By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Coaches always want their teams to be playing their best at the end of the year.
With the high school postseason now on the horizon, that’s exactly the case with every baseball team in the state.
The two teams on the field Saturday, however, are finishing their regular season schedules with differing results.
The Teutopolis Wooden Shoes have racked up 19 victories and are winners of 7 of their last 10 contests after sweeping Saturday’s doubleheader at home.
The Effingham Flaming Hearts have been struggling. After starting the season 9-0, they have had difficulty scoring runs and have dropped 9 of their last 10 games.
But both coaches are optimistic when talking about their team’s chances as the regional tournaments loom next week.
“The last three to four weeks has been a struggle,” EHS coach Curran McNeeley admitted. “We’ve been pressing at the plate and the number of quality at-bats we’ve taken has gone down; and that’s really hurt us.
“But we’ve still got another week,” McNeeley added. “We just have to find a way to get some timely hits. Sooner or later that’s going to happen for us and we’re going to bust out. I’m still very confident in this team.”
“You know how we coaches are. We’re always pushing and we always believe we can be better,” THS coach Justin Fleener noted. “Yes, there’s always room for improvement, but I like where we are. I feel like we’re ready.”
Saturday’s opener was a terrific high school baseball game. It was well-pitched and well-played.
This was a clear case of role reversal.
After committing 11 errors and allowing 12 unearned runs in a doubleheader loss to Mattoon on Tuesday, Teutopolis was on the receiving end Wednesday afternoon.
North Clay committed five errors and the Shoes took advantage by scoring six unearned runs, en route to an 8-2 victory at home.
The Cardinals grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the opening inning, but T-Town took over from there, scoring eight times over the first four innings.
The Shoes tied the game in the bottom of the first. Sam Bushur was hit by a pitch, Evan Wermert singled and Andy Niebrugge walked to load the bases. Bushur scored when Evan Addis grounded into a fielder’s choice.
THS took the lead for good with a three-run second – all starting after two outs. Derek Deters doubled, Bushur was hit again and an error loaded the bases. Wermert walked to force in the first run and Niebrugge then delivered a clutch two-run single.
The Shoes added three more runs in the third. Deters had an RBI single and two more runs scored on an error.
Two more errors and a walk accounted for T-Town’s final tally in the fourth.
Cade Buehnerkemper pitched the final five innings to get the win. He allowed two hits and a run, while walking one and striking out four. Kayden Althoff pitched the first two innings, giving up three hits and a run. He also walked two and struck out four.
The Shoes improved to 17-8 overall. They will play at home Saturday against Effingham in an Apollo Conference contest. Game time is set for 11 a.m.
Andrew Niebrugge and Derek Konkel both belted home runs and both drove in four runs, leading the Teutopolis Wooden Shoes to a 13-3, six-inning victory at home Monday over Mahomet-Seymour.
And the Shoes took control early.
With one out in the bottom of the first, Evan Addis walked, Niebrugge walked and Konkel followed with a three-run blast over the leftfield fence.
But the Shoes weren’t finished. Dylan Pruemer and Derek Deters both singled and then scored on a double by Mitch Althoff that staked THS to a quick 5-0 lead.
T-Town added three more runs in the second. Evan Wermert had an RBI double, Konkel added a run-scoring single and the third run scored on an error.
Niebrugge delivered a two-run single in the third and then went deep in the fifth, driving a solo shot over the leftfield fence.
The Shoes ended the game with a two-run sixth. One run scored on a base loaded walk and the final tally came home on a base hit by Jonathan Kemme.
Niebrugge also got the pitching victory. He went the first five innings, allowing four hits and three runs. He walked two and struck out three while throwing 68 pitches. Kayden Althoff pitched the final inning.
The win was the fourth straight for the Shoes. They improved to 16-6 overall and 3-2 in Apollo Conference play. They will return to league action today (Tuesday) at Mattoon and then return home to play North Clay on Wednesday.
Errors are generally costly.
The Teutopolis Wooden Shoes found that out Tuesday.
They committed 11 errors and allowed 12 unearned runs to cross the plate. As a result, they returned home with a pair of losses.
Mattoon scored four unearned runs in its 8-5 victory in the opener and then took advantage of eight T-Town errors and posted a 10-5 decision in the nightcap to complete the doubleheader sweep.
In the first game, things started out pretty well. The Shoes immediately loaded the bases after base hits by Mitch Althoff and Kayden Althoff and a walk to Evan Wermert. Evan Addis then delivered a single to put THS ahead 2-0 in the opening inning.
But the Green Wave came right back in the bottom of the frame. They combined two hits, two hit batters and two errors to push five runs across the plate. They added another tally in the third to increase their lead to 6-2.
But the Shoes scored three times in the fourth to close the gap. Addis led off with a base hit and scored on a double by Derek Konkel. With two outs, Logan Roepke singled, bringing in a run, and Mitch Althoff followed with an RBI double to make it 6-5.
Mattoon added a pair of insurance runs in the sixth.
Addis took the loss for the Shoes. He pitched the first four innings and allowed five hits and six runs – just two were earned. He walked one and struck out one. Cade Buehnerkemper and Konkel both pitched one inning.
The nightcap started off the same way with the Shoes scoring twice in the opening inning. Max Niebrugge singled and Mitch Althoff walked to get things started. Wermert delivered an RBI single and the second run scored on a ground ball by Konkel.
But in the second and third innings, Mattoon took advantage of seven T-Town errors to score 10 runs – four times in the second; six more in the third. The Green Wave had three hits, a hit batter and four walks during those two frames as well.
Max Niebrugge had an RBI triple and then scored on a ground ball in the fourth and Brayden Gaddis had a run-scoring single in the fifth, but that’s as close as the Shoes were able to get.
Hayden Ruholl pitched the first 2.1 innings and took the loss. He only allowed just three hits, but was charged with nine runs – only one of which was earned. Kendall Schmidt and Derek Deters also pitched.
The Shoes dropped to 16-8 overall and 3-3 in Apollo Conference play. They will return to action at home today (Wednesday) against North Clay.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
What a difference 48 hours can make.
Yes, the Teutopolis Wooden Shoes notched another victory, just like they did Thursday against St. Anthony.
But unlike the game against the Bulldogs -- a game described as having a postseason atmosphere that brought out the best play of both teams – Saturday’s performance by the Shoes was not at that level.
One word used to describe their effort was lethargic.
THS coach Justin Fleener said “at times, it just looked like we were going through the motions.”
But when the final out was recorded, the Shoes had their 15th win of the spring season, an 8-1 decision at home over Taylorville in an Apollo Conference matchup.
Fleener said he saw a couple good “moments,” but things he typically looks for – quality at-bats and putting the barrel on the ball – he didn’t see much of Saturday.
“We had a few quality at-bats and a couple good hits, but the consistency up and down the lineup was not there,” Fleener noted. “It just wasn’t what I wanted to see, especially at this of year. The postseason is coming up and we need to do a better job than this.”
Page 16 of 26
- You are here:
-
Home
-
Teutopolis
- Baseball
