Baseball State Semifinals Preview: Whiteoak Wildcats reach first Final Four in program history
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
The celebrations of reaching the Division IV State Semifinals are now in the past, and the focus of the Whiteoak Wildcats is now all in for the state semifinals this Thursday at Huntington Park in Columbus, where the No. 1 state-ranked Whiteoak club will take on the Hicksville Aces.
Whiteoak played two very tough games in the regional round of the postseason, where last week they defeated the Toronto Red Knights — a state qualifier last season — by a 4-3 score and the Eastern Meigs Eagles by a 5-4 score in Lancaster. Those two wins pushed the Wildcats to a 28-2 overall record, plus gave the baseball program their first regional championship.
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Following their regional final win, Whiteoak head coach Chris Veidt spoke about reaching the state semifinals.
“The final four, everybody’s excited about that. We’ve got some days off here and we’ve got some time, so we’ve got the weekend to enjoy this and celebrate this,” Veidt said. “I think something we need to keep in mind, and the kids have been great about this all year, is ‘we didn’t come this far to come this far.’ That’s what we talked about today in the dugout.
“We talked about the ladder and the process and the steps up the ladder, and we numbered them, from Peebles on to now. It’s sure a lot nicer looking up and seeing just two more steps as opposed to looking up and seeing seven. Seeing two up is a lot easier than seeing seven. It’s there. The carrot’s dangling. We’ve just got to trust the process, have each other’s back, flush the negative, embrace the positive and keep doing what we’re doing.”
For Hicksville, who from April 12-23 won seven straight games, they won their regional title last week with wins over Lima Central Catholic in the regional semifinals by a score of 8-4 and then the next day they defeated Plymouth by an 11-1 score in five innings.
Also this postseason, Hicksville has defeated Pettisville in the sectional finals by a 3-0 score, followed by a district semifinal win over Hilltop (10-0), then a district final win over Wayne Trace (4-1).
Playing in the Green Meadows Conference, the Aces – who are coached by Tim Shock — were 4-3 in conference play during the regular season, finishing third in their conference. The Aces were also ninth in the final state coaches poll in 2018 and in their program history have won the GMC championship a total of 11 times, most recently in 2017.
The Wildcats have won 10 Southern Hills Athletic Conference championships, including this season, where they went 13-0 in conference play for the second time in program history. Earlier this season, WHS won their first 17 games of the year.
During this postseason, the Wildcats have outscored their opponents, 41-10 with wins over Peebles, Belpre, Waterford, Toronto and Eastern Meigs.
Mason Lehr enters the state semifinals leading the Wildcats with a .430 batting average, along with a team-best .566 on-base percentage and .633 slugging percentage. Lehr, who has hit two home runs in ’18, also has 31 RBI, 18 walks, 12 doubles and 34 hits this season.
Next with a .400 or better batting average is Traeten Hamilton at .422 with a .561 on-base percentage and .633 slugging percentage. Hamilton, a senior, leads the Wildcats with 42 stolen bases, plus he’s compiled 21 RBI, 22 walks and has a team-high 50 runs. Hamilton also leads WHS with 38 hits in 90 at-bats, and within those numbers, he had totaled 12 doubles and three triples.
The third batting average of .400 or better is junior Evan Brill with a .416 batting average, plus a .539 on-base percentage and .571 slugging percentage. Brill has also collected 28 runs, 32 hits (seven doubles, one triple, one home run), 22 walks, 18 steals and 24 RBI.
Don’t overlook Caleb West and Chase Carraher, who are batting in the high .300s with West batting .388 and Carraher at .381. West this season has totaled 44 runs, 33 hits, 10 doubles, two triples, one home run, 19 walks, 28 steals and a team-high 39 RBI. West also has a .588 slugging percentage and a .518 on-base percentage.
Carraher in 97 at-bats has produced 37 hits, six doubles, 12 walks, 41 steals and 33 RBI, along with a .483 on-base percentage and .443 slugging percentage.
Also for the Wildcats, Ryan Roberts is batting .318, followed by Trever Yeager at .290, Casey Nace at .240 and Chase Butler at .237.
As a team, the Wildcats are batting .335 as a team in 30 games, with a .475 team OBP and .461 team SLG. WHS also has 230 RBI as a team, while also compiling 66 doubles, 10 triples, 260 hits, 184 walks, 210 steals and they’ve scored 294 runs.
