NWOAL OPENER … Evergreen’s Jake Farley catches a fly ball in the Vikings’ league opener versus Wauseon on April 13.
PHOTOS BY RENEA KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
WINNING PITCHER … Thad Reckner tossed a complete game with six hits allowed while striking out eight for Wauseon. VIEW 86 PHOTOS OF THIS CONTEST FOR FREE AT WWW.THEVILLAGEREPORTER.COM
By: Joe Blystone
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
Wauseon exorcised a number of demons, scoring nine times in the first three innings, to knock off Evergreen 10-5 on the opening night of league play in the NWOAL.
It was the first time the Indians have beaten the Vikings since 2021. “It was really big to win a league game right away and to get a win here,” Wauseon coach Dylan Leu said.
“Thad Reckner had a really good game, he controlled all four of his pitches on the mound.”
“We got that big lead right away and they started chipping away. They chipped away, they battled like crazy but eventually Thad kind of took over. We played both sides of the ball today well and it really was what we needed.”
It took all of two batters for the Indians to take the lead in a big way off Viking starter Austin Burghardt. Jack Altstaetter grounded a triple down the right-field line to lead off the game, then Reckner drilled a long two-run homer over the left-field fence to give the Tribe a quick 2-0 margin.
Wauseon added one more in the first when Ike Conrad hit an opposite-field double, went to third on a passed ball, and scored on a ground out.
Reckner’s two-out single up the middle plated Jack Croninger in the second to increase the margin to 4-0.
Then in the third, Wauseon hung a five-spot on the board to blow the game open at 9-0. Conrad’s second opposite-field double brought home one run, Kahle Albright’s solid single got another home to make it 6-0.
Then with the bases loaded with Indians, Altstaetter laced a bases-clearing double to right-center to boost the Wauseon lead to 9-0.
“One thing we have done well for the first two weeks has been swinging the bat,” Leu said. “We go up there with intentions of aggression at the plate.
“We aren’t looking for walks, we are looking for our pitch and saying ‘let’s rip’. I felt like those first three innings we were just hitting everything.”
Reckner coasted through the first three innings but ran into trouble with two down in the fourth.
An error and a walk put a pair of Vikings on base and Troy Manz delivered a two-run double to deep left that got Evergreen on the board. Blake Boucher followed with a triple to deep left-center to chop the Indians’ lead to 9-3.
Evergreen scored twice more in the fifth, again with two out. Jake Farley started the rally with a single and rode home on a double from Bryce Bolger. Brendan Holman’s sharp single scored Bolger to bring the Vikings within 9-5.
Altstaetter created an insurance run off Nolan Hudik in the sixth when he singled, went to second on a passed ball, took third on a fly to center, and scored on a ground out.
Reckner recovered after struggling in the middle innings to put down the last six Vikings he faced to get the complete-game victory.
Burghardt was touched for 10 hits and gave up eight runs in 2 1/3 innings. The Wauseon right-hander allowed six hits while walking two and striking out eight.
WHS 315 001 0 – 10 14 1
EHS 000 320 0 – 5 7 1
WP- Thad Reckner (IP-7, H-6, R-5, BB-2, K-8)
LP- Austin Burghardt (IP-2.1, H-10, R-8, BB-2, K-1)
LEADING HITTERS: (Wauseon) Thad Reckner – home run, single, 3 RBIs; Ike Conrad – 2 doubles, single, RBI; Jack Altstaetter – double, 2 singles, 3 RBIs; (Evergreen) Troy Manz – double, single, 2 RBIs; Bryce Bolger – double, RBI; Blake Boucher – triple, RBI