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Mansfield is heading back to the Class 2 State Championship game for the first time since 2005 after a dominant 9-1 win over Lincoln in the state semifinals.
Lincoln came in averaging 12.8 runs per game, but Mansfield senior Jonah Williamson was masterful on the mound pitching to contact and allowing just one earned run on the night.
“He did what he has done all year which is throw strikes. He moves the ball up and down, in and out. He uses his off-speed pitches and he just competes,” Mansfield coach Gary Greene said. “He is a bulldog. He is a fighter. He wants the ball and loves the moment.”
The Mansfield senior struck out just two batters in the game, but by sticking to his game plan he was able to keep the Cardinal hitters off balance.
“They like to pull the ball so I worked them curve ball and fast ball outside to where they would roll over,” Williamson said.
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Williamson was helped by his defense turning two inning-ending double plays in the game.
“It raises it (my confidence) a lot. Our defense is pretty good. We have very few errors,” Williamson said. “It just feels great to have a defense like that behind me.”
The Lions helped themselves at the plate and on the base paths as well. Lincoln, which had not given up more than seven runs in a game this season, was forced to use five pitchers in the game. Mansfield caused havoc on the base paths as well with five steals in an unrelenting offensive assault. The scoring culminated with a two-run inside-the-park home run by Devin Kingery.
“For the last two or three weeks our guys have been taking really good at bats,” Greene said. “They just fight and compete. That guy (late head coach Doug Jones) that was their coach for a few years was a pretty good competitor and right now they are fighting like crazy for him. That is why they are having those good at bats.”
Mansfield now has a chance to cap off a magical season that has been played in honor of Jones who passed away on Jan. 25 after a year-long battle with brain cancer.
“I don’t know that you can write a script better than what we have the opportunity to do tomorrow. We have talked about it all year. We have talked about making sure we give ourselves a chance to do that. We have that chance now,” Greene said.
Mansfield will try to win its first state title since 1996 against a Canton team that beat St. Vincent 3-2 in the semifinals. Canton fell to Valle Catholic in the state championship game last season.
Mansfield and Canton are scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. first pitch on Wednesday in O’Fallon.
