“These are always great moments,” Fleener said. “You never look past the regional. I’ve been on pins and needles all week. But like I always tell the boys, we just take one game at a time.”

The Shoes, who improved to 26-5, will now be the host team for the Teutopolis Sectional.

It’s generally not a good thing when a pitcher walks the first batter of the game. But that’s what T-town starter, Austin Borries did, narrowly missing on a 3-2 pitch to Newton’s leadoff hitter, David Ferguson.

“I thought he looked a little uncomfortable at first,” Fleener noted. “But once he settled in, he was very effective. We had an attack plan, especially for their better hitters. We didn’t want to leave anything out over the plate. As the game went on, I thought he got in a better groove.”

Like from the second batter on?

Borries was dominant. After that initial walk, he retired 15 of the final 16 batters. Newton’s only other base runner came in the second when Gavin Meinhart drew a walk. Borries then set down the final 11 batters of the game, including the last four by strike out.

The junior righthander struck out eight during his 72-pitch performance.

And it didn’t hurt that his teammates scored early and often to build a quick, comfortable lead.

“After Austin set them down in the first, we went out and got three runs,” Fleener said. “That always helps a pitcher settle down.”

Dawson Hoene lined the first pitch he saw into the left-centerfield alley for a lead-off double in the bottom of the first. He went to third on a ground ball and then scored when Mick Niebrugge lifted a fly ball into deep right field.

But the Shoes weren’t finished. Jason Kreke singled and Borries walked. Newton’s first of five errors in the game allowed one run to score and Henry Thompson brought home the third run of the frame with a base hit.

Teutopolis made it 6-0 in the second. Aidan Niemerg started things off with a ground ball base hit to right, and with one out, Davin Worman walked. An error let one run score, and Jason Kreke followed with a ringing, two-run double.

THS made it a double-digit lead with a four-run third. Two more Newton errors, plus a pair of wild pitches, helped. One run scored on a throwing error and a second on a wild pitch. Niebrugge added another long fly ball that ended up bringing home two runs – one of which scored on yet another throwing error.

The five errors ultimately allowed the Shoes to tally seven unearned runs in the game.

“We wanted to be aggressive at the plate and put the bat on the ball,” Fleener said. “Many times, in a high school game, if you can put the ball in play, good things happen. We work on situational hitting all the time, but that requires making contact and doing whatever it takes to move the runners around the bases. We did that today.”

Two sectional semifinal games will be played Wednesday.

Teutopolis will face Breese Central at 4 p.m. The Cougars, 20-10, defeated Greenville 11-3 to capture the Breese Central Regional.

The St. Anthony Bulldogs (21-7), winners of the Paris Regional, will then face Columbia (16-13) at 6:30 p.m. The Eagles posted a 3-0 shutout over Roxana to claim the Roxana Regional.

The sectional championship is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 31.

“Things get tougher now,” Fleener said. “We’re expecting a very good sectional. There will be four really good teams competing. We have to continue to prepare and be ready to play.”