Baseball, softball sectionals begin next week
May 17—A 40-pound bag of Diamond Dry is on sale for $54.99 on one web site, although supplies of the water-absorbing lifesaver of baseball and softball facilities may be depleted in Indiana next week.
It will be sectional week for both high school baseball and softball in Indiana, and although athletic directors would be thrilled not to have to deal with weather problems, they also can't afford to be unprepared.
And a good shower requires a lot more than 40 pounds of the stuff to rectify the damage.
Early weather reports indicate that the softball tournaments won't be affected by weather on Monday and Tuesday next week, but championship games are scheduled Wednesday or Thursday. That's when the precipitation may arrive, and it's also when the baseball tournaments will start. Most of the baseball sectionals will conclude with semifinal and championship games on Memorial Day, May 27.
Headache potential is quite high, in other words.
—Softball — Terre Haute North hosts a Class 4A sectional, with Terre Haute South playing on Monday and the Patriots getting a bye and not playing until Tuesday.
Brownsburg is getting votes in the state poll, but this sectional is usually a wide-open affair. Championship play is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday.
In Class 3A, Western Indiana Conference runner-up Edgewood is the favorite in a five-team tournament. Northview, with ace pitcher Maggie Krause, and West Vigo, with a powerful offensive lineup, are in the Mustangs' way.
Fifth-ranked Sullivan, with probably the state's hottest hitter in sophomore Jaylynn Hobbs plus veterans who started as freshmen on a state runner-up team, is the Wabash Valley's best hope in Class 2A and plays at South Knox — where Linton could be a spoiler — while South Vermillion tries to get back to its winning ways in a sectional at Southmont.
Clay City has slipped to second in the Class A poll, supplanted by Tecumseh, but is a big favorite at White River Valley, and eighth-ranked Riverton Parke hosts its own sectional.
—Baseball — There's a rubber game to the North-South rivalry, but fan interest may be limited by the location (Decatur Central, near the southwest corner of I-465) and the starting time (no earlier than 7:30 p.m.) on Wednesday. The winner of that game, however, will probably have the best record of the four teams still playing on Memorial Day.
West Vigo and Northview also get a rematch of Thursday night's 2-1 game won by the Knights in the first game Wednesday at Edgewood, but the winner of that game will probably have to beat both Indian Creek and Edgewood, the two WIC powerhouses, to advance to regional play.
Class 2A sectionals find Parke Heritage playing at Greencastle and Sullivan hosting a six-team affair that includes Linton.
And in Class A, Shakamak hosts its own tournament as the Lakers set their sights on Victory Field again after falling one game short last spring, and Riverton Parke and four other Wabash River Conference teams travel to Lafayette Central Catholic for their sectional.
—Marshall 1, Westville 0 — At Westville, Ill., the fourth-seeded Lions beat the top-seeded host team for an Illinois Class 2A softball regional championship on Friday.
It was the second straight regional title for Marshall, which plays Normal University High in sectional play Wednesday at Monticello.
(Dates and times listed are as complete as the IHSAA could furnish.)
Softball sectionals
Class 4A, at Terre Haute North
Monday — Brownsburg vs. Decatur Central, 5:30 p.m., followed by Terre Haute South vs. Plainfield
Tuesday — Terre Haute North vs. Winner Game 1, 5:30, followed by Avon vs. Winner Game 2
Wednesday — Championship, 6 p.m.
Class 3A, at Owen Valley
Monday — Edgewood vs. Northview, 6 p.m.
Tuesday — Indian Creek vs. Owen Valley, 5:30 p.m., followed by West Vigo vs. Winner Game 1
Class 2A, at Southmont
Monday — Greencastle vs. North Putnam, 5 p.m., followed by Southmont vs. South Putnam
Tuesday — South Vermillion vs. Winner Game 1, 5 p.m., followed by Parke Heritage vs. Winner Game 2
Class 2A, at South Knox
Monday — Eastern Greene vs. North Knox, 5:30 p.m., followed by Sullivan vs. South Knox
Tuesday — Mitchell vs. Winner Game 1, 5:30 p.m., followed by Linton vs. Winner Game 2
Class A, at Riverton Parke
Monday — Covington vs. Fountain Central, 5:30 p.m., followed by Lafayette Central Catholic vs. Attica
Tuesday — North Vermillion vs. Winner Game 1, 5:30 p.m., followed by Riverton Parke vs. Winner Game 2
Class A, at White River Valley
Monday — Clay City vs. Dugger Union, 6 p.m.
Tuesday — Cloverdale vs. White River Valley, 5:30 p.m., followed by Bloomfield vs. North Central
Wednesday — Shakamak vs. Winner Game 1, 5:30 p.m., followed by Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3
Baseball sectionals
Class 4A, at Decatur Central
Wednesday — Brownsburg vs. Decatur Central, 5:30 p.m., followed by Terre Haute North vs. Terre Haute South
May 27 — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, followed by Avon vs. Plainfield
Class 3A, at Edgewood
Wednesday — West Vigo vs. Northview, 5:30 p.m., followed by Indian Creek vs. Owen Valley
Thursday — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 5:30 p.m., followed by Edgewood vs. South Vermillion
Class 2A, at Greencastle
Wednesday — North Putnam vs. Parke Heritage, 5 p.m., followed by South Putnam vs. Cloverdale
May 27 — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 11 a.m., followed by Southmont vs. Greencastle
Class 2A, at Sullivan
Wednesday — Eastern Greene vs. Linton, 5:30 p.m., followed by South Knox vs. North Knox
May 27 — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, followed by Mitchell vs. Sullivan
Class A, at Lafayette Central Catholic
Thursday — North Vermillion vs. Fountain Central, 5:30 p.m., followed by Covington vs. Lafayette Central Catholic
May 27 — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 11 a.m., followed by Attica vs. Riverton Parke; championship game 7:30 p.m.
Class A, at Shakamak
Wednesday — Bloomfield vs. Clay City, 5:30 p.m., followed by Shakamak vs. White River Valley
May 27 — Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 11 a.m., followed by North Central vs. Dugger Union; championship game 7 p.m.
