By Trey Hunter
Sports Editor
Okarche’s season came to an end last Friday as one big inning once again led to a loss to Canadian County rival Southwest Covenant in the 2019 Class A district tournament.
The Warriors controlled momentum through the first three and one half innings, but after allowing five runs in the bottom of the fourth, the Eagles shifted momentum their way and eventually capped a 7-5 win to end Okarche’s season.
“Southwest Covenant is tough in the since that they have guys all throughout their lineup that don’t strike out and put the ball in play,” Okarche coach Mark Framel said. “They make you make plays and feed off adversity and freebies.
“For the most part we did a really good job with the exception of two innings. We botched a ball in one inning and then a walk and a bloop single. We kind of let adversity get the best of us.”
Dalton Schwarz led off the top of the first inning with a hit-by-pitch before Nick Baustert singled and Tucker Neuenschwander reached on an error. Preston Hawk stepped up with the bases loaded and drove home Schwarz on a sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead. Carson Baustert made it 2-0 with a two-out RBI single after a fielder’s choice by Bryce Reece.
Reece pitched two scoreless innings to start the game, allowing just two hits and a walk to the Eagles lineup the first time through the order. But in the third inning, Covenant struck for two runs on two hits, including a home run, to tie the game before plating five runs in the bottom of the fourth to all but seal the victory.
Covenant struck with a single and a walk before two errors and a passed ball led to three runs and a 5-2 deficit for the Warriors.
The Eagles drove home another run with a sacrifice fly before a single and a double four a fifth run and a 7-2 lead.
“We had those two rough innings where we just let a mistake here and a mistake there turn into a big inning for them,” Framel said. “We hit the ball really well and put the pressure on them, but they made the plays we didn’t. You can’t do that against a good team like that.”
The Warriors attempted to mount a comeback late in the game.
They scored one run in the top of the sixth inning, but even after plating two more in the seventh, the team’s comeback fell short as they ended the season with a two-run loss.
Carson Baustert reached on a one-out error to start Okarche’s run in the top of the sixth.
He reached third on a single by Jayton Crider before scoring on a sacrafice fly by Carson Jacobs to cut the lead to 7-3. Tucker Neuenschwander got things going in the top of the seventh by reaching on a hit-by-pitch before moving to second on a Hawk single and moving to third on a wild pitch. Reece loaded the bases with a walk before a sacrifice fly from Carson Baustert and a groundout RBI by Crider to cut the deficit to 7-5. However, it wasn’t enough as Southwest Covenant recorded the final out for the win.
Reece suffered the loss for Okarche, allowing seven runs on nine hits, including two doubles and a home run, three walks and three errors with three strikeouts.
The Warriors finish the season 12-12 and graduate four seniors, including Neuenschwander, Joe Mayhew, Lathen Stover and Dalton Schwarz.
“The seniors laid the foundation for us this year,” Framel said of the team’s upperclassmen.
“They were emotional, but needed to know it hurts because they invested so much into it. They were all a major part of building the program, from community outreach to fundraising to in the classroom – everywhere. We’re really going to miss those guys, but we’re definitely excited about the future.”