On the mound, the Wildcats have a team ERA of 1.52 with 165 strikeouts in 188.2 innings. Brill leads the way with a 0.64 ERA in 54.1 innings pitched. Brill gained his most recent win in the regional semifinals against Toronto, improving his record to 9-0 on the season, having a total of 62 strikeouts in those nine starts.
Yeager earned his seventh save of the season, adding to his program single-season record with a save in the regional finals, and Butler has an 8-0 record on the season with a 2.40 ERA, as he was the starting pitcher in the regional final win over Eastern Meigs, where he was the winning pitcher. Hamilton has also pitched in relief this postseason, and he’s made starts this season, tallying a 5-2 mark with 44 strikeouts in nine games (33.2 IP).
According to the Prep Baseball Report, Hicksville is led by Sinclair CC commit Jake Greer, who is batting .507 this season with nine doubles, one home run and 25 RBI. He’s also a starting pitcher with a 6-2 record, with a 1.38 ERA and 75 strikeouts.
https://www.prepbaseballreport.com/news/OH/2018-OHSAA-State-Final-Four-…
As a team, the Aces are batting .313 and have a team ERA of 2.67.
• • •
2018 Whiteoak Wildcats Baseball
• 28-2 overall record
• 2018 Southern Hills Athletic Conference Champions (13-0)
• 2018 SE District Champions
• 2018 Regional Champions (Region 15)
• Head Coach: Chris Veidt (27th year)
• Assistant Coaches: D.J. O’Cull and John Combs
• No. 1 State-Ranked OHSBCA Poll
• SHAC Championships: 1971, 1981, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2018
• District Championships: 2013, 2018
• Regional Championships: 2018
2018 Whiteoak Baseball Results
* (Postseason Game)
Date Opponent W/L Score
March 26 Paint Valley W 10-6
March 31 East Clinton W 9-0
March 31 East Clinton W 8-5
April 2 North Adams W 11-1
April 5 Fayetteville W 12-1
April 6 Manchester W 16-1
April 7 Hillsboro W 13-12 (9 inn.)
April 10 Eastern Brown W 8-1
April 12 Fayetteville W 9-5
April 13 Fairfield W 8-2
April 17 Lynchburg-Clay W 3-0
April 18 West Union W 8-4
April 19 Georgetown W 15-0
April 20 Manchester W 11-0
April 26 Fairfield W 6-2
April 27 Eastern (Meigs) L 3-5
April 28 Notre Dame W 14-1
April 28 Notre Dame W 10-0
April 30 Portsmouth Clay W 6-3
May 1 Peebles W 15-1
May 2 Ripley W 26-0
May 3 Valley W 9-6
May 4 Peebles W 12-0
May 5 Piketon W 10-1
May 8 Peebles* W 10-0 (Sectional Finals)
May 12 Zane Trace L 2-3
May 15 Belpre* W 12-3 (District Semifinals)
May 16 Waterford* W 10-0 (District Finals)
May 24 Toronto* W 4-3 (Regional Semifinals)
May 25 Eastern (Meigs)* W 5-4 (Regional Finals)
• • •
2018 Hicksville Aces Baseball
20-5 overall record
• 3rd Place Green Meadows Conference (4-3)
• 2018 NW District Champions
• 2018 Regional Champions (Region 14)
• Head Coach: Tim Shock
• Assistant Coaches: Jamie Sholl, Chad Yoder, Ryan Miser
• No. 9 State-Ranked OHSBCA Poll
• GMC Championships: 1967, 1968, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1990, 2005, 2017
2018 Hicksville Baseball Results
* (Postseason Game)
Date Opponent W/L Score
March 26 Stryker W 13-0
March 31 North Central W 10-2
April 2 Patrick Henry W 5-3
April 10 Tinora L 1-3
April 12 Fairview W 6-5
April 13 Continental W 11-6
April 19 Edgerton W 10-0
April 20 Lincolnview W 1-0
April 21 Lakewood Park W 16-2
April 21 Lakewood Park W 12-6
April 23 Hilltop W 12-2
April 24 Napoleon L 2-5
April 26 Wayne Trace W 10-7
April 27 Ayersville W 2-1
April 30 Hamilton W 17-2
May 1 Paulding W 8-7
May 2 Antwerp L 5-6
May 7 Bryan W 6-4
May 10 Pettisville* W 3-0 (Sectional Finals)
May 11 Holgate L 9-10
May 15 Bryan L 0-10
May 16 Hilltop* W 10-0 (District Semifinals)
May 18 Wayne Trace* W 4-1 (District Finals)
May 24 Lima CC* W 8-4 (Regional Semifinals)
May 25 Plymouth* W 11-1 (Regional Finals)
Whiteoak played two very tough games in the regional round of the postseason, where last week they defeated the Toronto Red Knights — a state qualifier last season — by a 4-3 score and the Eastern Meigs Eagles by a 5-4 score in Lancaster. Those two wins pushed the Wildcats to a 28-2 overall record, plus gave the baseball program their first regional championship.
