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Hiland sets sights on regionals after dominant district title win

kevin lynch, the daily record
·5 min read
Colin Coblentz drives a single in the first inning as Nolan Yoder leads off first. The Hawks scored four times in the first inning en route to an 11-1 triumph over Conotton Valley.
Colin Coblentz drives a single in the first inning as Nolan Yoder leads off first. The Hawks scored four times in the first inning en route to an 11-1 triumph over Conotton Valley.

SUGARCREEK — With Hiland's 11-1 defusing of the Conotton Valley Rockets in the Div. IV East District championship Wednesday at Garaway, the high-flying Hawks were able to check off one of the boxes of their list of goals for the season.

"These guys have worked hard. This was one of their goals at the start of the season, to get through districts, get into regionals and make it to state," said Hiland coach Chris Dages. "We've still got some boxes to check on the way. These guys, especially the seniors, this is the third time around for a lot of them, being big contributors to those regional teams. They've got a lot of experience and are leading the young guys along.

"We came close twice, especially last year," Dages continued. "As soon as that game was over with Newark Catholic last year, they said they've got to come back next year and finish the job. These seniors have really stepped up and that's been on the forefront of their mind all year."

The Hiland Hawks celebrated their third straight East District championship with an 11-1 win over Conotton Valley.
The Hiland Hawks celebrated their third straight East District championship with an 11-1 win over Conotton Valley.

Hiland (26-1) advances to face South Webster in the Lancaster Regional semifinal Thursday at 2 p.m. at Beavers Field.

Hiland pitcher Isaak Yoder delivers against Conotton Valley as first baseman Caden Coblentz prepares for action behind him. Yoder allowed one run on one hit over four innings as the Hawks rolled to the East District title 11-1.
Hiland pitcher Isaak Yoder delivers against Conotton Valley as first baseman Caden Coblentz prepares for action behind him. Yoder allowed one run on one hit over four innings as the Hawks rolled to the East District title 11-1.

One of the seniors who made a mark on Wednesday for the Hawks was Isaak 'Ike' Yoder, who pitched four solid innings of one-run, one-hit ball over four innings. He walked a pair and struck out three.

Yoder also drove in four runs with a two-run first-inning triple and a two-run double in the fourth. The Hawks jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning.

Hiland's Alec Weaver slides safely into home under Conotton Valley catcher Justin Lambert with the first run of the game on a Cody Yoder single to right.
Hiland's Alec Weaver slides safely into home under Conotton Valley catcher Justin Lambert with the first run of the game on a Cody Yoder single to right.

Alec Weaver got things started getting hit by a pitch. He went to second on a wild pick-off attempt and scored on a single by Cody Yoder, who moved up to second on the throw to the plate.

Nolan Yoder drove Cody Yoder home and went to third on a single by Colin Coblentz. Yoder and Coblentz scored on Isaak Yoder's blast to the gap in right center.

"To be honest, he didn't have his best stuff today, but he went out there and he battled," Dages said of Yoder. "He battled and threw a lot of strikes. He doesn't walk a lot of guys, and when he does, he comes right after the next batter. He drove in some runs. When he gets hot, it's a bonus for our batting lineup."

Yoder said he wasn't feeling it, but the big first inning helped boost his confidence.

"Being able to perform at the plate and help the team out felt good," Yoder said. "As a pitcher, when you're struggling a little bit on the mound, when your team comes back and picks you up with runs and gives you some insurance to work with, that's big.

Hiland first baseman leaps high to snare a throw to retire Conotton Valley's Kam Wright.
Hiland first baseman leaps high to snare a throw to retire Conotton Valley's Kam Wright.

"I know I have a great defense behind me, where rarely a ball gets through, or a ball drops," he added.

The Rockets scored a run in the second inning on a walk to Kam Wright, a stolen base and a run-scoring single by Dylan Higgenbotham, but that was all CVHS would muster against the Hawks.

Hiland added a run in the home half of the second inning to take a 5-1 lead when Connor Beachy got hit by a pitch, went to third on a single by Weaver, and scored on a ground out by Cody Yoder.

The Hawks tacked on three more runs in the fourth inning on hits by Weaver, Cody Yoder, an error, a sacrifice fly and a two-run double by Ike Yoder.

Hiland senior Will Schlabach brings the heat during the final inning of Hiland's 11-1 win over Conotton Valley in the East District championship game.
Hiland senior Will Schlabach brings the heat during the final inning of Hiland's 11-1 win over Conotton Valley in the East District championship game.

Leading 8-1 after four, Ike turned it over to classmate Will Schlabach to get some work on the mound. The flame-throwing Schlabach induced a weak ground out to first and a pair of strikeouts.

"We were able to get Will back in the game today. It was good to see him on the mound," Dages said. "He's feeling good and looking good. That's definitely a bonus for our rotation."

"Will's a different level of throwing the ball hard," Yoder added. "He was pumping some gas. It's insane."

The Hawks completed their streak of four straight run-rule victories in the tournament with a three-spot in the bottom of the fifth on a single by Braden Kauffman, a hit batter (Weaver) and a walk to Cody Yoder to load the bases. Nolan Yoder hit a sacrifice fly, and a throwing error on a ground ball to second enabled Weaver and Cody Yoder to score to end the game in five innings.

Weaver got plunked twice and added a pair of singles, scoring four times to lead the Hawks on offense. Cody Yoder added two singles and a walk in four trips to the plate, scoring three times.

"We've got pretty good speed, especially at the top of our order," "Dages said. "We want to score early, and be aggressive on the base paths, which definitely helps with that."

For Conotton Valley, it was a bitter end to a 17-11 season. It was the first district finals appearance for the Rockets since 1988, a team on which coach Jim Monigold was a freshman member.

The Rockets coach tipped his cap to the Hawks.

"They keep the pressure on you. You can't give them an inch because they're going to take a mile. They came out swinging and were able to put some balls where we couldn't get to them," Monigold said. "The next thing you know, we're down four. They're a good team. They're going to keep coming."

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Baseball: Hiland beats Conotton Valley for district title