wins first half of doubleheader against Lawrence North
Host Terre Haute South kept its Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball title hopes alive — and clinched no worse than second place in the process — by downing Lawrence North 4-1 in the first game of a doubleheader Friday night.
The second game, which started after Senior Night festivities between games, ended past the Tribune-Star deadline. - More High School Headlines
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