TERRE HAUTE —
High school baseball pitching depth is almost always at a premium. Toss in a Big 4 round-robin tournament that includes three games, one a big conference game for all teams involved, and other conference matchups in between and it equals a major headache for the coaches of the four teams.
Terre Haute North (11-4) and Terre Haute South (11-6) will play one another Thursday and Friday nights — both Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference games and the other counting for the MIC and Big Four — and then play Big Four games Saturday.
Northview (9-3) and West Vigo (10-5) also play big conference games Friday night, but they play vs. one another in a Western Indiana Conference/Big Four matchup tonight.
“The intention of the Big 4 was good, but I think it’s run its course,” South coach Kyle Kraemer said. “Terre Haute North and Terre Haute South are at a distinct disadvantage because we play Thursday-Friday-Saturday. Any coach in their right mind would not pitch a kid on Thursday or Friday and bring him back on Saturday. Playing four games in five days is easier than four games in three days.”
Hence, pitching depth will come into play Saturday as the four teams vie for local bragging rights.
West Vigo, winner of last year’s Big Four, has been led by junior left-hander Brandon Calleja (5-1), who is likely to go head-to-head with Northview tonight.
Freshman Davie Inman is 2-0 for the Vikings, and “another kid that’s come on a little bit, Travis Lewzader, he’s a senior. He’s got a great attitude and wants to play somewhere. He throws pretty hard and has a breaker,” West Vigo coach Steve DeGroote said. “And Kevin Stewart [0-4] is really starting to pitch well but has had hard luck with some errors behind him.”
Kraemer has been getting quality pitching from several guys this spring. Veteran right-handers Daniel Marlow (0-4), Cody Brock (3-0) and Damon Olds (2-0) are joined by freshman lefty Timmy Herrin (2-1) to form the Braves’ rotation.
“We don’t have that one guy that we would consider our ace. I think we have four guys that are about equal. If they throw strikes, they’re going to give us a chance to win,” Kraemer said.
The coaches all agreed that the tournament looks as wide open as it’s ever been.
“It looks like North is playing awful strong,” DeGroote said. “Northview ought to be tough. They’ve got a lot of kids that are juniors and seniors, a pitcher that can make a difference. South is always tough. If our pitching is there, we’ll be very competitive.”
Terre Haute North is 11-4 and off to a strong 5-1 start in the MIC. Coach Shawn Turner’s squad is led by senior right-hander Adler Inglesby on the mound.
“Location guy, he does a great job hitting his spots,” Turner said. “Doesn’t do a heck of a lot to get himself into trouble.”
Senior southpaw Landry Kaufman is 2-0, and seniors Nickohli Kimmel, Chris Gonzales (4-0) and sophomore Austin Hicks can all throw pretty hard, Turner said.
“All have started at some point. Don’t necessarily label them as No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. For the most part, we’ve gotten a lot deeper into games than we thought they would,” Turner said.
Northview’s pitching staff may be the most experienced of the four led by T.J. Decker, Kodie Girton, Craig Peters and Brock Wheeler.
Coach Scott McDonald likes his team’s chances if his offense can produce behind them.
The left-handed Girton can throw in the upper 80s when he’s on top of his game.
“Kodie got off to a slow start, but his [ERA] numbers will start decreasing. We try to protect all of our pitchers [as far as innings early in season],” McDonald said. “We’re really excited about our pitching. Whether we can catch the ball and score will dictate our success next weekend.”
While the four squads may not be at their best by Saturday — thanks to the busy schedules this week — the quality baseball of Terre Haute will be on display.
The four teams are a combined 41-18 (.696), which might be considered a down year compared to some recent seasons.
“Absolutely. Baseball in Vigo County and surrounding area often gets overlooked. I’ll put baseball in Vigo County up against any county in state of Indiana,” Kraemer added.
Looking at the other Big Four action this week:
• Track and field — With solid depth and five athletes that combined to take five first-place finishes at the MIC championships last week, the boys and girls teams of Terre Haute North and Terre Haute South will be the top contenders to win the Big Four meet Saturday morning.
North’s girls are the favorite after taking fifth at the MIC. Sydney Dickerson (800) leads the Wabash Valley in that event, while TaPring Goatee will be tough to catch in the 400.
Frsehman Keirra Porter, second at the MIC, has been a jolt to North’s girls in the 100-meter hurdles.
“She’s one of the top freshman hurdlers in the state,” North coach Mike Dason said. “Just looking for her to continue with her success. The girl that won it [at the MIC] and Keirra were far out in front of everyone else. She’s just one heck of an athlete. She’s also our second leg in 4x100.”
West Vigo’s Janelle Lucas and possibly Tasia Brewer of South could challenge Porter in the 110 hurdles, while Brewer appears to be the favorite in the 300 hurdles.