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Following their regional final win, Whiteoak head coach Chris Veidt spoke about reaching the state semifinals.
“The final four, everybody’s excited about that. We’ve got some days off here and we’ve got some time, so we’ve got the weekend to enjoy this and celebrate this,” Veidt said. “I think something we need to keep in mind, and the kids have been great about this all year, is ‘we didn’t come this far to come this far.’ That’s what we talked about today in the dugout.
“We talked about the ladder and the process and the steps up the ladder, and we numbered them, from Peebles on to now. It’s sure a lot nicer looking up and seeing just two more steps as opposed to looking up and seeing seven. Seeing two up is a lot easier than seeing seven. It’s there. The carrot’s dangling. We’ve just got to trust the process, have each other’s back, flush the negative, embrace the positive and keep doing what we’re doing.”
For Hicksville, who from April 12-23 won seven straight games, they won their regional title last week with wins over Lima Central Catholic in the regional semifinals by a score of 8-4 and then the next day they defeated Plymouth by an 11-1 score in five innings.
Also this postseason, Hicksville has defeated Pettisville in the sectional finals by a 3-0 score, followed by a district semifinal win over Hilltop (10-0), then a district final win over Wayne Trace (4-1).
Playing in the Green Meadows Conference, the Aces – who are coached by Tim Shock — were 4-3 in conference play during the regular season, finishing third in their conference. The Aces were also ninth in the final state coaches poll in 2018 and in their program history have won the GMC championship a total of 11 times, most recently in 2017.
The Wildcats have won 10 Southern Hills Athletic Conference championships, including this season, where they went 13-0 in conference play for the second time in program history. Earlier this season, WHS won their first 17 games of the year.
During this postseason, the Wildcats have outscored their opponents, 41-10 with wins over Peebles, Belpre, Waterford, Toronto and Eastern Meigs.
Mason Lehr enters the state semifinals leading the Wildcats with a .430 batting average, along with a team-best .566 on-base percentage and .633 slugging percentage. Lehr, who has hit two home runs in ’18, also has 31 RBI, 18 walks, 12 doubles and 34 hits this season.
Next with a .400 or better batting average is Traeten Hamilton at .422 with a .561 on-base percentage and .633 slugging percentage. Hamilton, a senior, leads the Wildcats with 42 stolen bases, plus he’s compiled 21 RBI, 22 walks and has a team-high 50 runs. Hamilton also leads WHS with 38 hits in 90 at-bats, and within those numbers, he had totaled 12 doubles and three triples.
The third batting average of .400 or better is junior Evan Brill with a .416 batting average, plus a .539 on-base percentage and .571 slugging percentage. Brill has also collected 28 runs, 32 hits (seven doubles, one triple, one home run), 22 walks, 18 steals and 24 RBI.
Don’t overlook Caleb West and Chase Carraher, who are batting in the high .300s with West batting .388 and Carraher at .381. West this season has totaled 44 runs, 33 hits, 10 doubles, two triples, one home run, 19 walks, 28 steals and a team-high 39 RBI. West also has a .588 slugging percentage and a .518 on-base percentage.
Carraher in 97 at-bats has produced 37 hits, six doubles, 12 walks, 41 steals and 33 RBI, along with a .483 on-base percentage and .443 slugging percentage.
Also for the Wildcats, Ryan Roberts is batting .318, followed by Trever Yeager at .290, Casey Nace at .240 and Chase Butler at .237.
As a team, the Wildcats are batting .335 as a team in 30 games, with a .475 team OBP and .461 team SLG. WHS also has 230 RBI as a team, while also compiling 66 doubles, 10 triples, 260 hits, 184 walks, 210 steals and they’ve scored 294 runs.
On the mound, the Wildcats have a team ERA of 1.52 with 165 strikeouts in 188.2 innings. Brill leads the way with a 0.64 ERA in 54.1 innings pitched. Brill gained his most recent win in the regional semifinals against Toronto, improving his record to 9-0 on the season, having a total of 62 strikeouts in those nine starts.
