INDIANAPOLIS — It’s not often a high school baseball team on the short end of a 12-2 score can legitimately lament wasted chances and missed opportunities, but Shakamak endured that unfortunate situation Saturday afternoon at Victory Field. If former Arizona Cardinals football coach Dennis Green had been there, he could have paraphrased his most famous rant: “You let ‘em off the hook.” And coach Chip Sweet of the Lakers would have agreed. Top-ranked Lafayette Central Catholic won its fourth straight Class A state championship and fifth in the last six years — Shakamak interrupted in 2008 — by putting together a tie-breaking nine-run rally in the top of the fifth inning Saturday. But the Knights were extremely fortunate the score was tied at that point, and the Lakers contributed to their own demise to help the big rally get started. “When someone looks at the score, they’ll think we got hammered,” Sweet said after the game. “But we put pressure on [the Knights].” And could have put on even more. Shakamak hadn’t been to Victory Field since its championship season, so every Laker was playing there for the first time — and several Knights for the fourth time. Shakamak’s start, understandably, was a little shaky. “We let the surroundings get to us a little bit,” sophomore Brett Yeryar admitted after the game. LCC got an unearned run in the top of the first inning on a leadoff single by Austin Munn, a passed ball, a ground out and a sacrifice fly. The Knights could have had more in the second inning after getting two hits and two walks, but Laker catcher Dylan Collins threw out one runner trying to advance on a ball in the dirt and Patrick Green struck out Munn — the Knights’ only strikeout of the game, as it turned out — with two out and the bases loaded. Then it was the Lakers’ turn. Yeryar laced a sharp single to center with one out in the bottom of the second, Luke Sweet walked and sophomore Christian Burris followed with probably the longest hit of his life. A .214 batter entering the game, with no home runs to his credit, Burris jumped on the first pitch he saw from Munn and launched a drive that one-hopped the fence between the 418 sign in left-center and the 405 mark in straightaway center, both runners scoring easily. The 400-foot blast, a homer in every other park he’ll play in, was “pretty much” the longest of his life, Burris said after the game. “I didn’t watch it, I was too busy running,” he added. “At that point, I thought we could win it, big-time. I thought we could’ve been state champions.” The next two Lakers couldn’t drive Burris home, and the Knights tied the score in the top of the third on a leadoff walk, a hit and a sacrifice fly. But the Shakamak hitters weren’t finished with Munn. Brock Dowell led off the third inning with an infield hit, Collins walked and Green hit a one-hop smash off Munn’s glove. The ball trickled into short right field but Dowell, who had held up at third, didn’t realize that in time to score. That proved to be a big play when Munn got out of the bases-loaded, no-outs jam with a strikeout and a double-play grounder. The Knights went out one-two-three in the top of the fourth, though, and Munn yielded three walks and threw a wild pitch in the bottom of the inning. One of the Lakers was picked off base, however, and that threat was wasted too. “Brock didn’t see me waving him in, and then we got the runner picked off the next inning,” Sweet said afterward. “We had [Munn] on the ropes at the time; a timely hit in there would’ve made a huge difference. “We should’ve gone into the fifth with the lead, a minimum [lead] of 3-2. Then [the Knights are] starting to feel a little pressure.” Instead, Munn led off the LCC fifth with a walk and Nick Stone blooped a ball down the right-field line that fell for a double. Green induced what looked like a harmless popup down the third-base line, but three Laker defenders were unable make a play and the ball landed a foot in fair territory for an RBI single. Andrew Hubertz followed with a seeing-eye single to drive in one run, LCC’s other runners moving to second and third on the fairly close play at home, and Jake Churchill doubled through the Lakers’ pulled-in infield for two more runs. “We miss those opportunities, and then we start the fifth with a walk,” Sweet noted later. “They get a duck snort [the bloop double], that ball falls in down the left-field line … that opened the floodgates, and sometimes it’s hard to get the bleeding stopped.” The Knights wound up with eight hits in the inning, including a pair of long extra-base blows later, and added four more hits for their final run in the sixth. “It’s definitely disappointing,” Dowell said after the game — and after winning the L.V. Phillips Mental Attitude Award for Class A baseball. “This wasn’t the ending we wanted. [The Knights] came here and did what they needed to do … but I couldn’t fault our effort. I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys to go out with.” “LCC is a great ballclub,” said fellow senior Robert Fowler. “We didn’t have enough hits and we didn’t make enough plays.” “This is a bitter taste, but I’m glad we made it here,” said Yeryar. “We battled hard, and I feel we deserved to be here. It wasn’t the greatest of outcomes, but we got some experience and we hope to be back soon.” “That taste in my mouth is going to push me to come back again,” Burris agreed. “We can come back and win it next year.” “It’s really been a special year,” Sweet said. “We felt [at the beginning of the year] we were going to be better, and then the young kids got some confidence, our hitting started coming around … the kids are hurting right now, but at this age they’re resilient. Are they disappointed a little bit? They might be, but I know before long they’ll be really proud of what they accomplished.” “It was a great season, with a lot of great times,” said Fowler. “We had a great group of guys and great coaches. “[Being part of this team] helps me persevere,” maybe the team’s most improved player continued. “I learned a lot from each coach, each in his own way. They taught me an unbelievable amount of knowledge.”
