Lightning wins bumpy ride

Bryce Alderton

The ride for a second-year varsity baseball team can sure be bumpy at

times, requiring endurance and concentration to get through the rough

spots.

Sage Hill School encountered some pot holes, even some rocky

terrain, but persevered enough Friday to defeat visiting Liberty

Christian, 16-9, in a consolation semifinal of the Sage Hill Spring

Classic.

The Lightning went on to defeat Eastside Christian, 11-1, in the

consolation championship game Friday to improve to 9-5.

The Lightning scored five runs in the fifth inning and four runs

in the sixth to blow open the first game Friday, a contest in which

the Minutemen led three times.

Sophomore David Packard won his first start of the season,

allowing seven hits in five innings. Packard induced nine groundouts,

bu was occasionally victimized by a less-than-stellar defense, as the

Lightning committed four errors.

“I was unhappy with the defense,” first-year Sage Hill coach Bert

Emerson said. “To be successful, you have to play good defense. We’ve

performed better and we will perform better.”

The Lightning appeared to be letting the game slip away in the

middle innings as it allowed the Minutemen three runs in the third

and two each in the fourth and fifth. In the fifth, the Lightning

committed two errors on the same play. The Sage Hill first baseman

fielded a grounder, but threw behind the pitcher racing to cover the

bag, allowing Dan Wier to go to second. Wier then advanced to third

when the throw to second skipped under the shortstop’s glove, rolling

into center field.

Luckily for Sage Hill, Wier represented the only unearned run for

the Minutemen.

Sage Hill junior Tim Wilkins, a starter who has gone 3-1 this

season, struck out two in two innings of relief, retiring all six he

faced. Emerson wanted to give the junior right-hander some work after

pitching a complete game in a 5-3 Academy League win against Brethren

Christian Tuesday.

Wilkins, hitting in the No. 3 spot, did his fair share at the

plate as well, going 3 for 4 with a triple, two singles, one RBI and

three runs scored in the 17-hit Sage Hill attack.

Cleanup hitter Zach Friedrichs also scored three runs while

collecting two RBIs.

But, it was the balance throughout the lineup that gave Sage Hill

the edge. Freshman Zack Shockley went 3 for 4 and scored twice,

hitting in the No. 7 spot, while left fielder Zach Milder led the

Lightning Friday with four RBIs, going 2 for 3 with a walk and one

run.

“At the end, we started putting the bat on the ball,” Wilkins

said. “Everyone from 1-9 was hitting [Friday].”

Sophomore George Dempsey tripled in two of his three RBIs in the

four-run sixth inning, when four consecutive Lightning hitters

scored.

In the fifth inning, three consecutive Lightning hitters [Wilkins,

Friedrichs and Dempsey] sent pop flys that gyrated in a stiff wind

blowing from left to right, giving outfielders fits as they tried to

anticipate where the balls would drop.

“I feel really badly for the outfielders [Friday],” Wilkins said.

Packard gave his defense a better chance by inducing ground balls

in an 89-pitch effort.

“At first, I left a few balls up high, so I just needed to adjust

and stop thinking about it,” Packard said. “Once I started [not

thinking about pitching] I began hitting my spots.”

Packard has been working with Dick Hickey, a pitching and hitting

coach at the Laguna Batting Cages in Laguna Beach, during the

offseason.

Hickey has taught Packard to concentrate on mechanics before

speed.

Like clockwork, in every inning the Minutemen scored, the hosts

followed with runs of their own.

Sage Hill scored three in the first inning and two each in the

second and third to tie the Minutemen, 7-7, through four innings.

Then came the onslaught of nine runs during the fifth and sixth,

sweeping away any chance for the Minutemen to gain victory.

Liberty Christian had only two pitchers available Friday.

The Lightning made starter Anthony Newville throw 30 pitches in

the first inning and 30 in the fifth, an inning he didn’t get out of.

Milder sent a grounder into right field to plate Shockley and

Loper with the final two runs of the fifth.

Junior catcher Matt Kornswiet scored twice and went 1 for 3 while

leadoff hitter Jordan Salinger singled twice, scoring once and adding

an RBI.

* In the consolation final: Loper threw four shutout innings and

Wilkins went 2 for 3 with three runs, a double and a stolen base to

key the 10-run victory.

The game was halted after the fifth inning.

Loper surrendered just three hits to improve to 4-1.

*--*

Sage Hill Spring Classic

Consolation semifinal Sage Hill 16,

Liberty Chr. 9

Score by Innings

Liberty 203 220 0 -- 9 8 5

Sage Hill 302 254 x -- 16 17 4

Newville, Pickering (5) and Burch;

Packard, Wilkins (6) and Kornswiet. W --

Packard, 1-0. L -- Pickering. 2B --

Shockley (SH), Newville (LC), Curry (LC),

Pickering (LC). 3B -- Dempsey (SH),

Wilkins (SH)

*--*

*--*

Consolation final Sage Hill 11, Eastside Chr. 1

Score by Innings

Sage Hill 221 06 -- 11 7 4

Eastside 000 01 -- 1 4 4

Loper, Salinger (5) and Dempsey; Angevine,

Love (4), Rominger (6) and Love, Angevine (4).

W -- Loper, 4-1. L -- Angovine, 0-1. 2B --

Wilkins (SH)

*--*