East blanks Shelbyville
ST. LEON — Cole Gilley threw a one-hitter and struck out 14 Wednesday night to lead Class 4A No. 3 Columbus East to a 1-0 win against Shelbyville in the opening round of the East Central Sectional.
The Olympians (20-4) gave Gilley all the runs he would need when they plated a run in the bottom of the first. Jonah Wichman led off with a single and scored on a one-out double by Julian Greenwell.
The Golden Bears threatened in the sixth when they loaded the bases loaded with one out. But Gilley came through with back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.
“He got in a little bit of trouble there in the sixth,” East coach Jon Gratz said. “He was having a little trouble gripping the ball, but he battled his way out of it. We played great defense.”
The Olympians will play Bloomington South, a 1-0 upset winner over 4A No. 6 Bloomington North in Wednesday’s opener, in the semifinals at 6 p.m. Friday. Class 4A No. 7 Columbus North will meet East Central in the second semifinal.
The sectional final is at 6 p.m. Monday.
“Every game is a one-game tournament, so every game, you’re surviving and just moving on to the next one,” Gratz said.
Hauser rallies for win
OSGOOD — Class A No. 1 Hauser survived a scare in rallying for a 7-5 win against North Decatur in Wednesday’s opening round of the Jac-Cen-Del Sectional.
The Cougars took a 4-1 lead after scoring four times in the top of the second. The Jets (19-5) tied it in the bottom of the second when Sean Miller blasted a three-run home run.
North Decatur regained the lead at 5-4 with a run in the third and kept it until the sixth. Parker Eickbush came through with a two-run triple to give Hauser the lead and then scored on a single by Miller.
Miller finished 2 for 4 with the homer and four RBIs. Eickbush added the two RBIs
Jackson Paradise relieved Aaron Mee with two out in the third and pitched 4 1/3 shutout innings to pick up the win. Paradise finished with 10 strikeouts.
Hauser will play Oldenburg Academy in the semifinals at 11 a.m. Monday. South Decatur will face Class A No. 3 Rising Sun in the second semifinal at around 1:30 p.m., and the final will be at 7 p.m. Monday.