High School
Related Photos
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Another one for the trophy case in Jasonville: Shakamak's Brock Dowell and Robert Fowler display the Class A state runner-up trophy after the team's championship game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Too much LCC: Shakamak catcher Dylan Collins catches the throw to homeplate too late as Lafayette Central Catholic's Nick Stone slides to score during the teams' Class A state championship game Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Throw you out: Shakamak's Brett Yeryar rockets a throw to first base to throw out a Lafayette Central Catholic runner during the team's Class A state championship game Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Way to go, kid: Shakamak coach Chip Sweet hugs Brock Dowell after Dowell won the L.V. Phillips Mental Attitude Award in Baseball after the team's Class A state championship game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Infield defense: Shakamak's Brodie Crowe fields a ground ball during the team's Class A state championship game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday in Indianapolis.
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He's got it: Shakamak's Robert Fowler makes the catch during the team's Class A state championship game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Nice game: Shakamak's Brett Yeryar shakes hands with an IHSAA official after he was presented with his runner-up medal after the team's Class A state championship game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Demonstrated excellence: Shakamak's Brock Dowell is joined by his parents, Matt and Jessica Dowell, after he was awarded the L.V. Phillips Mental Attitude Award Saturday after the team's Class A state championship game Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Starting pitcher: Shakamak's Patrick Green pitches to a Lafayette Central Catholic batter during the team's Class A state championship game against the Knights Saturday in Indianapolis.
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Lakers back at Victory: Shakamak's Brent Yeryar wears his runner-up medal after the Lakers' Class A state final game against Lafayette Central Catholic Saturday at Victory Field in Indianapolis.
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Rough day at the office: Shakamak's Brock Dowell walks back to the pitcher's mound as Lafayette Central Catholic's Cowan Olinger (32) celebrates a run with his teammates during the Lakers' Class A state championship loss Saturday in Indianapolis.
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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
The winner of the Terre Haute sectional for girls high school tennis will come down to Terre Haute North and Terre Haute South.
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Terre Haute North gets 10 event victories to claim 12th straight sectional crown
Terre Haute North won 10 events Tuesday night while winning the Indiana High School Athletic Association girls track and field section at South Putnam High School for the 12th straight year.
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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
The fun that the Terre Haute South high school softball team had Saturday — including those five home runs — was all the result of the hard work the Braves had put in before the game, coach Dwayne Stout said after the game.
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Pirtle takes medalist, leads Sullivan to WIC title
Sullivan took team and individual honors in the Western Indiana Conference boys high school golf championships played Saturday at Idle Creek.
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Prep roundup: Patriots drop doubleheader to Carmel baseball
Host Terre Haute North saw its Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference baseball championship hopes suffer what was probably a fatal blow on Saturday as the Patriots lost a doubleheader to Carmel by scores of 8-7 and 11-8.
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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.
Not bad for a trio of freshmen. And the weekend hadn’t even started yet. -
Pairings drawn for high school softball sectionals
The IHSAA announced Thursday its pairings for the 2013 sectional softball tournament slated for May 20-25.
Regionals will take place May 28. -
North boys make it three consecutive Vigo County golf titles
Terre Haute North made it three in a row in Vigo County boys high school golf championship action Wednesday at Hulman Links.
The Patriots shot 161 to edge Terre Haute South with 165. West Vigo carded 222. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Wolf homers as North baseball wins 16th game
Terre Haute North erupted for seven runs in the third inning on its way to routing visiting White River Valley 14-1 in 41⁄2 innings of high school baseball Wednesday afternoon at Don Jennings Field.
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Northview's Carter strikes out 19 in 10-inning win against South Vermillion
Northview’s Taylor Carter and South Vermillion’s Daphne Dunegan locked into a 10-inning all-star softball pitching duel Tuesday night at Northview High School.
Unfortunately, one of them had to lose. -
PREP BASEBALL ROUNDUP: South Vermillion 4-0 in WIC after 4-3 win at Northview
Jordan Branz won his ninth game of the season, scattering six hits over eight innings to lead South Vermillion to a 4-3 victory at Northview in a Western Indiana Conference battle.
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Thompson going into Indiana High School Football Hall of Fame
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PREP ROUNDUP: South tennis wins against Oldenburg Academy
Playing on Ben Davis’ courts, Terre Haute South pulled out a 4-1 victory over Oldenburg Academy in girls high school tennis Tuesday.
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Multiple records fall in Big Four track meet
Terre Haute North dominated the girls competition, as expected, and Terre Haute South’s boys edged the host Patriots in what turned out to be a rain-soaked Big Four Classic high school track and field meet Saturday at North.
Despite the less-than-ideal weather, North’s girls set four meet records in compiling 132.5 points, outdistancing the runner-up Braves, who had 63.5. -
Four teams still in running for Big Four baseball crown
The 2013 Big Four baseball tournament was going to last longer than Saturday anyway, thanks to a schedule change this season.
Thanks to steady rain at Terre Haute North, it will last even longer than planned.
Terre Haute South beat West Vigo 2-0 in Saturday morning’s first game, and the second contest between Northview and the host Patriots was halted in the top of the third inning as the field became unplayable. - More High School Headlines
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