Carson Francis, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
ATHENS — The slipper still fits.
Warren was written off by many coming into the postseason, but the Warriors simply did not care.
As the No. 7 seed in the Southeast District in Division III, Warren stunned two-seeded Miami Trace before knocking off No. 6 Hillsboro to book a date with Athens in the district title game.
And when the lights came on at Ohio University’s Bob Wren Stadium on Friday, Cinderella just kept on dancing.
Junior Tate Jonas was lights out on the bump, going the distance and striking out nine batters while allowing just two hits. Meanwhile, his teammates built some run support for him down the stretch as Warren fought its way to a 5-0 victory over the Bulldogs, claiming the program’s first district title since 2013.
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
“It’s a huge accomplishment, especially for a team with no seniors and four juniors. They deserve this, they’ve fought and worked, and they’re tremendous ball players and human beings,” Warren coach Chad Porter said. “For our program, it’s a surreal moment because we’ve battled all year and got hot here at the end. I’m proud of the community, proud of the kids, and proud of our program.”
After a shutout first inning on both sides, the Warriors (16-14) cracked the ice first in the second.
With two outs in the top half, Carter Strong lifted a fly ball into shallow center before it dropped in front of the centerfielder for a base hit, driving in a run to put Warren up 1-0 early.
Athens (17-12) put runners on first and second right away in the home half of the frame, but Jonas shut the door on the Bulldog rally by striking out the next two batters and inducing a groundball to retire the side.
That would all but set the tone for how the rest of the night would play out.
Fast forward to the bottom of the fourth.
With Warren still leading by a run, Jonas issued several free passes that loaded the bases with two outs. But the junior worked his way out of the jam again, forcing a popout to shortstop Cody Eding to leave the ducks on the pond.
Then, in the fifth, Kade Short got on base for Athens with a leadoff single. But Jonas countered by sitting down the next three Bulldogs in order to keep Athens off the board.
“[Jonas] has been consistent like that the entire season. He got off to a great start,” Porter said. “He got into a little lull there, but he made a great mental adjustment and got out of it. Like any other pitcher that goes to the mound, he gave us a shot to win.”
But even though Jonas’ pitching kept Warren in front, he was in need of some insurance in the game’s final stretch.
Luckily, the Warriors delivered with their bats.
Aiden Lipscomb and Jayden Hilverding both singled and advanced into scoring position in the top of the sixth. With two outs, Eding launched a line drive down the right field line, where it stayed just fair to allow him to double and plate both runners, extending Warren’s lead to 3-0.
Athens simply had no answer.
After David Sharp led off the bottom half with a single, Jonas again sat down the remaining Bulldogs in order to keep the shutout intact.
Warren would get another pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh. Lipscomb singled to plate a run, and Jonas aided his own cause with an RBI sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 5-0.
From there, Jonas finished the job in the bottom of the seventh, delivering a knockout punch in the form of a 1-2-3 inning to put the finishing touches on a 5-0 win to send the Warriors to the Sweet 16.
“It’s just awesome, I wouldn’t want to do this with another group of guys. The team chemistry is just insane here,” Jonas said. “We couldn’t be more happy right now. Our staff loves us to death, they’ve been so supportive of us, and they’ll do anything for us.”
Lipscomb led the Warriors on offense by going 3-for-4 with an RBI. Strong finished 2-for-3 and drove in a run of his own, and Eding went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.
Sharp and Short provided the only two hits for Athens. Zach Wakeley pitched six innings for the Bulldogs, allowing three earned runs on eight hits while issuing no walks and striking out four batters.
Warren advances to Wednesday’s Division III regional semifinal at VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe at 2 p.m. There, the Warriors will meet up with Bishop Watterson, who knocked off Bloom-Carroll by a 6-1 final to advance.
“We’ve got to keep believing, keep confident and keep working. We’ve got to have three or four good prep days ahead of us,” Porter said. “The biggest thing is these guys believing they can do it. Keep making the routine play, keep giving us a shot on the mound, keep coming up with the key hits and stay confident, and we have a shot.”
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