VaDeer strikes out 14 as Athletics move past Spring Grove
Published 8:05 pm Monday, May 27, 2024
Hunter VaDeer winds up for Lyle-Pacelli. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com
Jack Klingfus drives a pitch through the falling rain in the first inning against Spring Grove in Riverland Monday. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com
Grady Meyer hauls in a pop fly for Lyle-Pacelli. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com
Lyle-Pacelli first baseman Landon Meyer tries to find a throw as Spring Grove’s Gabe Klug reaches base in a Section 1A tournament game in Riverland Monday. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com
Dane Schara pitches in the seventh inning for the Athletics at Riverland Monday. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com
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It’s beginning to become routine for Lyle-Pacelli junior Hunter VaDeer to escape early trouble and dominate the rest of the game.
That’s the way it was for VaDeer and the Athletics on Monday as No. 2 seeded Lyle-Pacelli dodged an early threat from No. 6 Spring Grove to win 5-2 in a Section 1A tournament game in Riverland.
SG (15-8 overall) had its first three runners reach base in the top of the first inning, but VaDeer recorded three straight strikeouts to escape trouble. He finished the game with 14 strikeouts in six innings as he allowed four hits and one unearned run.
LP, which will play Hayfield at noon Saturday in Riverland, is now two wins from getting back to state after it lost its final two games of the regular season.
“We knew it was a whole new season with the playoffs starting and nothing in the regular season mattered,” VaDeer said. “The seeding doesn’t matter. You’ve got to just win games and move on.”
LP (19-2 overall) took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Landon Meyer doubled in two runs and VaDeer singled in a run. Dane Schara added an RBI double in a two-run fourth inning for LP and he also pitched the final inning of the win.
“It was super easy for me (to pitch the seventh), because I knew my boys had my back behind me. I never had a doubt. All that matters is Saturday now. We’ve got to keep throwing strikes and living in the zone,” Schara said. “It’s a completely different team than last year and we’ve been having a lot of fun together.”
LP is in prime position as it will have all of its pitching available this weekend.
“It’s all based on our pitching and we’ve got to come up with some more timely hits,” LP head coach Brock Meyer said. “We left a lot of guys on base today and we could’ve broken the game open earlier. It’ll be nice to have our top two guys ready to go for Saturday.”
Meyer has coached LP to plenty of Section 1A tournament runs over the years and he said it is a challenge to wait for that Monday game to start.
“The hard part on Memorial Day is sitting around and waiting for this game. I wish they would play it at noon, because you sit there and you keep seeing ‘get here, get here,’” Meyer said. “The weather was also a little bit of an issue, but the kids kept focus for the most part.”
SG 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 – 2 6 0
LP 0 3 0 2 0 0 X – 5 10 1
LP pitching: Hunter VaDeer (W) 6 IP, 4 H, 5 BB, 1 R, 0 ER, 14 K; Dane Schara, 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER
LP hitting: Landon Meyer, 3-for-4, double, 2 RBIs, R; Logyn Brooks, 2-for-4, R; VaDeer, 2-for-4, double, RBI, R, SB; Isaac Nelsen, 0-for-2, RBI, 2 BBs; Schara, 1-for-2, double, RBI, 2 BBs; Jack Klingfus, 0-for-3; Isaac Small, 1-for-3, R, SB; Joey Shulte, 0-for-3; Grady Meyer, 1-for-1, R, HBP, BB
