Hillsboro goes down swinging; bows out of state tournament

      LANCASTER — The Hillsboro Post 129 season ended Tuesday morning with a 15-14 loss to Piqua Post 184, but the Hillsboro club went down swinging, almost landing the knockout punch in the ninth inning which nearly kept their American Legion State Baseball Tournament run going.

      After five innings, Piqua led 14-3, scoring five runs in the first, four in the second, one in the fourth and four in the fifth innings.

      Once the final out was recorded in the fifth, Post 129 began playing the style of baseball that put them in the state tournament.

      "This game mimicked our regular season," Hillsboro head coach Ritchie Butler said. "We started poorly, but we finished with a flourish.

      "When you are down 11 runs, then to lose it on a walk-off hit, it's tough. The kids stayed in the game and kept playing ball."

      Hillsboro (20-17) came back with a five-run sixth, two combined in the seventh and eighth and capped it off in a thrilling ninth inning, tying the game at 14 with four runs.

      Post 129's four-inning rally began in the sixth with the aforementioned five-run campaign. In the inning, Post 129 had five hits and forced one walk.

      Jacob Dillon forced a five-pitch walk to start the sixth. Logan Wise doubled and Brandon Arehart hit into a 4-3 out, but the ground out was enough to score Dillon.

      Airic Steagall took his place in the batter's box in the ensuing at-bat and proceeded to smash an RBI single through the middle of the infield to send Wise home. Zach Uhl became the fourth Hillsboro batter to take a base when he hit a single past third base.

      Tucker Hughes cleared the bases with a triple hit to the fence, scoring both Steagall and Uhl. In turn, Hughes scored when Brett Carrington hit into another 4-3 out for the RBI and cutting the Piqua lead down to six runs.

      The excitement continued to build with Hillsboro playing a style of small ball by chipping away at the Post 184 lead, scoring once in the seventh and once in the eighth.

      In the top portion of the seventh, Wise hit a one-out infield single, followed by a base on balls by Arehart. Arehart was forced out at second on a fielders choice by Steagall, which scored Wise.

      Each team gained the double-digit mark in runs scored after Hillsboro added their one run in the eighth, with Piqua leading 14-10.

      In the eighth, Hughes led off with a two-base hit to right-centerfield. Carrington followed with an infield hit near the plate. With one out, Cody Shaver, on an 0-2 count, singled up the middle to score Hughes.

      Then came the unforgettable ninth inning, as Post 129 put the game on even terms.

      Arehart singled to start the inning with the ball hitting the edge of the mound, rolling past second base.

      As the Hillsboro squad continued to gain excitement, with rally caps making an appearance, Steagall scored Arehart on a base hit to left field. Steagall moved to third on a ground out by Uhl and scored on a base hit to right field by Carrington. After Piqua switched pitchers, Corey Walker had a sacrifice bunt and Shaver took first on an error by the infield of Piqua, which allowed Hughes to cross home plate.

      Nathaniel Miller, in a pinch hitting role with two outs, singled on a 1-2 count scoring Carrington to complete the comeback and tie the game at 14.

      But the Hillsboro party ended soon after with Piqua hitting a one-out double, followed with an intentional walk and the hit that ended the state game: a hard-hit single hit to centerfield.

      The loss gives Post 129 a 1-2 state record, as they gained their first win in state tournament play since 1988. Post 129 defeated Galion-Mansfield, 11-0 Monday in seven innings.

      One letdown for the Post 129 team was the fact they left 14 runners stranded on the bases, while committing eight errors, Tuesday.

      The no-decision went to Sam Louden, who pitched one inning, and to four batters into the second inning. Louden finished with 51 pitches. Brett Carrington pitched eight innings of relief, striking out two. For the game, both Louden and Carrington faced a total of 51 batters. Carrington had three innings of three up-three down, coming in the sixth-eighth innings.

      "We were hoping to save Brett for another game if we won today, but our future was now, and we had to bring him in when we did," Butler said. "He pitched well and caught a couple hard line drives hit at him."

      The two liners Butler spoke of came in the bottom of the seventh inning for the first and third outs.

      At the plate Wise, Steagall, Carrington and Walker all had three hits. Wise also had two runs and one RBI. Steagall gained three runs, two RBIs and forced one walk. Carrington finished with one run, one RBI and one walk. Walker had a sacrifice, one run and one RBI.

      Arehart, Uhl, Hughes each had two hits. Arehart tallied one run, one RBI and one walk. Uhl scored two runs and batted in one runner. Hughes had two RBIs, three runs, and was hit by a pitch on two occasions.

      Shaver had two RBIs and one hit.

      Overall for the season, Hillsboro had three winning streaks of at least five games, finishing the summer at 20-17, with a District 7 championship.

      "I am proud of the kids who stuck with the team this summer," Butler said. "It was great to see kids from rival schools in Highland County and schools in surrounding areas all come together and do something special this summer. We did something special, and this was our first winning season since we re-started the Legion team."

      Some players for the Post 129 team played their final game for the summer team.

      "We are losing both Carringtons (Brett and Brandon), Airic Steagall, Logan Wise and Brandon Arehart," Butler said. "Some of the guys played for two or three years, and it was nice to see them rewarded with a state tournament win and district title. They were veteran players, and we counted on them."

      NOTES: Earlier this season Piqua defeated Post 129, 10-0 … Hillsboro hit into a double play in the fifth inning … Piqua sent 20 batters to the plate in the first two innings combined … Brett Carrington totaled 103 pitches Tuesday in eight innings … Hillsboro played two games at England Field and one at Fisher-Catholic Field in the state tournament … Post 129 lost their final two games of the season … Both teams combined for 105 plate appearances (Hillsboro 54, Piqua 51) Tuesday. 

H   111 005 114 — 14 19 8

P   540 140 001 — 15 15 2