D3 DISTRICT FINAL … Archbold third baseman Brian Burrowes gets in position to field a throw while a Green Bear slides into third. (PHOTO BY JACOB KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
By: Joe Blystone
DEFIANCE – To error IS human, but Ottawa Hills was far from forgiving as the Green Bears took advantage of six Archbold fielding miscues to take an 11-2 victory and win the Division III district in Defiance.
After Archbold lefty Zach Short got through the first, he walked the first two hitters of the second and the first of those, Jackson Snyder stole second and took third when a pickoff throw was high at second.
Nash Barnes’ high chopper went for an infield hit to score one run, then Jack Eideneir’s sacrifice bunt turned into another Bear run when the throw to first pulled Mason Siegel off the bag, then his throw to third was wide to bring in another run.
A wild pitch scored a third in the inning and Anthony Adduci’s looping single to right marked a fourth.
Snyder reached on a one out error in the third, stole second and did the same to third when the Streaks dropped their guard on a throwback to the mound. Barnes delivered again with another infield single to make it 5-0.
Meanwhile Bears lefty Sebastian Stevens maybe wasn’t always sharp but was dominating as he recorded nine strikeouts around three walks in the first three innings. Stevens got out of a bases loaded, one out situation in the third.
After a walk, Devon Morris’ single to right and Krayton Kern’s infield hit, the burly southpaw struck out the next two hitters to escape damage.
Ottawa Hills added three more in the fourth when Reddick Pillarelli squeezed home a run on a first-and-third situation with one out and AJ George followed with a sharp two-run single to right to spell the end of the day for Short.
Archbold tallied their only two runs of the game in the fifth when Josiah Gomez and Morris opened the inning with singles, then with two down, Siegel delivered a hard ground ball through the middle to deliver both runners.
Ottawa Hills added two runs in the sixth on a hit batter and two more errors, before scratching out their final tally in the seventh on Barnes’ third infield single, a steal, sacrifice and Adduci’s ground out.
Kern went 3 1/3 innings in relief giving up three runs, one of them earned, and Masen Towns pitched the seventh for Archbold.
Ottawa Hills advances to the Hamler Regional to play Gahanna Academy, a team who has yet to allow a run in the tournament.
O. HILLS 041 302 1 – 11 8 0
ARCHBOLD 000 020 0 – 2 7 6
Records: Ottawa Hills 21-11, Archbold 18-9
WINNING PITCHER: Stevens (6 innings, 2 runs, 2 earned, 15 strikeouts, 5 walks) Other: Breed
LOSING PITCHER: Short (3.1 innings, 6 hits, 8 runs, 6 earned, 3 strikeouts, 3 walks) Other: Kern, Towns
LEADING HITTERS: (OH) Adduci – triple, single, 2 RBIs; George – single, 2 RBIs; Barnes – 3 singles, 2 RBIs, 2 runs; (Archbold) Morris – 2 singles; Siegel – 2 singles, 2 RBIs
Joe can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com