Waterford wins sectional
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WATERFORD -- Fans who stuck around to see Waterford claim a Division IV Sectional Championship by edging Symmes Valley 5-4 in nine innings Tuesday night at Waterford Elementary School saw just about everything imaginable occur on the ball diamond in a single game.
In the end, Waterford's Noah Huffman scored the winning run when Zane Heiss dropped down an outstanding sacrifice bunt and the throw to first was off target and rolled down the right field line.
The two teams combined to strike out 30 times and commit nine errors while one run scored on a balk, another on a strikeout and later a pair of runs came across to score on a single wild pitch while the home plate umpire was knocked to the ground at least three times due to being hit in the upper body by foul balls.
When the smoke cleared, the higher-seeded Wildcats found a way to grab the win despite not playing their best ball of the season by any stretch of the imagination.
"We feel good to get a win here because a couple of plays here and there and things may have been different," said Waterford head coach Doug Huffman. "Maybe not the best looking baseball game by either team but it was tight all the way through."
Starting pitchers Braden Bellville for Waterford and Layken Gothard for he Vikings were each brilliant on the mound but were unable to get much help at the plate or in the field.
Symmes Valley scored the first run of the game in the opening inning when Gothard was hit by a pitch and eventually came around to score on the first of two Waterford fielding errors in the game.
The 'Cats evened things up in the bottom of the second when third baseman Bryce Hilverding walked and then stole second and third base before scoring on a base-hit by Andrew Harra-Baker.
The Vikes reclaimed the lead in the top of the fourth when with one out Devin Renfroe doubled and after a walk and a Waterford error, pinch-runner Mason Wade scored on a strikeout that got away from Waterford catcher Austin Pyatt to allow the go-ahead run to score.
Bellville then balked in the second run of the frame as Symmes Valley took a 3-1 lead.
The Wildcats took their very first lead of the game by scoring three times in the bottom of the fifth.
Left fielder Peyten Stephens walked to open the inning and moved to second when Huffman reached on an error.
One out later both runners crossed the plate when Gothard uncorked a wild pitch that rolled far enough away from SV catcher Griffin Hill that both runners scored.
Later in the inning third baseman Bryce Hilverding put the white and green in front by singling off the third baseman's glove to plate Bellville with the fourth run of the game.
The pesky Vikings went right back to work in the sixth as they chased Bellville, who walked three hitters in the inning, including Nick Klaiber with the tying run.
The Wildcats got a huge lift from reliever Isaac Wagner who left the bases loaded by retiring the final batter of the sixth and then retired all six hitters he faced in the seventh and eight innings.
Gothard fanned 13 Waterford hitters in his seven innings of work before turning things over to Klaiber, who held the Wildcats scoreless in the eighth.
Huffman took over on the hill for the Wildcats in the top of the ninth and struck out the side setting up the dramatic finish by the Cats.
None other than Huffman led off the pivotal ninth and he drove a shot into the right center field gap for a lead-off double.
On the very first pitch to Heiss he squared to bunt and dropped a great bunt down the first base line that ended up being thrown away at first allowing Huffman to walk home with the game winning run.
Symmes valley head coach Chad Renfroe felt he got a valiant effort from his squad ncluding Gothard, who certainly deserved a better fate on the mound.
"A couple of bad innings got ourselves in trouble but we were able to work ourselves out of it," said Renfroe, whose team's season comes to a close with a 7-9 record. "I'd like to have 20 kids like Layken (Gothard). He pushes everyone to be their best and just wants to win and we are going to miss him for sure."
Waterford advances to Chillicothe Paints Stadium on Tuesday when they take on Green.
"That's a very classy opponent and I've got all the respect in the world for Coach Renfroe and his team," said Huffman. "It's a shame someone had to lose a game like that and they just fumbled the last play."