Carson Francis, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — Cooper Robertson understood his assignment.
With the tying run already in scoring position, South Webster, who led 5-4, elected to intentionally walk Sam Lotz, who represented the winning run with one out in the bottom of the seventh.
When Robertson went to the dish immediately after, he simply made the Jeeps pay.
Facing a 1-1 count, the senior ripped a line drive that rolled all the way to the right field wall, driving in both the tying and winning runs as the Blue Lions (2-2) dropped South Webster by a 6-5 final on Saturday evening at VA Memorial Stadium.
“That was an All-Ohio pitcher. I had him earlier in the game and I had a hit. I know he can throw right in there and I was looking for something to hit,” Robertson said. “He threw it right there and I just unloaded on it. I’m just glad coach [Brian] Yeazel sent Sam home, and it was just a moment I’ll never forget to be completely honest.”
CREDIT: Brock Netter/SOSA
But before Robertson’s heroics ever took place, South Webster (4-2) got off to a red-hot start.
With two runners aboard, Easton Large lasered a single into left field, allowing Hunter Barnard to come home for the first run of the game. Then, with the bases loaded, Jacob McGraw reached on an infield single before an RBI groundout from Sam Murphy gave the Jeeps an early 3-0 lead.
Washington was able to chip away when it got out its bats, though.
Leadoff hitter Bryson Heath advanced into scoring position after reaching on a throwing error. From there, Robertson singled to bring him home, cutting the deficit to 3-1 heading into the second inning.
The Blue Lions continued to go to work offensively in the next frame.
With Cody Hutchins standing on first with two outs, Heath skied a pitch into the right field gap, where the ball dropped at the warning track. With Hutchins already making his way to the plate, Heath sprinted his way around the bases for an inside-the-park homer, tying things up at 3-3.
“We know that all three of our seniors have to show leadership. There was a guy on and I knew I had to do my job,” Heath said. “I put a good piece to the ball and when I crossed home plate, it just gave us momentum.”
But just when the Blue Lions were taking the momentum, Mother Nature brought it to a brief halt.
An eight-minute rain delay kept both teams in their respective dugouts before the start of the third inning, which gave South Webster an opportunity to reset after taking a punch.
With two outs and a runner in scoring position, Murphy sent a line drive past the third baseman and into left field for an RBI single, sending the Jeeps into the bottom half of the third with a 4-3 advantage.
Lotz led off the bottom half with a single, but Jeeps pitcher Benaiah Andrews would retire the side from there, sitting Washington down quietly.
Each team came up empty-handed in the fourth, but South Webster would tack on another run in the fifth when McGraw started things off with a one-out triple. He then dashed his way home on a wild pitch to extend the Jeeps’ lead to 5-3.
The Blue Lions then had their backs pressed against the wall as South Webster loaded the bases with two outs. But WCH was able to take a breath of relief in the form of a much-needed fly out to leave the score the same.
After forcing another SW goose egg in the sixth, Washington was down to its final six outs. Since the rain delay, the Blue Lions had shown little to no signs of life with their bats.
But that would all change in the home half of the frame.
Kiontae Tyree drew a walk to start the inning before he stole second. Two batters later, Champ Walters brought him home with an RBI single, cutting the deficit to 5-4 going into the seventh.
The Jeeps threatened again with two runners in scoring position and two outs in the top of the seventh. But Hutchins, who pitched the final two innings, forced a ground ball out to retire the side.
Then, it was rally time for Washington.
Heath singled on the second pitch of his lead-off at-bat and Malachi Wynne bunted him into scoring position. Lotz, the winning run, was then intentionally walked.
That set up Robertson for his moment as he fired a liner to the right field wall for a two-bagger, allowing both runners to score and putting an exclamation point on a 6-5 victory — Washington’s second of the year.
“Being down 3-0 early, we didn’t give up. We fought. In the dugout, we weren’t like, ‘Oh, I hope they cancel this game,’ or, ‘We hope we can just come back another day,’” Robertson said. “We wanted to play. We came out with some pop and some energy, and I think the story tells the rest.”
South Webster bounced back on Monday with a win over Wheelersburg. The Jeeps will now travel to Waverly on Wednesday evening for more conference action.
Meanwhile, the Blue Lions suffered a 5-3 loss to Jackson on Monday. They’ll try to avenge that loss on Wednesday night in Jackson.
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