Hitting is contagious for Heath baseball in district semifinal romp
HEATH ― Heath wasn't happy with its offensive performance in the tournament opener, so the Bulldogs left nothing to chance Monday during a Division III district semifinal.
An eight-run second-inning sent the fifth-seeded Bulldogs on their way to an 11-1, five-inning romp against eighth seed Grandview Heights at Dave Klontz Field, putting them in their first district final since 2015. Heath (19-8) will challenge top-seeded Fredericktown (25-1), which survived Liberty Union 5-4, at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Lancaster's Beavers Field in a bid for its first district championship since 2011.
"Last game, we did not swing the bats well, but we made up for it today," said senior first baseman Cooper Bradley, who doubled and singled in the big inning during his final home game. "It's all confidence. It's contagious, one hit after another, and we've been doing it all year."
Coach Tom Warren said his team has seen nearly everyone's ace during a demanding schedule. The Bulldogs did not see the best for the Bobcats (14-11), and they pounced.
"You still have to swing the bat," he said. "Right now, our energy is really good, and our chemistry is amazing."
Hayden Woodward, one of six juniors in Monday's starting lineup, overcame a shaky start and cruised to the four-hit victory, throwing only 56 pitches, striking out one and walking two. He walked losing pitcher Jackson Larson with one out in the first and Charlie Ticknor bounced a ground rule double over the left-center field fence. Kaiden Lutsch blooped an RBI single to center, but Woodward retired Michael Greer and Colin Cleary on fly balls.
"It was a little bit of jitters at first. We hadn't been in this spot before," he admitted. "I calmed down and trusted the guys behind me. I always trust them."
Heath took advantage of Larson's wildness, sending 13 batters to the plate in the second. Jaiden Dansby walked, Bradley doubled and Preston DeVito walked to load the baes. After a popout, Conner Toomey laced an RBI single to right, then Connor Corbett (walk) and Tannar Patterson and Kaden Green (hit by pitches) all got RBIs with the bases loaded. Woodward, Dansby and Bradley greeted reliever Lutsch with run-scoring hits and DeVito's groundout got another run home for the 8-1 lead.
Toomey, who went 2 for 2 and scored three runs, walked and eventually scored on a wild pitch in the third. In the fifth, Toomey singled and scored on Woodward's hit, and the game ended on a throwing error on an attempted force at second base. Green scored the winning run and also had two hits for the Bulldogs.
After the first, Woodward got help from his defense. William Halberg was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple, and Heath turned two double plays, one of them unassisted by Green at shortstop.
"Woodward has given us so many good games," Bradley said.
Warren said it was a vintage Woodward performance.
"Doesn't hardly strike anyone out and lets his defense do the work," he said.
Despite being in uncharted territory, Heath is where it thought it would be at the beginning of the season.
"We knew we had a competitive team, and we've been competitive all year," Warren said. "We took a couple lumps early, but we've come back to win games in the seventh inning. We had tough game with Granville, then the next day we beat DeSales in nine innings. We're used to being in those spots."
Bradley said the Bulldogs are realizing their vast potential.
"This is when it matters," he said. "You put it all together and you see what you've got. We've played the second toughest schedule in our district in Division III."
Heath's goals remain on the table.
"Number one was to win the LCL" (they tied with Newark Catholic atop the Cardinal Division), said Warren. "Number two was to win the Central District, and number three was to win 20 games. If we can win Wednesday, we'll accomplish the final two. As a fifth seed, we got to play two home games, so that was a plus. Now, we'll go see what happens."
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Hitting is contagious for Heath baseball in district semifinal romp
