On the night Wadsworth honored their eight senior baseball players, the Grizzlies (6-1, 3-0 Suburban) cruised past the Cloverleaf Colts (5-4, 3-0 Metro) 6-0 Thursday evening. Senior lefty Ben Weber turned in a dominant performance on the mound, pitching a complete game shutout only allowing four hits while striking out eight. Picking up the loss for the Colts was Jacob Meckley who allowed one earned run and struck out four in 4.2 innings of work.
Cloverleaf would get an early opportunity to get on the board in the first as Tyler Biskup led off the game with a single. Wadsworth would get a key double play the next batter, but the Colts would have runners on the corners with two outs. Weber got Griffin Petrocci looking for the third out of the inning, ending the early threat. Despite both teams seeing runners reach base in the second inning, it wasn’t until the fourth where the Grizzlies finally got on the board.
Photo by Devin Lowe
With one out in the bottom of the fourth, Ben Leopold ripped a single to left. Two pitches later, Aaron Keating laced a double into the outfield and a throwing error allowed Leopold to score, putting Wadsworth up 1-0. Two batters later, Jason Moore hit a double of his own, plating Keating, and giving the Grizzlies a 2-0 after four.
After Weber retired the first two batters in just four pitches to start the fifth, Cloverleaf showed some life with back to back singles from Biskup and Avery Skelton. Facing a full count against Connor Hitchcock, Weber got a big strike three looking to get out of the jam. Logan Skidmore led off the home half of the frame with a single but, despite stealing two bases, the next three batters were retired in order.
In the home half of the sixth, the Wadsworth offense exploded. Leopold would lead things off with a single, followed up by a walk from Keating. With two on and nobody out, Austin Miller hit a two run double to extend the lead to 4-0. Jason Moore would draw a walk and, two batters later, Kyle Figuray hit a two run single to go up 6-0. Daniel Hall would hit a double but Kyle Hlucky got Ethan Green swinging to end the onslaught. Weber would retire the side in order in the top of the seventh to seal the victory.
Photo by Devin Lowe
Up next for the Grizzlies is a Suburban League matchup with Barberton (3-6, 2-2) Saturday at noon in Wadsworth. Cloverleaf will be back in action Tuesday afternoon when they travel to Woodridge (5-3) to take on the Bulldogs in a Metro Athletic showdown.
Keys to the Game
Senior pitcher Ben Weber was in control from start to finish in a big Senior Night performance. Three times the Colts had runners in scoring position and twice Weber got big strikeouts to end the threat. Following his complete game, eight strikeout performance, the lefty announced his commitment to Terra State Community College on Twitter.
Congrats Ben! @bweb217. Great day to announce your commitment following a complete game shutout! https://t.co/ndQEo1d4tM
— Wadsworth Baseball (@wadsbaseball) April 14, 2023
Offensively, the Grizzlies were a terror on the base paths throughout the game. The team finished with six stolen bases and what could have been a potential rundown situation near second base forced an error that allowed their first run to score in the game.
Top Performers
Cloverleaf
Jacob Meckley: 4.2 IP 9 H 3 BB 4 K 1 ER
Tyler Biskup: 2-3 2 1B
Wadsworth
Ben Weber: 7 IP 4 H 3 BB 8 K 0 ER
Ben Leopold: 2-2 2 1B 1 BB 2 SB 2 R
Aaron Keating: 1-2 1 2B 1 BB 1 SB 2 R
Austin Miller: 1-3 1 2B 2 RBI 1 R
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | R | H | E | |
| Cloverleaf | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| Wadsworth | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | X | 6 | 9 | 1 |
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