LINDEN – A pitcher’s duel went Danville’s way in a 3-0 Sagamore Conference baseball win over North Montgomery.
The Warriors managed only three hits off Chargers ace Jarrod Kirsch, but one of those was a home run in the first inning, with a runner on.
The Chargers could only muster two singles off of two Danville pitchers, and the end result shows the Warriors moving to 2-4 on the season and 1-2 in the Sagamore.
The Chargers fall to 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the league.
“We had a few ‘hope to’s’ and didn’t control some situations,” Chargers coach Matt Voorhees said. “We also were not the pit bulls at the plate that we normally are. Congratulations to Danville though. Their pitchers made good pitches and their fielders made good plays.”
Offensively, the game was settled after the first three Danville hitters came up in the first inning.
Kirsch struck out the first hitter he faced, and the next hitter, Cole Stafford, laced a single down the third base line.
Two pitches later, Ethan Wooten got around on a pitch and even with the wind blowing out, the ball bounced off the upper part of the scoreboard. It was the first varsity homer for the sophomore, and the first given up this season by Kirsch.
The senior hurler allowed only one hit in the last six innings, although the Warriors did scratch out a run in the third after a walk. Kirsch picks up his first loss of the season, falling to 2-1.
“Jarrod did his job,” Voorhees said. “Our offense didn’t do theirs. It was two really good pitching performances tonight.”
The Chargers only hits came when Noah Hopkins singled in the second and Ross Dyson singled in the fourth. Dyson was the only North runner to get to second base.
That was due to the five-inning gem that Warriors junior Garrett Groce threw.
Throwing 69 pitches, Groce struck out eight and walked not a batter.
After his home run heroics, Wooten came in to pitch the sixth and seventh and faced only six hitters to get six outs.
“We have a lot of depth, and some decent talent,” Danville first-year coach Canton Terry said. “We have a good group of juniors, and two really good seniors who are providing great leadership. We are trying to point that talent in the right direction. We have some guys who want to play college baseball, and we are also trying to build a winning program and attitude.”
Coach Terry brings a baseball resume to his first head coaching job.
A 2021 Wabash graduate, he played four years for the Little Giants and was an assistant to Jake Martin last season. Coach Martin was in attendance at the game, to support his former coach and to watch his future player, as Kirsch has recently committed to Wabash.
“Then I played a year of pro ball in Germany,” Terry said, “and then it was with the Prospect League and the Lafayette Aviators. "
He also comes from a baseball family, as his father, Tim, has been the baseball coach at South Vermillion for about 40 years and has had a Hall of Fame career.
“I want to pass my personal congratulations to Coach Terry,” Coach Voorhees said. “After spending a great career at Wabash, I know he is going to do great things at Danville. His dad is a great coach and I know Coach will be as successful. It is great to see the passage of a torch like that from one generation to the next.”
Terry and his Warriors had things go their way on the road, as Groce picked up his second win of the season.
“We are trying to build good habits on the field and away from the field,” he noted.” “Wooten got a good bat on the ball, Groce pitched well, and we recovered from a 13-11 loss to Northview last Saturday. We have a great group of parents. I’m so blessed t be in this position with this group of players in my first year.”
The two teams will square off again Wednesday at Danville in the second game of the conference series.
“We got down the quick two runs and then it was 3-0 and that made it hard on us,” Voorhees said. “The home run took the wind out of our sails for a while. We have to find a way to get the split over there on Wednesday and then we have to find ways to win two conference games. Splits won’t do it. I was glad to see (Noah) Hopkins and Dyson get their hits. We hit a lot of balls right at defenders tonight. It’s just going to take more.”
Both teams have a third conference game this Saturday. Danville travels to Frankfort while the Chargers travel to Southmont.
BOX SCORE
DANVILLE 3 NORTH MONTGOMERY 0
Score by Innings
DAN 201 000 0 – 3 3 0
NM 000 000 0 – 0 2 0
Records: DAN (2-4, 1-2); NM (4-2, 1-2).
Hits: DAN 3 (Stafford, Wooten, Wenzel); NM 2 (N.Hopkins, Dyson).
HR: DAN (Wooten).
Runs: DAN (Stafford, Wooten, Warner).
RBI DAN (Wooten 2).
Pitching: DAN Groce W 5IP 2H 0R 0BB 8K, Wooten S 2IP 0H 0R 0BB 0K; NM Kirsch 7IP 3H 3R 3ER 2BB 9K.
