Baseball vs. Fairfield
It started late. It looked like it would end disappointingly quickly. But it did not: a last-ditch comeback for the ages transformed blowout to nail-biter to victory Friday night at Bodiker Fields.
While the game's start time was pushed back to 5:04 to counter Fairfield's bus issues, the 42-degree temperature would not stop the visitors from scoring on an error by Bruin shortstop Mikey Kelly and a single from left fielder Colin Holmes. Bethany struck back with the aid of two wild pitches in the bottom of the first, only to surrender four more in the top of the second after two were out. A James Helmuth single plated a run with no outs in the second, but Helmuth was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double and the remaining two hitters went down quietly.
The fourth inning saw the Falcons score following a walk and stolen base by Justin Scott. Kyle Cross followed with a ground ball to third baseman Johnny Kauffman, who looked the runner back to second and recorded the out at first. In an attempt to record an unconventional 5-3-6 double play, first baseman Luke Slagel threw wildly into the fence behind third and Scott scampered home with an insurance run to make the tally 6-2.
Fairfield would finish their scoring after two strikeouts in the fifth, as a Jordan Bontrager double was followed by a wild pitch from Bruin starter Seth Kauffman and three consecutive errors by second baseman Russell Klassen, and the Falcons would sustain their advantage for another inning to lead 9-2 through 5½.
In the sixth inning, Seth Kauffman reached second base on an error by Cross off the second pitch of the inning, then advanced to third on a wild pitch. Johnny Kauffman, who had replaced Seth on the mound prior to the previous half-inning, knocked a 3-2 pitch into center field and set the visitors down with 16 pitches in the seventh, sending Bethany into its final cuts down by only six.
The Falcons replaced Derick Troeger with Hochstetler to begin the frame, and he would find the strike zone just five times to the next four hitters, leaving men on the corners and one away to the relief abilities of Justin Scott. He started auspiciously, leaving Seth Kauffman waving at a 1-2 pitch, then induced Johnny Kauffman to roll a 3-1 pitch straight to second baseman Brad Newcomer for a routine third out.
But the ball split Newcomer's legs, scoring Tim Gautsche from third and Mikey Kelly from second, and a walk drawn by Russell Klassen put the tying run at bat in the person of Ben Bontreger. The 5-7 center fielder drove a ball into the right field gap for two bases, plating Kauffman and leaving Klassen at third. Each runner advanced a base on an 0-1 wild pitch from Scott, leaving the score 9-8 in favor of Fairfield. After an awkward swinging strike, James Helmuth singled on a line drive over second, bringing in the tying run and setting the stage for an inevitable conclusion.
Two pitches later it came, after a ball and a strike to first baseman Micah Miller. The left-handed, high-socked first baseman lifted Scott's offering into a 25-mile-per-hour, left to right cross wind. The ball fell behind outfielders Troeger and Josh Brown, bounced once off the chain-link fence, scoring a nearly sprinting Helmuth all the way from first and sending home a rather sparse Spring Break crowd on their feet.
GOSHEN —
| Fairfield | ab | r | h | bi | Bethany | ab | r | h | bi | |
| Hchstlr ss-p | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | LSlagel 1b-3b | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Scott cf-p | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Kelly ss | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Cross 3b | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | SeKffmn p-c | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| CaYoder 1b | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | JKauffman 3b-p | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
| Holmes lf | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 | Kehr pr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| StKffmn lf | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Klassen 2b | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Beck dh | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | KMiller ph | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TKauffman ph-dh | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Bontreger cf | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| Newcomer 2b-ss | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | Helmuth rf | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| Bontrager c | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | MMiller dh-1b | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Brown rf-cf | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ASlagel pr | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | 31 | 9 | 7 | 5 | Gautsche lf | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | 29 | 10 | 7 | 5 |
B 110 001 7 — 10
Two out when winning run scored.
E — Klassen 3, Cross, JKauffman, Kelly, Newcomer, Slagel. DP — Fairfield 0, Bethany 0. LOB — Fairfield 7, Bethany 7. 2B — Bontrager, Bontreger, MMiller. SB — Brown, Scott. SH — Brown.
| Fairfield | ip | h | r | er | bb | so |
| Troeger | 6.0 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Hchstlr | 0.1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Scott (L) | 0.1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Bethany | ip | h | r | er | bb | so |
| SeKffmn | 5.0 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 6 |
| JKauffman (W, 1-0) | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
HBP — Gautsche (by Troeger), Hchstlr (by SeKffmn). WP — Troeger 4, SeKffmn 2, Hchstlr, Scott. PB — Bontrager. T — 2:04.
Girls tennis def. Central Noble 5-0.
Mandy Schlabach def. Katie Craft 6-0, 6-0. Marla zumFelde def. Macie Price 6-1, 6-1. Emma Caskey def. Sarah Obuz 6-1, 6-1. Corine Alvarez/Emily Shenk def. Jessica Luce/Hattie Baer 6-2, 6-0. Maria Thomas/Sarah Brew def. Amy Blackford/Kayla Avery 6-2, 6-0.
JV won 5-0.
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