By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The scene could fit right into a movie script.
With Logan Ripper coming up to bat late in a scoreless state quarterfinals game, Catholic coach Courtney Spitz brought his senior catcher over for a short conversation.
“I talked to (Ripper) and said, ‘Hey, how do you feel right now?’” Spitz said. “He said, ‘I’m seeing it good.’ I told him, ‘I’m going to give you one pitch. I want you to drive the ball on your pitch. He takes the first pitch for a strike, looks down at me and I just said, ‘Let’s go!’
Ripper, who was set to bunt, capitalized on the green light granted by his head coach.
Batting with two strikes, Ripper swung away and crushed a ball over the left field fence for a resounding two-run homer.
“I told coach I wanted to swing and he let me swing. I caught one inside, turned on it and it went out,” Ripper said.
In a game that played out to a classic pitcher’s duel, Ripper’s homer made the difference in Catholic’s 2-0 victory over Nevada in the Class 4 quarterfinals on Thursday evening.
“I had no clue (it was gone),” Ripper said of his sixth-inning homer. “I thought it was going to be caught. I saw it go out and I was just filled with emotions. I couldn’t breathe going around the bases.”
Coleman Morrison, who pitched Catholic to a district championship last week, led the way for the Irish on the mound once again.
Morrison threw a complete game and finished just shy of his 105-pitch count limit. He struck out 14 with two hits and six walks allowed.
“Every game, I just try to lock in as much as I can and compete,” Morrison said. “I want to do everything I can and leave everything on the field for my guys.”
Catholic (20-7 overall) will compete in the baseball state championships for the second straight season.
The Irish, who were runner-up in Class 3 a year ago, will face Excelsior Springs (28-12 overall) in the Class 4 semifinal round at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 31 at Sky Bacon Stadium in Ozark.
“We’re just a little bit of a different team now,” Spitz said. “The experience – going there last year – matters. We just keep finding ways. It doesn’t have to look pretty this time of year and I think that’s kind of been the theme of the last two weeks for us.
“You try to preach as a high school coach, ‘Stay in it. Stay in the moment.’ Credit to these kids, they’ve worked their butt off to do that.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Morrison and the Irish rebounded from a shaky start. He issued three straight walks to begin the second inning, but escaped the early jam with back-to-back strikeouts and a flyout.
“I got a little too quick, out ahead of myself, on the mound. I was leaving too many balls in the dirt,” Morrison said. “I just had to compose myself back together. I had a few of those moments last week at Rogersville, where I didn’t have my best stuff and got myself in a bad situation, but I never doubted that I could get out of it. I felt confident still.”
Like Catholic, Nevada got a stellar performance from its star pitcher.
Senior lefthander Case Sanderson, a Nebraska commit, allowed four hits, four walks and struck out 12 in 6 2/3 innings.
The Tigers were unable to deliver any run support, though. Nevada stranded eight baserunners and recorded just two hits in all, both of which came in the sixth inning.
“Case Sanderson, he’s a hell of a player,” Spitz said. “We knew he’d be trouble for us. We just tried to stick with our motto and our guys and do our job, regardless of who’s on the other side.”
Colin Soetaert’s lead-off walk in the sixth set up Ripper’s third home run of the season. Sanderson reached his pitch limit and exited the game two batters later.
“I didn’t put the bunt on. (Ripper) has been one of our better hitters the last few weeks. Then he goes and puts a big swing on a two-strike pitch… That was a special at-bat,” Spitz said.
Nevada finishes 19-10 overall. The Tigers were making their first appearance in the state quarterfinals in 25 years.
Next week will mark Catholic’s ninth final four appearance in program history, and fourth in the last decade.
“It felt great to do it last year, but it just feels better this year,” Ripper said. “This team is just locked together this year. Last year, we had it, but it wasn’t all there. This year, we have it.”