Yeager earned his seventh save of the season, adding to his program single-season record with a save in the regional finals, and Butler has an 8-0 record on the season with a 2.40 ERA, as he was the starting pitcher in the regional final win over Eastern Meigs, where he was the winning pitcher. Hamilton has also pitched in relief this postseason, and he’s made starts this season, tallying a 5-2 mark with 44 strikeouts in nine games (33.2 IP).
According to the Prep Baseball Report, Hicksville is led by Sinclair CC commit Jake Greer, who is batting .507 this season with nine doubles, one home run and 25 RBI. He’s also a starting pitcher with a 6-2 record, with a 1.38 ERA and 75 strikeouts.
https://www.prepbaseballreport.com/news/OH/2018-OHSAA-State-Final-Four-…
As a team, the Aces are batting .313 and have a team ERA of 2.67.
• • •
2018 Whiteoak Wildcats Baseball
• 28-2 overall record
• 2018 Southern Hills Athletic Conference Champions (13-0)
• 2018 SE District Champions
• 2018 Regional Champions (Region 15)
• Head Coach: Chris Veidt (27th year)
• Assistant Coaches: D.J. O’Cull and John Combs
• No. 1 State-Ranked OHSBCA Poll
• SHAC Championships: 1971, 1981, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2018
• District Championships: 2013, 2018
• Regional Championships: 2018
2018 Whiteoak Baseball Results
* (Postseason Game)
Date Opponent W/L Score
March 26 Paint Valley W 10-6
March 31 East Clinton W 9-0
March 31 East Clinton W 8-5
April 2 North Adams W 11-1
April 5 Fayetteville W 12-1
April 6 Manchester W 16-1
April 7 Hillsboro W 13-12 (9 inn.)
April 10 Eastern Brown W 8-1
April 12 Fayetteville W 9-5
April 13 Fairfield W 8-2
April 17 Lynchburg-Clay W 3-0
April 18 West Union W 8-4
April 19 Georgetown W 15-0
April 20 Manchester W 11-0
April 26 Fairfield W 6-2
April 27 Eastern (Meigs) L 3-5
April 28 Notre Dame W 14-1
April 28 Notre Dame W 10-0
April 30 Portsmouth Clay W 6-3
May 1 Peebles W 15-1
May 2 Ripley W 26-0
May 3 Valley W 9-6
May 4 Peebles W 12-0
May 5 Piketon W 10-1
May 8 Peebles* W 10-0 (Sectional Finals)
May 12 Zane Trace L 2-3
May 15 Belpre* W 12-3 (District Semifinals)
May 16 Waterford* W 10-0 (District Finals)
May 24 Toronto* W 4-3 (Regional Semifinals)
May 25 Eastern (Meigs)* W 5-4 (Regional Finals)
• • •
2018 Hicksville Aces Baseball
20-5 overall record
• 3rd Place Green Meadows Conference (4-3)
• 2018 NW District Champions
• 2018 Regional Champions (Region 14)
• Head Coach: Tim Shock
• Assistant Coaches: Jamie Sholl, Chad Yoder, Ryan Miser
• No. 9 State-Ranked OHSBCA Poll
• GMC Championships: 1967, 1968, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1990, 2005, 2017
2018 Hicksville Baseball Results
* (Postseason Game)
Date Opponent W/L Score
March 26 Stryker W 13-0
March 31 North Central W 10-2
April 2 Patrick Henry W 5-3
April 10 Tinora L 1-3
April 12 Fairview W 6-5
April 13 Continental W 11-6
April 19 Edgerton W 10-0
April 20 Lincolnview W 1-0
April 21 Lakewood Park W 16-2
April 21 Lakewood Park W 12-6
April 23 Hilltop W 12-2
April 24 Napoleon L 2-5
April 26 Wayne Trace W 10-7
April 27 Ayersville W 2-1
April 30 Hamilton W 17-2
May 1 Paulding W 8-7
May 2 Antwerp L 5-6
May 7 Bryan W 6-4
May 10 Pettisville* W 3-0 (Sectional Finals)
May 11 Holgate L 9-10
May 15 Bryan L 0-10
May 16 Hilltop* W 10-0 (District Semifinals)
May 18 Wayne Trace* W 4-1 (District Finals)
May 24 Lima CC* W 8-4 (Regional Semifinals)
May 25 Plymouth* W 11-1 (Regional Finals)