Derrick Webb, Managing Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — There haven’t been many times this season where Eastern Meigs has had to throw a counter-punch.
All year long, the Eagles have landed punches instead of taking them.
But Saturday, that wasn’t the case in a Division VI district championship game at VA Memorial Stadium against a hit-heavy opponent.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Before Eastern could settle in, Huntington had already taken a 3-0 lead and, with it, had seized every ounce of momentum.
But instead of staying on the ropes, the Eagles (21-7) decided to fight back, countering with an eight-run fourth inning that, for the most part, put the game out of reach.
That inning was the centerpiece to a 9-6 victory over the Huntsmen, marking the program’s second consecutive district crown.
“We haven’t really had to fight back like that this season,” Eastern Meigs coach Chris Stewart said. “That’s the one thing that I was a little nervous about. But our semifinal game was tight and we had to win in the seventh. So we’ve had some of those experiences. And this is a senior-laden team. We have six seniors and they don’t panic at all. They know what their preparation is.”
Huntington (16-9) wasted no time getting on the scoreboard.
After a walk to Seth Throckmorton in the top of the first inning, Junior McDonald singled. They’d both score later in the frame on an RBI groundout off Brayden Elliott’s bat. Throckmorton scored from third on the play, but McDonald was able to score on a throwing error, making it 2-0 early.
Then, in the third, the Huntsmen played add-on when McDonald picked up his second hit of the day, scoring Throckmorton for a 3-0 count.
“We always play a really strong defense and in that first inning, it was an anomaly for us, throwing the ball around a little bit and putting up two errors right off the bat,” Stewart said. “So we tightened that up and talked about it in the dugout, like, ‘Listen, we’ll count that as jitters. Everybody’s nervous and we just need to take a couple of deep breaths.’”
Eastern Meigs answered in the bottom of the fourth, and in a big way.
Hunter Needs drew a one-out walk before Blaise Gilmore and Lance Hensler each singled to load the bases. Ethan Edwards then walked, driving in Needs and cutting the lead to 3-1.
In the next at-bat, Ayden Wilhelm doubled into deep right field, scoring both runners and tying the game at 3-3. Alex Collins then singled, scoring two more and giving the Eagles their first lead at 5-3.
Following a walk, Rohwan Gilmore singled into left field, pushing the advantage to 6-3 before Brady Rockhold made it 7-3 with an RBI single of his own. A sacrifice fly from Needs then pushed the lead to 8-3 before the inning mercifully ended.
“We talked about getting to [Huntington’s] bullpen because we knew that [Huntington starter Andrew Oyer] was pretty good,” Stewart said. “Up until that time, we had five hits but they were all with two outs and we couldn’t score. It was a momentum-killer for us. So we pulled the kids together and said, ‘We know we can’t control anything that anybody else is doing.’ [Oyer] was keeping us out of rhythm. He works slowly. So we just started to control what we could control.”
The Huntsmen cut into Eastern Meigs’ lead in the top of the sixth, getting a sacrifice fly from Brayden Elliott, an RBI triple via Landon Lowery, and an RBI groundout from Frankie Hirsch, making it an 8-6 count.
But the Eagles purchased insurance in the bottom half, scoring on an RBI triple from Needs to round out the night’s final.
Statistically, Needs led Eastern’s offense with a 2-for-2 effort that included a triple, a run and two RBIs. Wilhelm was 2-for-4 with a double, a run and two RBIs, Gilmore finished 2-for-4 with a double, a run and an RBI, and Collins ended 2-for-4 with a run and a pair of RBIs.
Edwards picked up the win on the hill, going the distance, and allowing six runs on six hits while striking out six.
For the Huntsmen, McDonald led the way, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored, a stolen base and an RBI. Lowery followed with a 2-for-3 effort alongside a triple and an RBI while Throckmorton also chipped in, going 1-for-3 with a triple and two runs.
While Huntington’s season comes to a close, the Eagles will move on to a Division VI regional semifinal at 6 p.m., Wednesday at Lancaster’s Beavers Field.
They’ll meet with either Southeastern or Waterford, who play on Sunday in a district final.
“It means a lot every time you win a championship,” Stewart said. “But I’m a lot warmer and drier this year. There’s a reason for that. One of our assistant coaches asked the kids if they were going to dump water on me and they were like, ‘No, we’re not done.’ So this is an expectation. Last year, we were excited we won a district championship. But we’ve been talking all year about how we know this team is one that could play in Akron.”
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