Clarke battles back against No. 3 Centerville

Clarke’s game against Class 3A No. 3 Centerville was postponed due to weather in the top of the seventh inning with Centerville leading 11-10 after the Indians battled back from an 8-0 deficit.

A loose, close-knit Clarke group didn’t enter the game worried about Centerville’s high ranking. Clarke knocked off the Big Reds – the only team in the conference to beat Centerville – in one of three matchups in 2019.

Clarke head coach Lonnie Smith said it’s been an adjustment to letting the team play loose since he’s “old school,” but that’s what is helping the team play well this season.

“They just play better when you let them be a little goofy – under control, but a little goofy,” Smith said with a laugh.

Clarke battled back from down 8-0 and took a 10-9 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning when Trevor Boyce hit a line drive over second to give the Indians their first lead of the night. Entering the top of the seventh, the Indians recorded two outs with runners on second and third.

Kolby Miecetich hit a slow dribbler to the left side with Nick Neer making a play on the ball. A scoop and short hop on the throw to first got past Dalton Stubbe, scoring two runs for Centerville and giving the Big Reds an 11-10 lead before the game was postponed.

“I’ve not seen a Clarke baseball team do what these guys did today (Friday),” Smith said. “Win or lose, they battled through adversity and hung tough with one of the best teams in the state. That just goes to show how strong our guys.”

Indians battle back

In the Big Reds and Indians’ 2020 matchup, Centerville’s offense – entering hitting .316 and averaging 10 runs per game – left four runners on in the first two innings.

The third inning saw Centerville’s offense explode. A bloop hit over first and a batter hit by a pitch was all the momentum the Big Reds needed. Eight runs crossed as Centerville’s offense hit the ball hard to all fields throughout the inning.

Between the top and bottom of the third, Smith gathered his team in front of the dugout and talked to the team about “battling back” and limiting “mental errors.”

In the fourth, Clarke’s offense started to rally together. A lead off single then a double from Will Smith put runners on second and third. Matthew Stickels and Boyce each drove in one run. Boyce was caught stealing, but the runner at third scored to cut the deficit to 8-3.

The Indians continued to score before Casey Kindred recorded an RBI on a sacrifice fly to cut Centerville’s lead to 8-6 after the fourth inning.

Kindred was on the mound for Clarke, allowing one more run in the top of the fifth. He finished his day throwing 4 1/3 innings, with five strikeouts and allowed five earned runs.

Neer scored another in the bottom half of the fifth, making the game 9-7. In the sixth, a passed ball scored another for Clarke with the dugout’s energy continuously rising.

After a near 15-pitch at-bat, Matthew Stickels hit a ball through the left side of the infield to tie the game 9-9, completing an eight-run comeback.

Stickels went 4-for-4 with four singles, two RBIs and three runs.

“The way our guys battled back after the big inning is really the story of the game,” Lonnie Smith said.

After the postponement, Lonnie Smith said he was unsure of how the outcome is going to play out, but he feels the game could be won by either team since both teams will enter the game fresh with “a totally different setup.”