By Mark Carpenter-
After recently reinstating its 2020 season, the Southern Hills Youth Baseball League is in full swing, with games taking place four times a week at fields in both West Union and Winchester. On Thursday, June 25 in Winchester, it was a high school boys match up between the West Union “Baseball Gang” and the Greyhounds from Manchester. With the past high school baseball season being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the SHYL summer league is an opportunity for a few of those high school boys to get on the diamond and in action.
Unfortunately, there are only two teams of high school boys ages in the SHYL, therefore the squads from West Union and Manchester will battle each other eight times over the summer and last Thursday night was their third meeting to this point, with the Hounds taking both of the previous two, taking advantage of West Union miscues in the first match up for a 6-1 win and then pulling out a 2-1 walkoff win in the second outing. The third meeting was more of the same as again the Greyhounds used a slew of unearned runs for a come-from-behind walk off win, grabbing an 8-7 victory on a Ryland Wikoff game-winner in the bottom of the seventh.
Early on it looked as if the “Gang” was bent on avenging those earlier two defeats as they struck first, getting two runs off of Manchester starter Cade Colvin in the top of the first. Kyler Washburn led off the game with a booming double over the head of the left fielder and walks to Braxton Blanton and Ethan Boldman loaded the bases with no outs. It looked as if Colvin was going to wiggle out of trouble after he fanned the next two hitters, Daulton Grooms and Joey Wood, but control again became an issue as Franklin Myers was hit by a pitch and Jayden Abbott walked, forcing in a pair of runs for a 2-0 West Union advantage.
The score remained at 2-0 until the bottom of the third when the Hounds scored five times off of West Union’s Myers, four of them unearned, to jump in front. Brayden Young began the Manchester rally, leading off the frame with a walk, followed by another free pass to Michael Mullenix, Bryce Flack bounced into a fielder’s choice, erasing Mullenix at second base, and Andreas Vargas grounded a single to left, driving home Young with the first Greyhound run.
Then the miscues began to haunt the “Gang” once again as Cade Colvin dribbled one in front of the plate which Myers came in to pick up and then threw wildly over first baseman Noah Howelett’s head, allowing both Flack and Vargas to cross the plate to give the Hounds a 3-1 lead. Colvin went to second on the throwing error and when he attempted to steal third, the throw from catcher Daulton Grooms was off target, sending Colvin across with the fourth run.
The final run of the Manchester third came in a big way. with one out and the bases empty, Greyhound catcher Aaron Lucas found a Myers pitch to his liking and drove it out of the park, clearing the fence in right-center field for a solo homer and a 5-1 lead.
The Manchester lead was short-lived, however, as the West Union offense came right back to tally four runs in the top of the fourth off of Manchester’s Vargas, now on in relief. With one out, Wood walked and moved up on a base hit to left by Myers. A walk to Abbott filled the bases and a base hit to left by Luke Fetters brought home Wood and Myers to slice the Greyhound lead to 5-4.
Noah Howelett reached on an error and an ensuing infield hit off the bat of Nate Parks drove home Abbott to make it a tie game and a ground out to third by Brian Zinser drove home Fetters to give West Union a 6-5 advantage.
With Wood on in relief for West Union in the bottom of the fourth, the Hounds threatened with two runners on but did not score and with Colvin back on the hill for Manchester in the top of the fifth, the “Gang” also had two runners aboard, but also came up empty.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Hounds got to Wood for the tying run, with Vargas singling to left, stealing second and third and coming home on a throwing error by the West Union catcher. In the top of the sixth, West Union went back on top again when Myers blasted a one-out double to center, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Fetters. In the bottom half of the sixth, with Washburn now on the mound for West Union, Manchester drew even again when Hunter Kirker reached on a fielder’s choice, went to second on a wild pitch, and scored on an error to make it 7-7.
Wikoff was on the mound for the Hounds in the top of the seventh and was aided by his defense when catcher Lucas gunned down West Union’s Zinser attempting to steal third base, setting up the decisive bottom of the seventh. With Washburn still on the hill for west Union, Vargas grounded out to the pitcher to start the frame, followed by a walk to Cade Colvin, who promptly swiped second base. That brought Wikoff to the plate and he delivered the game-winner a base hit to left that scored Colvin and gave the Hounds the walkoff 8-7 victory.
The victorious Hounds were actually outhit in the win, with West Union getting six hits in the game, two each from Kyler Washburn and Franklin Myers, with Luke Fetters driving home three runs. The Hounds only managed five hits in the win, two of those off the bat of Andreas Vargas, who also scored two runs. The winning pitcher was Wikoff in relief, with Washburn taking the loss for West Union.
The two teams will match up for the fourth time on Friday, July 3 at 9 p.m. under the lights at the West Union Recreation Park.
West Union
200 401 0 —7
Manchester
005 011 1 —8
W. Union Hitting (AB-R-H-RBI): Washburn 3-1-2-0, Blanton 2-1-0-0, Boldman 1-0-0-0, Grooms 3-0-0-0, Wood 2-1-0-0, Myers 2-2-2-1, Abbott 0-1-0-1, Fetters 2-1-1-3, N. Howelett 3-0-0-0, Parks 3-0-1-0, Zinser 2-0-0-1, I. Howelett 1-0-0-0, Applegate 2-0-0-0, Scaff 2-0-0-0, Team 28-7-6-6.
Extra-Base Hits: Washburn 2B, Myers 2B
Manchester Hitting (AB-R-H-RBI): Vargas 3-2-2-1, C. Colvin 2-2-0-0, Wikoff 4-0-1-1, Lucas 2-1-1-1, K. Colvin 3-0-0-0, Reaves 2-0-0-0, Kirker 2-1-0-0, Young 2-1-0-0, Mullenix 2-0-1-0, Flack 3-1-0-0, Team 25-8-5-3.
Extra-Base Hits: Lucas HR
WP: Wikoff
LP: Washburn