ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (May 15, 2024) -- More tremendous pitching and another victory on the diamond. Only this time, the Sons of Blackbeard prevailed when nothing else will do.
On Wednesday, Rocky River defeated Tallmadge 4-2 to move on in the
Northeast 5 District Tournament as part of the DII Buckeye State playoffs. The Pirates got a complete game from junior left-hander Rees Heigle, who worked around six walks by holding the Blue Devils to a 1-of-7 mark with runners in scoring position. Northeast District top-seed Rocky River (21-5) got its runs early and won in wire-to-wire fashion, and now the Pirates move on to a district semifinal to be played Monday at 2 p.m. at North Ridgeville High School.
After Heigle set the tone by striking out the side in the Tallmadge first, the Double-R turned a walk, hit batter, and single into a solo run in the home half of the opening stanza. Heigle, who would throw a season-high 121 pitches in the contest, worked out of a minimal jam in the second and then whiffed the side again in the third.
The River offense rewarded his good mound work by hanging a crooked number in the bottom of the third. The Pirates batted around in that inning. A leadoff triple by Josh Mommers was followed by a sacrifice fly (Anthony Ferchill) and two singles (Griffin Hill, Jeff Maslar). The Maroon & White would eventually leave the bases loaded in the third, saving Tallmadge starter Keagan Gilbride from a worse fate, but damage was done and when Heigle took the mound in the top of the fourth he found himself staked to a 4-0 lead.
The meat of the order helped Tallmadge get half its deficit back in the fourth (two runs on a walk, a hit, and a River error), but from then on the visitors were bedeviled by the Buccaneer southpaw.
The Tallmadge runs came in part due to two defensive misplays in the outfield. Head coach Ed Piazza discussed making those plays a focus in a stern reminder on focus between innings.
"We had a couple balls that could have been played better," said Piazza, "but I am proud of the grit our outfielders showed in how they responded."
To Piazza's point, center fielder Griffin Hill would go on to make two key diving catches, and right fielder Elliot Hibshman made one more of his own.
"Those plays were big in getting us to the finish line," added the Pirate skipper.
River failed to threaten in the home halves of the fourth, fifth, and sixth. But if the Pirates had nothing more to give with the bats, Heigle had the backs. The Blue Devils got runners in scoring position in the fifth and sixth, but the junior hurler escaped unscathed. He closed out the game with a 1-2-3 seventh, with the one and the three being filed as his 12th and 13th strikeouts of the game.
For the season, Heigle has punched out 73 batters in 45-2/3 innings. And he did so on behalf of a Pirate pitching staff that has authored a 1.56 ERA this spring.
So, for the Pirates, Wednesday was nothing new. Just more sensational mound work, 60 feet-and-6 inches at a time. Only now, the stage demands just about that each and every game. Lose and go home.
Only for these Swashbuckling Sons of Blackbeard -- both at the Bus Yard and abroad -- playing winning baseball is where this team seems most at home. And so on this Pirate ship sails, further into May.
CANNON FIRE ...
FROM THE BUCS SCORE: Rocky River outhit Tallmadge 5-1. Griffin Hill went 2-for-3 to register his fourth multi-hit game of the 2024 season. ... Josh Mommers' triple marked his fourth of the season. Mommers has logged 10 extra-base hits (four doubles, four triples, two home runs) en route to slashing a .303/.515/.576 (1.091 OPS) line for the season.
ON DECK: Rocky River will face No. 15-seed Norton on Monday. Norton defeated No. 10 Benedictine 7-4 in a Wednesday quarterfinal. ... Before Monday's bracket battle, the Buccaneers will play a Saturday regular-season game vs. Revere at Rocky River Field.
by Skip Snow
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