North’s relays — the 3,200 relay is three seconds off the school record — and throwers are also lifting them to favorite status this weekend.
Dason just looks forward to seeing everyone compete from all the teams.
“We’ve had such crappy weather for track meets that all the coaches have talked and want everyone involved,” Dason said. “Usually we have to identify our top athletes. This year, we can run anybody we want in it, we’re trying to give our other kids a chance to compete more.”
South’s girls team is led by distance specialist Nikki Theide, who will be the favorite in the 1,600 and should have another strong battle with North’s Chanli Mundy in the 3,200.
On the boys side, North’s Tyeson Mundy and South’s Jackson Bertoli should contend in the 3,200. North’s Justin Clapp has also been running well.
South’s Bertoli may be the top miler after running a 4:24.35 at the MIC, but points will be up for grabs as well with Peter Davis of North and Logan Hambrock of South also posting strong times of late.
West Vigo’s Andrew Kump and Nathan Kump have also posted strong times in the two distance races and should be in the mix.
“There’s good competition between those distance guys on all the teams,” South coach Mark Raetz said.
The Braves, defending Big Four champions, outscored the Patriots at the MIC meet, but the two teams went back and forth last year. Raetz expects more tight battles between the two as the spring continues.
“I think we’re pretty equal. It’s a pretty good matchup. I feel like we’re going to be pretty close all year. We were pretty close at the conference meet,” Raetz said.
South’s Tyler Seibert will be the man to beat in the 400, and Northview’s Nic Yocom is a contender in the 800 and above.
The field events include some great athletes.
North has the advantage in the pole vault with MIC champion Connor Curley, but Northview’s Patrick Durcholz, South’s Derik Whalen, and North’s Zach Potter and Willie Lower should have a close battle behind him.
South has a great high jumper in MIC champ Nick Jaeger, and Durcholz has jumped 6-3 this season. Throws should be fun with North’s Lee Davis and South’s Nic Keller being close so far on the performance list for discus.
• Softball — Action also begins today on the softball diamond, weather permitting.
Northview (14-3) and West Vigo (8-7) play tonight at Brazil in a Western Indiana Conference/Big Four game. Terre Haute North (14-3) and Terre Haute South (14-5) play today at 5 p.m. on the Braves’ diamond.
Like baseball, four programs take winning records into the action, meaning anything can happen.
“With this tournament and same goes for sectionals, it’s always wide open,” Northview coach Bethany Jones said. “With any team, knowing our history of many years, any one of us could go in and win it. Just depends on who plays best that day.”
Northview has the most dominant pitcher in the field — senior Taylor Carter, who had struck out 103 batters in 77 innings through last week.
“I think Northview’s the team to beat. Their schedule’s been tougher than ours from what I’ve seen,” South coach Steve Woerner said. “Their losses are to some pretty talented ballclubs. With Taylor on the mound, they’re tough. Us and North are so much alike. It’ll come down to who makes plays and who gets the big hit.”
Northview can also bring the offense behind Carter, Alyssa Conrad, Ashley Hughes and Hope Torbert near the top of the lineup.
The Patriots of Jack Kirchner are led by sophomore Jazmine Allen, who has a batting average of .585 to lead the Wabash Valley.
Kirchner looks forward to battling the Braves tonight.
“We’re kind of hot with our hitting,” he said. “We both pretty much play the same schedule and we’ve pretty much got the same record. I think it’s a typical North-South game. It’s going to be a close game. It’s going to be the team that makes the big play [today].”
Woerner has gotten solid performances up and down his lineup from players like senior Ashley Watkins and speedy sophomore Lexi Higgins.
While players like Mackenzie McGregor, Shelbie Scamihorn and Marissa Stout hold down the middle of the order, players like Watkins and Higgins have been big additions to the lineup.
“Watkins is new to the starting lineup this year and she’s been hitting the ball well for us,” Woerner said, “and Higgins has had a couple real big hits for us.”
West Vigo has been forced to deal with adversity as key offensive player Jacy McClain (.417 batting average) has been out with a head injury of late, and the Vikings were without pitcher Hannah Harden for a couple weeks.
Leslee Walters has been swinging a good bat for the Vikings, and Harden is back in the circle and throwing well.
High School
Related Photos
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Straight at you: South's Jacob Johnson fires a pitch against Mount Vernon. He won in relief. (Tribune-Star/Bob Poynter)
Discussion
Taking aim: No shortage of pitchers in this week’s Big 4 round robin
- High School
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West Vigo softball holds off nemesis Edgewood in softball sectional
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PREP ROUNDUP: Shakamak's Green hits two homers in win over West Vigo
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Terre Haute North offense unable to get going in loss to Mooresville
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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
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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
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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
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TH South beats Northview in Big Four makeup baseball game
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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. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Calleja pitches West Vigo past South Vermillion
Brandon Calleja had 13 strikeouts to lead West Vigo to a 5-1 victory against South Vermillion in high school baseball Friday.
