THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2000

Unearned run means end of Old Fort's run

By Dave Feltner
Sports Editor

FINDLAY -- Whether it was through divine intervention, pure luck or outstanding defense, it doesn't really matter to Elmwood coach Matt Hoiles. His team is moving on.

Old Fort hit Elmwood pitcher Erin Hammer hard, very hard in fact, but could only manage three hits in a 1-0 loss in a Division III regional semifinal at Findlay High school.

Hammer did not strike out a single Stockader hitter, but got several highlight-reel plays from her defense.

And the only run of the game came in the first inning, thanks to an Old Fort defensive miscue. Or was it divine intervention?

"I said something to the man upstairs at about the second inning; I said 'Thanks for the one (run),' " Hoiles said. "Then (when Elmwood batted) in the second inning I said I need one more. Just give me a little cushion. But I guess he thought one was enough."

The Royals (23-4) got the only run they needed in the first inning with runners at first and second and one out.

Clean-up hitter Whitney Dennis laid down a bunt to move the runners up, and was thrown out by Old Fort pitcher Erin Rau.

The play could have ended there, but when Elmwood's Meredith Feasel rounded third overzealously, second baseman Rosy Ortiz made an attempt to nail Feasel at third.

The ball skipped off third baseman Breena McCool's glove, and Feasel coasted home with the only run of the game.

The rest was up to Hammer, who surrendered singles to Cassandra Frankart in the second and seventh innings and one to Heather Webb in the fourth.

Hammer lived on the outside corner, and had Old Fort hitters lunging at pitchers all afternoon.

And when a Stockader hitter did get a pitch to hit, Hammer's defense was there to steal the show.

The biggest play came fittingly on the last out of the game. Old Fort had runners at second and third with two outs when McCool hit a grounder to the left side, forcing shortstop Rachel Blachuta to her backhand.

Blachuta came up with the ball, and fired off her back foot to get McCool by a step.

"(Hammer) kept the ball outside, and our girls were trying to pull that outside pitch," Old Fort coach Ron Rau said. "We tried to work on that the last three days, not helping her out. I think we could have had three or four more walks if we wouldn't have swung at some bad pitches. But they're only kids. I see major leaguers do that, and they get paid millions of bucks.

"(Elmwood) has a nice team; they're a good defensive team," he said. "They didn't steal on us or anything like that, but they made the plays when they had to."

Old Fort had one other prime opportunity to push across a run. That came in the fourth inning.

It started with Elmwood freshman third baseman Stephanie Wagner robbing Ortiz of a hit. But Webb followed with a single and Jenny Seigley worked a walk to give the Stockaders first and second with one out.

But then Blachuta struck again when she found the handle on a hard liner off the bat of Rachel McCalla. Webb was frozen off the bag at second, and Blachuta flipped to second baseman April Bils for the double play.

Blachuta made three backhanded plays during the game, Wagner robbed two OF hitters of base hits and Dennis made three nice catches on potential extra base hits in center field.

"At every level you have to be effective moving the ball around the plate, and that's what Erin (Hammer) does," Hoiles said. "I grew up with baseball, and watching my brother play I've seen how good pitchers were that didn't have the overpowering fastball, but could throw the ball around the plate and could nit-pick all day and send hitters back to the plate shaking their heads. That's what Erin does."

The other Erin pitcher in the game, Old Fort's Rau, did the same thing. She surrendered just two hits despite taking the loss and falling to 17-3. Rau, who walked three and struck out two, allowed just three baserunners after the first-inning snafu.

Feasel and designated hitter Meeghan Gonzales had the Elmwood hits. The Royals advance to Saturday's regional final to take on the winner of today's Archbold-Colonel Crawford game.

The loss ends a run of four consecutive regional appearances for the Stockaders, who graduate six seniors -- Webb, Seigley, McCalla, Ortiz, Kingsborough and Jenice Egbert.

"I told the girls after the game that I would miss this group of seniors,"

coach Rau said. "But I also told the younger kids, and we're going to be very young next year, that I hoped they learned what it takes to get here. We're not going to be bad next year. I don't know about regionals, but I can almost guarantee we'll win more than we lose. You haven't heard the last of Old Fort softball."