Westchester falls to rival Caldwell in quarterfinals
Michael Lindsay | Enterprise Sports Writer
IGH POINT — Westchester Country Day kept fighting until the end, but it couldn’t quite get anything going.
The second-seeded Wildcats allowed three runs in a hitless second inning, but mostly kept third-seeded Caldwell at bay the rest of the game.
They just couldn’t get any breaks at the plate in falling 4-1 on Saturday at Westchester in the quarterfinals of the NCISAA 2A West baseball playoffs.
“Like I told my guys, it’s always tough to have the last game of your season be a loss,” Westchester coach Devin McLemore said. “But, looking at the circumstances of the game, there’s not really much anything I can be upset with. We had our guy on the mound and he just didn’t have his stuff.
“What I really love to see is that everybody else kind of picked up the rope and pulled their weight. We had a couple opportunities to step up and get some big hits — but so did they and they didn’t either. We had a chance with the tying run at the plate in the last inning, and we’ll always take that.”
Tate Vogler had the lone hit of the game for the Wildcats (8-6), who featured six players who were sophomores or younger in their 10-player lineup. But they were still able to get on base — drawing eight walks and two hit-by-pitches — and move runners into scoring position.
Westchester had two on with no outs and later loaded the bases with two out in the fourth.
Then it had two on with no outs in the fifth, and both times it came away empty-handed. It finally scraped across a run on an error with one out in the seventh and brought the tying run to the plate. But a double-play ended it.
“For me, it’s about showing my guys: You’ve just got to grind,” McLemore said. “As dominant as (Caldwell’s top pitcher) is if he’s on the mound, we’ve still got a chance to tie the game with one swing. So, it’s just great to have that (playoff) experience.”
The rival Eagles (12-7) — who will face the East’s top seed, Wayne Country Day, in the semifinals — took advantage as starter Josh Hammond, an eighth-grader who has performed well throughout the season, struggled to find the strike zone consistently in the second inning.
Caldwell quickly loaded the bases with one out and scored runs on two walks and a hit-by-pitch, chasing Hammond after just 1/3 innings. But relievers Grayson Chapman and Volger escaped a couple tight situations and kept the Eagles, who totaled five hits for the game, in check the rest of the way.
That was enough to keep the Wildcats’ hopes alive and give them a chance.
“It’s baseball — anything can happen,” McLemore said. “If somebody isn’t performing or doesn’t have their best stuff, look, it’s the next man up. And I thought we displayed that beautifully today. Hats off to Grayson and Tate. They scored three runs in the second and that was the difference in the game.”
Westchester graduates seniors Austin Melton, Cook Smith and Jackson Todd. But much of its lineup should be back next year.
“Hats off to Caldwell,” McLemore said. “They’re a good team with a lot of old guys. And the thing about us is, listen, we’re young. They’re graduating quite a few guys. So, I’m super excited about our future.
“I really hate it for the seniors, because I’ve been with those guys for four years. I’ve seen them grow up from little freshman puppies and now they’re about to go off into the world. I hate it for those guys, but they’ve done a great job with their leadership and setting up our program for success in the future.”
mlindsay@hpenews.com | 336-888-3526 | @HPEmichael
Michael Lindsay | Enterprise Sports Writer
IGH POINT — Westchester Country Day kept fighting until the end, but it couldn’t quite get anything going.
The second-seeded Wildcats allowed three runs in a hitless second inning, but mostly kept third-seeded Caldwell at bay the rest of the game.
They just couldn’t get any breaks at the plate in falling 4-1 on Saturday at Westchester in the quarterfinals of the NCISAA 2A West baseball playoffs.
“Like I told my guys, it’s always tough to have the last game of your season be a loss,” Westchester coach Devin McLemore said. “But, looking at the circumstances of the game, there’s not really much anything I can be upset with. We had our guy on the mound and he just didn’t have his stuff.
“What I really love to see is that everybody else kind of picked up the rope and pulled their weight. We had a couple opportunities to step up and get some big hits — but so did they and they didn’t either. We had a chance with the tying run at the plate in the last inning, and we’ll always take that.”
Tate Vogler had the lone hit of the game for the Wildcats (8-6), who featured six players who were sophomores or younger in their 10-player lineup. But they were still able to get on base — drawing eight walks and two hit-by-pitches — and move runners into scoring position.
Westchester had two on with no outs and later loaded the bases with two out in the fourth.
Then it had two on with no outs in the fifth, and both times it came away empty-handed. It finally scraped across a run on an error with one out in the seventh and brought the tying run to the plate. But a double-play ended it.
“For me, it’s about showing my guys: You’ve just got to grind,” McLemore said. “As dominant as (Caldwell’s top pitcher) is if he’s on the mound, we’ve still got a chance to tie the game with one swing. So, it’s just great to have that (playoff) experience.”
The rival Eagles (12-7) — who will face the East’s top seed, Wayne Country Day, in the semifinals — took advantage as starter Josh Hammond, an eighth-grader who has performed well throughout the season, struggled to find the strike zone consistently in the second inning.
Caldwell quickly loaded the bases with one out and scored runs on two walks and a hit-by-pitch, chasing Hammond after just 1/3 innings. But relievers Grayson Chapman and Volger escaped a couple tight situations and kept the Eagles, who totaled five hits for the game, in check the rest of the way.
That was enough to keep the Wildcats’ hopes alive and give them a chance.
“It’s baseball — anything can happen,” McLemore said. “If somebody isn’t performing or doesn’t have their best stuff, look, it’s the next man up. And I thought we displayed that beautifully today. Hats off to Grayson and Tate. They scored three runs in the second and that was the difference in the game.”
Westchester graduates seniors Austin Melton, Cook Smith and Jackson Todd. But much of its lineup should be back next year.
“Hats off to Caldwell,” McLemore said. “They’re a good team with a lot of old guys. And the thing about us is, listen, we’re young. They’re graduating quite a few guys. So, I’m super excited about our future.
“I really hate it for the seniors, because I’ve been with those guys for four years. I’ve seen them grow up from little freshman puppies and now they’re about to go off into the world. I hate it for those guys, but they’ve done a great job with their leadership and setting up our program for success in the future.”
mlindsay@hpenews.com | 336-888-3526 | @HPEmichael
