Wednesday’s baseball game between Columbus East and Bloomington North was in a deadlock early, but when the Cougars made a pitching change, the momentum went completely to the Olympians.
East put up four runs in the bottom of the third inning and never looked back to claim a 5-0 victory on the Olympians’ senior night.
“We’ve had some hits in key situations. We weren’t getting to those early in the year, but we’re starting to get them now,” East coach Jon Gratz said. “Our guys are starting to get some confidence at the plate. We played a tough schedule all year to prepare them for this time of year. They’re really starting to get some confidence at the plate.”
In the bottom of the third, Bloomington North changed pitchers from starter Wyatt Fleener to Tyler Jones coming on in relief. The Olympians (11-10-1) took advantage when Ben Major drew a walk. Two batters later, Will Rieckers walked, and Josh Luedeke was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Clayton Taylor then delivered a bases-clearing double to put East ahead 3-0. Kaden Wise got into the action and plated another run with a single to make it a 4-0 lead.
“I found the right pitch to hit and drove it into the gap,” Taylor said. “It’s baseball. You’ve got to do what you can.”
In addition to his contribution at the plate, Taylor also pitched a gem Wednesday. He had a no-hitter going through the five innings until it was broken up by the leadoff batter on a blooper to center field.
Only in his second start of the season after dealing with an elbow injury to start the year, Taylor said it felt great to finally get back on the mound.
“It was the best I’ve felt all year. I’m excited to be back,” Taylor said.
The Olympians added another run in the bottom of the fourth as extra insurance, but it didn’t matter with the pitching of Taylor and the defense behind him slamming the door shut.
For East, Taylor pitched a complete game two-hitter with eight strikeouts and went 1 for 3 with a double at the plate. Wise was 2 for 3 with an RBI. Ben Major added the other hit for the Olympians.
This is the fourth straight win for East, with its past two coming against potential sectional opponents.
“We’ve dealt with a lot of adversity throughout the year with some injuries, but they’ve battled through it,” Gratz said. “They continue to work in practice everyday to get better to the point where they’re at right now.”
Gratz appreciated his senior class.
“They’ve meant a ton,” Gratz said. “They’ve missed a whole season their junior year, and I can’t imagine having to go through that as a player. I feel for those guys having only three years of high school baseball, but they’re really stepping up now late in the season.”