Brandon Behringer went 2 for 4 with two RBI for the Vikings, who secured second place in the Western Indiana Conference.
Kaden Lawson had double for South Vermillion (15-7), which finished 4-2 in the WIC. -
Seibert returns from injury to win three events as Braves win sectional crown
His baseball equivalent might be Rick Sutcliffe of the 1984 Chicago Cubs.
When Tyler Seibert returned to the Terre Haute South track and field lineup Thursday for sectional action at Terre Haute North, it was like the midseason trade the Cubs made for Sutcliffe that earned them a playoff spot. -
South switches up lineup to defeat North in tennis sectional
Terre Haute South coach Bill Blankenbaker said two weeks ago that he would change the Braves’ lineup after the 3-2 dual-meet loss to Terre Haute North.
The Patriots knew it was coming, but they couldn’t do anything to stop it. -
PREP ROUNDUP: North slips past Northview in eight-inning baseball game
Colton Pittman drew a bases-loaded walk to score Zach Milam with the winning run in the bottom of the eighth inning as host Terre Haute North edged Northview 8-7 in high school baseball Thursday at Jennings Field.
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PREP ROUNDUP: North and South to face off for tennis sectional title
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Terre Haute North gets 10 event victories to claim 12th straight sectional crown
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North, South to meet in first round of baseball sectional
The Indiana High School Athletic Association announced pairings for the baseball state tournament Tuesday and the draw offered up a Vigo County battle in the opening game.
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PREP ROUNDUP: West Vigo softball clinches share of WIC title
West Vigo clinched at least a share of the Western Indiana Conference softball title with a 6-4 victory over Edgewood on Tuesday.
Jacy McClain and Bailee Waters had RBI singles in the fourth inning to break the game open for the Vikings. -
Track sectional titles on the line
Expect one heck of a high school dual track meet Thursday night when Wabash Valley boys visit Terre Haute North for sectional action.
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Prep report: Patriots, Braves favored to advance from tennis sectional 1st round
Persons attending this week’s girls tennis sectional championship match at Terre Haute North might want to pack a lunch.
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Local ADs happy to see spring come to a close
Brian Mancuso is the most experienced of the high school athletic directors in Vigo County — and that’s a very relative term — but even he wasn’t quite ready for the headaches that have accompanied spring sports the last few weeks thanks to rain, rain and more rain.
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South baseball remains in first-place tie with Center Grove
Heading into Saturday’s Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference baseball doubleheader against Center Grove, coach Kyle Kraemer of Terre Haute South wasn’t completely optimistic.
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Kehrt Award goes to Emily Bell, Lee Davis
Emily Bell of Terre Haute South and Lee Davis of Terre Haute North are the 2013 recipients of the Willard M. Kehrt Mental Attitude Award.
Bell and Davis were nominated by their schools and chosen in a vote by the Kehrt Award panel. Both will be recognized at awards assemblies later in the month at the schools.
Bell played varsity basketball four years at South and is competing in track this season, running the 800 and two relays. “I wanted something to do my senior year,” Bell said.
She plans to attend DePauw University and play basketball. DePauw is the reigning NCAA Division III champ in women's basketball.
Bell tore an AÇL playing in a basketball tournament the summer after her sophomore season. She missed most of her junior season but came back to play her senior year and was second leading scorer and leading rebounder her final season.
Bell also was leading rebounder her sophomore year. -
South softball's power display earns Braves share of MIC
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Pirtle takes medalist, leads Sullivan to WIC title
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Prep roundup: Patriots drop doubleheader to Carmel baseball
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Timely hits: After slow start, Terre Haute North rallies to beat Mooresville
No-hit through three innings, Terre Haute North’s bats came alive — especially Sam Wolf’s — just in time to rally for a 4-2 home victory over Mooresville in high school baseball Friday evening at Jennings Field.
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Linton’s Weber to coach at BNL
Bedford North Lawrence High School has announced that Steve Weber will be the Stars’ head coach for the 2013 season.
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Freshman group adds to Big Four teams' baseball tradition
The Terre Haute North-Terre Haute South high school baseball series wasn’t an inning old last week before T.J. Collett of the Patriots lashed a run-scoring single.
That hit helped the Patriots take a 2-0 lead, but in the top of the second inning a three-run double by Justin Jenkins sparked the visiting Braves to a four-run inning.
North tied the score in the bottom of the second inning, Collett driving in another run. And just before rain caused the game to be suspended, South called Logan Ames in from its bullpen for some solid pitching.
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