High school baseball: Cloverleaf shocks second-ranked CVCA

BATH TWP. — Surely the No. 2 team in the Ohio Baseball Coaches Association Division II state poll wouldn't have any problems with an opponent who, coming into this spring, had two winning seasons since 1987, right? Well, folks, these ain't your brother's Cloverleaf Colts. These ain't your daddy's Colts, either, or even your grandpa's Colts, for that matter. Arguably the biggest upset of the Ohio tournament thus far happened Monday, when 15th-seeded Cloverleaf dropped jaws across the state with a 5-2 win over second-seeded CVCA in the Revere District semifinals. The Colts (19-9), who have outscored opponents 79-19 during a nine-game winning streak, advanced to face fifth-seeded Chagrin Falls (17-11) at 5 p.m. Wednesday, while the Royals, who not long ago swept a doubleheader against Metro Athletic Conference co-champion Norton by a combined 17-9 score, finished 25-3. "Most importantly, we knew what was in front of us," said coach Mark Kelly, whose team reached the district final for the second straight year. "When other people talk about the No. 2 team in the state, we're not talking about that. We're controlling our dugout and emotions in our preparation. Preparing and practicing is how you win in May. "We put them in good situations in practice, and a great schedule (especially early in the season) allows for this game to happen." Cloverleaf set the tone with a two-run single by Branson Harding in the first inning, then took advantage of an error to take the lead again — this time for good — in the fifth. With his team up 3-2, Avery Skelton took a strike with runners on first and third, then Connor Hitchcock stole second before he and Trent Youngeberg scored on a single by Skelton. Mark Stewart (7-1, 1.31 ERA) took care of the rest, as CVCA, whose only other losses were to state-ranked powers University School (22-7 record) and Walsh Jesuit (19-5), never got the tying run to the plate. Stewart labored by throwing only 59-of-105 pitches for strikes and walking five, but the sophomore curveball specialist also struck out seven and allowed just three hits. Stewart completed seven innings for only the second time this season. That meant the Colts didn't have to use No. 2 Trent Youngeberg (4-2, 2.95) in relief, allowing the latter to save his arm for Chagrin Falls on Wednesday. "Mark's our guy," Kelly said of Stewart. "He was our Monday pitcher in the conference with a 5-0 record and one-point something (1.11) ERA. We weren't questioning anything. "He finished. If you look at all his starts all year, we continued to talk about finishing with him. We had a great game plan and scouting report, and he and (catcher) Tyler (Biskup) did a great job communicating between innings." A game-opening single by Biskup got things rolling. Ashton Newton followed by reaching on an error, then Youngeberg was drilled by a pitched from freshman starter John Harabedian to load the bases. Harding delivered on a grounder through the left side to put Cloverleaf ahead 2-0. CVCA got a run back in the bottom half of the inning on a double by Trevor Vojkofsky that plated Joey Lehner, who had walked. The Royals tied in the third on a sacrifice fly by Kent State recruit Andrew Hendrickx that scored pinch runner Ben Reske, but Stewart limited the damage by stranding two runners. The teams traded innocent halves of the fourth inning before the Colts got back to work. Newton reached on a one-out, drag-bunt bunt single and moved to second on a throwing error, then Youngeberg walked to chase Harabedian. Newton stole third and Harding hit a short fly ball into left field. Newton baited a throw home by leaving third base hard after the catch, but the throw went to the backstop and allowed Newton to score. Hitchcock walked against reliever Lehner to set up Skelton's big hit. "Pick each other up, the next man, we've continued to preach that, and you're seeing other guys step up with confidence," Kelly said. "They made great plays all day today. It was great. That's where you see a 'W.'" Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com. Cloverleaf 5, CVCA 2 Revere Division II District Semifinal CLOVERLEAF &emsp;&emsp;200 030 0 — 5 5 2 CVCA &emsp;&emsp;101 000 0 — 2 3 4 WP — Mark Stewart (7-1) 7 innings, 2 earned runs, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts. LP — John Harabedian 4 1/3 innings, 4 runs, 3 earned, 4 hits, walk, 2 hit by pitches, 3 strikeouts. Cloverleaf (19-9) — Ashton Newton single, walk, 2 runs; Trent Youngeberg 2 walks, run; Branson Harding two-run single; Avery Skelton two-run single. CVCA (25-3) — Trevor Vojtkofsky double.