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.
Discussion
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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. -
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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. -
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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. -
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The Knights hit three home runs in an eight-run third inning to reach the championship game. -
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PREP ROUNDUP: South tennis cruises into regional final
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Terry enjoys strong year with Wildcats, and still enjoying suiting up to play
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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
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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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Softball sectionals up for grabs
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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. -
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Olds pitches South to share of MIC baseball title
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Damon Olds was dominant on the mound for the Braves, striking out 14 and walking just one while pitching a three-hit shutout. -
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