Wayne's walk-off sends John Glenn to the district tournament
NEW CONCORD — John Glenn missed out on a couple key scoring chances when Muskie batters were unable to drop down bunts in key situations.
With no outs and the bases loaded, Muskies coach Steve Cowgill elected to give it one more go in the seventh inning with senior Sarah Wayne at the plate.
Wayne offered but pulled back twice on pitches out of the zone. Cowgill opted to call off the bunt, and Wayne then rocketed a 2-0 offering back at pitcher Sarah Ciereszewski.
It ricocheted off Ciereszewski, and by the time she grabbed it and fired home, it was too late.
The winning run crossed, sending the Muskies bench into a frenzy after a walk-off 5-4 win against the Quakers.
The win moved the Muskies into Monday's Division II district semifinal against fellow MVL rival Morgan. The Raiders won by an identical 5-4 score against an upstart Harrison Central team that upset Indian Creek in the first round and had been playing well lately.
“It's a matter of getting our bunts down, and we weren't successful, and we needed to be at that point in time,” Cowgill said. “I asked Sarah to bunt, and she knows we only bunt strikes. There corners were charging hard, so I took it off, and you saw what happened.”
Wayne's heroics were set up earlier in the inning when New Philadelphia head coach John Dupke issued a free pass to Sydney Marshall for the second time in the game.
Chloe Evans came on to run for Marshall and quickly found herself at third after a double from Alivia Boothe. Dupke again opted for a free pass, putting Ava Miller at first to load the bases with zero outs.
The move worked earlier in the game as an intentional walk led to only one run that allowed the Muskies to cut the deficit to 5-4 in what could have been a breakout inning.
It nearly didn't need to be.
Marshall was masterful in the circle, striking out 10 Quakers' batters, including catching more than a few watching a called strike three on the inside corner.
Her placement was spot on. What didn't help were the four errors JG committed — fielding issues that also plagued the hosts previously when they were swept in a doubleheader at New Philly. Both games were close, 4-3 and 4-2, with errors playing a factor.
“Sydney pitched really well and was hitting her spots,” Cowgill said. “We are getting to the point where we're starting to click a little bit, but we didn't play as good of defense as we can and should. But we'll get there.”
Cowgill noted that this is the second season, and while he'd prefer to see a more solid defensive outing, there are no style points in the postseason. It's win-and-advance time, and looking pretty whilst doing it garners no extra credit.
Miller and Wayne each drove in two runs apiece for the Muskies.
New Philly was limited to four singles — two coming off the bat of Sidney Vandall. Pitcher Jillian Howard drove in two runs and struck out two batters against three walks before yielding to Ciereszewski in the fifth.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: John Glenn edges New Philadelphia behind Wayne's walk-off single
